PROGRAMS & EVENTS

Meet Darnell Strom, a Partner and Head of the Culture & Commerce Division at premiere talent and entertainment company, UTA. Strom represents the most culturally influential talent, brands, and organizations across entertainment, media, sports, fashion, art, entrepreneurship, politics, and thought leadership. He works with pioneers whose creative visions shape culture and recalibrate the ways we see the world. Strom works to expand his clients’ platforms across content, brand partnerships, technology, ventures, consumer products, and live events/experiences. Prior to UTA, Darnell Strom was an Agent at Creative Artists Agency (CAA). At CAA, Strom developed relationships with clients and helped build their strategy for developing a vibrant platform across speaking, books, television, motion picture, technology, podcasts and digital. Strom’s clients included Dwyane Wade, Will Smith, Katy Perry, Trevor Noah, Vice President Joe Biden, and Gayle King. Strom also advised top global brands like Google, Nike, Salesforce, and Target on talent partnerships and marketing campaigns. Prior to this, Strom served as a strategic advisor to actors, writers, directors, music artists, athletes, executives and corporations on their philanthropic and pro-social initiatives at the CAA Foundation. In 2005, Strom was named Deputy Director of Scheduling to President Bill Clinton, working in the former President’s Harlem offices. He served in this role until 2006, when he was asked to create a program that reflected President Clinton’s vision of engaging the next generation of leaders, philanthropists, and social entrepreneurs in the work of the William J. Clinton Foundation. Strom formally launched this program in 2007 as the Clinton Foundation Millennium Network. The Millennium Network has been recognized by President Clinton as an essential fundraising component to the future of the Clinton Foundation. Strom began his career in politics, non-profit work, and social entrepreneurship. He served as Director of the Chair’s office at the 2004 Democratic National Convention, where he focused on political outreach to core Democratic constituency groups. At the conclusion of the Democratic Convention, Strom was named the Florida Director of Operations for John Kerry’s Presidential campaign, making him one of the youngest senior staff members of the campaign in a battleground State. Strom is currently an Independent Director on the board of Wynn Resorts (NASDAQ: WYNN). Strom also serves on the Advisory Board of the Venture Capital firm Nordstar. He has previously been a member of President Obama’s White House Entertainment Council, GQ Magazine’s Gentlemen’s Fund Advisory Committee, and the Paley Center’s Media Council. Strom graduated with honors from Florida A&M University with a B.S. in Political Science. He hails from San Jose, California and resides in Los Angeles, California. In this Leadership Talk, we will cover: - Strom's career journey - How he transitioned from politics and nonprofit work to media and entertainment - His perspective on the current state of the industry - What aspiring creatives and future leaders need to know to break in and succeed in Hollywood. For more on Darnell Strom, go to: https://www.futurenowmediafoundation.org/programs We will have a Q&A with the audience. Please bring your questions. Please RSVP by Oct 22. Space is limited.