CMA Bay Area is excited to partner with UC Berkeley’s Business Careers in Entertainment Club (BCEC) for an inspiring evening, The Past and Future of Children’s Media.

The event will feature Donna Mitroff, one of CMA Bay Area’s founding members, presenting: “50 Years of Children’s Media.” Following the presentation, join us for an engaging activity and conversation with local industry leaders and UC Berkeley students. Food and refreshments will be served.

Space for this event is very limited. Please RSVP as soon as possible to claim your spot.

Join CMA for a tour of the Brooklyn Museum and the “Oliver Jeffers: Life at Sea” exhibit, hosted by PBS KIDS’ Sarah Wallendjack and Cathryn Asip! We’ll begin the day with a casual meetup at the museum café at 11:00 AM, where registrants can purchase refreshments and get to know fellow CMA members. At 12:00, we’ll embark on a self-guided tour of the museum and Oliver Jeffers’ “Life at Sea” exhibit – an immersive installation room where guests can craft their own marine animals and explore an underwater environment while tracing the ripple effects of climate change.

Ticket price includes Brooklyn Museum admission.

Sarah Wallendjack:

Sarah Wallendjack is an Emmy award-winning Executive Producer with a 20+ year career developing and creating impactful children’s content.

Prior to joining PBS KIDS as the Sr. Director of Content Development in 2023, Sarah worked as the VP, Development and Production at 9 Story Media Group where she led the development of original properties and oversaw a slate of ambitious creator-driven development and production projects with an aim to better children’s lives through media.

While at Out of the Blue Enterprises (for over a decade), Sarah Executive Produced SUPER WHY!, PBS’s long-running hit literacy series and co-created a spinoff literacy series called Super Why’s Comic Book Adventures for PBS KIDS. She also developed and Executive Produced Netflix’s Charlie’s Colorforms City, and served as the Supervising Producer on five seasons of Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood, helping to create over 100 episodes, which earned 5 Emmy nominations and won the award for Outstanding Children’s Animated Preschool Series in 2019. Prior to her role at Out of the Blue, Sarah worked on Nickelodeon’s Wonder Pets!, Disney’s Go Baby!, Disney’s Johnny and the Sprites and PBS’s Kids Block with Miss Lori and Hooper.

A leader in the industry, Sarah was the President of the Children’s Media Association and is passionate about fostering the next generation of children’s media makers. In her free time, Sarah enjoys scuba diving, synchronized swimming, sewing a handmade wardrobe, the Muppets, and making things.

Cathryn Asip:

As Associate Director of Content for PBS KIDS, Cathryn Asip manages content strategy and oversees the development of new broadcast, streaming, and interactive content. She works with creators from pitch to pilot, helping shape their projects for the PBS KIDS audience. She also serves as a production executive for several current PBS KIDS series, including Phoebe & Jay and Rosie’s Rules. In 2024 she was named one of Current’s Rising Stars in public media. She also volunteers as a crisis counselor at New York-Presbyterian Hospital and coordinates Children’s Media Association’s monthly book club. Based in Brooklyn, New York, Cathryn joined PBS in 2016 and is an alumna of Hollins University.

Feedback is essential to any creative process, professional role, or personal relationship. It’s also hard to take. In our final book club discussion of the year, we’ll discuss strategies for soliciting, interpreting, and responding to feedback with curiosity and grace – guided by our reading of “Thanks for the Feedback: The Science and Art of Receiving Feedback Well” by Douglas Stone and Sheila Heen. Moderated by CMA Book Club coordinator Cathryn Asip.

’Tis the season for CMA NY’s annual Holiday Party! Join us as we kick off the holidays in style on Wednesday, December 10 at the Dickens 3D Bar in Midtown. There will be food, drinks, music, dancing, games, and more—all alongside your favorite friends and colleagues in children’s media. Let’s toast our incredible community that champions career development, inspires innovation, and celebrates storytelling that makes a difference!

CMA LA IS INVITING YOU!

‘Twas the end of the season, and all through LA,Storytellers set to gather, in the most festive way.With food-truck feasts and brews on tap,Toasting our wins with joyful snaps.From creators to dreamers, execs to peers,Here’s to stories you sparked through the year.So mark your calendar, bring your cheer… CMA LA’s holiday night is here!

Let’s close out the year with laughter, gratitude, and optimism for what’s to come because the best stories are still ahead!

Cheers to Resilience, Community, and What’s Next!

Please join us for our December In-Person Potluck Meet-up.  Our very special guests are Jordan Gerhsowitz, Exec. Producer/Head Writer of “Karters,” “Hot Wheels: Let’s Race,” “Thomas and Friends: All Engines Go” and Bethany Armstrong, Story Editor and Head Writer on “Jurassic World: Chaos Theory” and Dreamworks’, “Dragons: The Nine Realms”.

For the potluck, use last your last name: 

A-F Dessert/Pastry

G-M Drink

N-R Main Dish/Protein

S-Z Fruit/Side Dish

CMA Connect: Talent Exchange

Join us for a special CMA Connect designed to spark collaboration, expand your creative network, and get projects moving. Talent Trade Connect is a community-powered space where members can barter skills, exchange support, and team up to bring kids’ content to life. 

Whether you’re looking for an illustrator, a script polish, production guidance, or a fresh creative eye, this session is your chance to trade what you do best for what you need most. Let’s build, create, and elevate together.