In brief, media entrepreneur Jack Z. Sherman (aka. zyylk) started his career in high school with developing a computer game, then produced journalistic content for print and local radio, then moved on to hosting and producing entertainment content on international television, then introduced interactivity to it, and later has been among the pioneers of crossmedia and branded entertainment.
Currently, Jack Z. Sherman's focus is on rendering advisory services to media projects with contributing ideas and content as well as on pursuing the idea of a revolutionizing new approach to the music industry's monetization mechanisms.
Taking an idea and developing it into a money generating media operation takes a lot of creativity, expertise, experience and, of course, contacts. It's always good to hire an advisor bringing in a different point if view.
Jack Z. Sherman contributes his creativity and experience when it comes to developing and positioning crossmedia content. He's also available as co-executive producer or monetization strategist. And, some of his previous, innovative ideas still work in today's media landscape.
We realized there is the need to create something truly global in music "From Hollywood to Bollywood, from K‑pop to Kiwi". Music unites people, and ORYX intends to use this power to make the world a better place for all of us!
The original ORYX Music Awards concept has been developed for China in 2014, but never got realized. Now, the idea saw a revival when, together with industry experts, it got turned into a "Web3 meets Real World" ecosystem, bearing new revenue streams for the music industry and adding new excitement for fans.
www.oryxawards.comBesides pursuing his own activities, Jack Z. Sherman always supported and assisted other media companies and organizations by contributing his international contacts and expertise.
Executive Director of Global Relations
AIPA was organized to increase the general public's appreciation of the performing arts, for example by organizing international cultural exchange programs and collaborations of individuals, organizations and institutions.
2012 through 2018, Jack Z. Sherman served as (honorary) Executive Director of Global Relations at this Chicago/USA based not-for profit organization, primarily accompanying USA-China relations.
WMA Ambassador
From 1989 to 2014, the WMA were one of the 3 major globally recognized music events. By worldwide TV ratings, they were #2 behind the "Grammy Awards". The "MTV Music Awards" were #3.
2009 through 2012, Jack Z. Sherman has served as the only WMA Ambassador ever, facilitating for example government level negotiations with Brazil, Qatar, China and the UAE as potential hosts for the event.
WMA @ Wikipedia
Int'l Advisory Council Member
The WCOPA is often cited as the official "Talent Olympics" for aspiring performers and entertainers from over 80 countries, held annually in Los Angeles.
2010 through 2015, Jack Z. Sherman joined reknown industry figures as member of the WCOPA International Advisory Council, and also served as judge during competitions at the annual event.
www.wcopa.comJack Z. Sherman:
"It has been a long and exciting journey from 1985 to today! Let's take a look back and see how media and the media landscape have changed since then."
In 1985 when Jack Z. Sherman still attended school, home computers started becoming mainstream, with the Commodore C64 being the game changer. He realized a huge potential! And, a few years later, he converted his radio expertise into his television debut.
A basic stock market simulation allowing to trade several companies' shares based on prices determined by random (ficticious) market events.
At a time when only action games dominated the home computer market, this has been among the first educational games. The German language version "Börsenspiel" for Germany, Austria and Switzerland has been sold to a major European bank for being distributed to schools for free.
Contestants compete in themed quizzes and silly games on the original set of a show they're the biggest fans of. Hosted by Jack Sherman, with sidekick Black German, a real German Shepherd dog.
A pilot episode has been produced in 1991 for a major German TV network, but the network's lawyers saw legal concerns with using other shows' sets. Jack and his real-life canine co-host decided to do a radio show instead.
Jack Z. Sherman:
"After gaining experience with networks, productions and sales, it was about time for some formats of my own."
In 1993, the time was right for launching absolutely innovative formats developed and produced for classic, linear television.
A crazy on-location talk show with users' live comments appearing as captions. Guests all wore large name tags, the show's mugs were offered for $99 (Call 1-900-RIPOFF), and locations sometimes were at crowded places.
Definitely a very different kind of talk show for US syndicated TV. In 1993, the interactivity shown has been fake though, but it kind of pioneered the idea which years later appeared in many formats.
www.jacktalking.tv
On this comedy travelogue, Jack and 6 female co-stars travel the world and present an entertaining mix of on-location sketches, sightseeing and street action. Not to forget the hilarious parodies of TV hits like Dynasty or Charlie's Angels!
Tested as a special in 1993 sponsored by Hawaiian Tropic sun care products and filmed during a Caribbean sea cruise, the concept became a series for US syndicated TV in 1994.
Jack Z. Sherman:
"Y2K is here! You gotta have a .com in your company's name. Let's join all the gold diggers, but cash in and exit before it crashes!"
The Internet became mainstream and allowed true interactivity, Napster revolutionized audio content distribution, the dotcom bubble burst at the end. And, it still took years for social media to become mainstream or residential bandwidths becoming sufficient for even a low-res YouTube.
In short comedy bits, arrogant Arrow Gant goes on location for fictitious "DDT News" (named after the banned pestizide) and reports all kinds of news.
Originally, Arrow Gant was a segment on every episode of "A Funny Experience". As it turned out ideal for the rising crossmedia exploitation of content, it was revived as standalone scripted/unscripted segments for low bandwidth. A major Italian network even considered a half-hour sitcom, but plans were dropped.
www.arrowgant.tv
This interactive format accompanies 6 contestants and the film crew on their literal "Trip to Stardom" around the globe. Viewers turn producers and assist them in showbiz challenges.
In 2004, the term "branded entertainment" didn't exist yet and "crossmedia" was new. This concept sure was the perfect blueprint! Even though it never made it past a pilot, its innovative and groundbreaking ideas and strategies have been sold to the majors.
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