Conference Speaker Biographies

Kevin is an entertainment lawyer, entrepreneur, investor, and philanthropist, and founder of leading entertainment law firm Yorn Levine, Through his law firm, investment firm, and ownership in category-defining companies including Spotify, Warby Parker, Impossible Foods, Lyft, Public.com, Thrive Market, and others, and in leading funds and vehicles including Plus Capital, SV Angel, Valor, Collaborative and The Helena Brain Trust, he embodies a true multi-hyphenate of the highest order. Kevin’s philanthropic affiliations include Stand Up 2 Cancer, Cedars-Sinai Hospital, and Tulane University.

In 2018, Yorn negotiated a record-breaking deal for his long-term client, Scarlett Johansson, making her the highest-earning actress in the history of cinema. Yorn also negotiated Zoe Saldaña’s deals in the Avatar and Marvel franchises. Johansson and Saldaña are the highest and second-highest grossing actresses of all time.

Yorn’s firm also represents globally-celebrated entertainment luminaries such as Alicia Keys, Anna Kendrick, CSI creator Anthony Zuiker, Black-ish creator Kenya Barris, TikTok influencers Charli and Dixie D’Amelio, Chris Rock, “the Dans”—Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert—who directed Everything Everywhere All At Once, Ellen DeGeneres, Eva Longoria, Gisele Bündchen, Jason Sudeikis, Jonah Hill, Jordan Peele, Matthew McConaughey, Mike Judge, Scarlett Johansson, Squid Game creator Hwang Dong-hyuk, Steph Curry, Taika Waititi, South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone, Zach Galifianakis, and Zoe Saldaña, among many others.

In addition to brokering legacy deals on their behalf, Yorn also works alongside his clients to launch new ventures and seek to realize their most ambitious charitable endeavors. In 2014, Yorn co-created and led financing for his partnership with Ellen DeGeneres in Ellen Digital Ventures and her lifestyle brand, ED Ellen DeGeneres, and since its inception, Yorn has been instrumental in the work of the Ellen DeGeneres Campus of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund in Rwanda.

Yorn proudly serves as a founding member on a number of corporate Boards including Common Sense Media, Language Media, LBI Entertainment, Zoe Saldaña’s BeSe, Ellen Digital Ventures, and Portia de Rossi’s General Public, which has an exclusive art partnership with Restoration Hardware.

He also plays a role in multiple non-profit organizations including serving on the Board of Governors of Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, as Co-Chairman of the Tulane Fund, and as Chairperson, Founder, and Chief Benefactor of Tulane’s annual sports and entertainment symposium. In addition, the Yorn Family Fund proudly supports the life-saving efforts of Stand up to Cancer through large scale donations and in funding the development of high-impact content such as the upcoming documentary, Life, Unexpected, that will air on PBS and is projected to raise millions for pediatric cancer research.

Yorn graduated from Muhlenberg College in Allentown, Pennsylvania with a B.A. in Business Administration, and earned his J.D. at Tulane University in New Orleans, LA. After graduating from law school, Yorn began his career working for the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s office as a Homicide Prosecutor in the Hardcore Gang Division.

Alongside his brothers Rick, a leading talent manager, and Pete, an acclaimed musician and singer/songwriter, Yorn is a part of a Hollywood royalty triumvirate. He is a passionate art creator and collector and alongside fellow artist, Leslie Nix, he Founded Studio 68, where the two create artisan furniture, lighting, and fine art.

Yorn splits his time between California, NYC, and New Orleans, where his daughter, Samantha, recently graduated from Tulane University.

About Yorn Levine Barnes Krintzman Rubenstein Kohner Endlich & Gellman
Yorn Levine is a leading, LA-based entertainment law firm serving a client roster of premiere talent and institutions in the industry. The firm also supports the fundraising efforts of venture and growth companies in all areas of consumer and tech, as well as assisting clients in the media ecosystem with their business investments and partnerships.

The firm’s clients include talent such as Scarlett Johansson, Mike Judge, Matthew McConaughey, Jordan Peele, and Jason Sudeikis. They also work with comedians such as Chris Rock and Sebastian Maniscalco, athletes like Steph Curry, and famed musicians such as Snoop Dogg and Alicia Keys. They represent creators behind Emmy-winning series like Hwang Dong-hyuk and Kim Ji-Yeon, executive producers of “Squid Game’’ on Netflix, Bill Lawrence, co-creator behind “Ted Lasso’’ on Apple TV+, the Duffer Brothers who created “Stranger Things’’ on Netflix, Dan Levy, the writer, executive producer, and actor for “Schitt’s Creek,” and Loren Bouchard, creator and animator behind “Bob’s Burgers.” They’re also proud to work with the celebrated duo “the Dans”—Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert—who directed “Everything Everywhere All At Once” among many others.

Tim Francis is a writer, producer, and practicing lawyer. He was born and raised on a Black college campus in New Orleans where his father, a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, was the longest serving college president in U.S. history. From there, Tim went on to work for a U.S. Cabinet Secretary and a U.S. Senator before moving to Los Angeles to work for Stevie Wonder. Since then, Tim and Stevie worked closely with the Secretary General of the United Nations to pass a global treaty that impacts the visually impaired. As a writer-producer, Tim has had a first look deal at Sony Pictures, a television project at Fremantle Media, and has a feature in development with Gary Ross and Matt Jackson, and a feature in development with Steven Pearl and Adam Kolbrenner at Lit Entertainment. Tim serves on the Board of Administrators of Tulane University, the Trombone Shorty Foundation, and the Murphy Institute- a political economy think-tank.

Jeff Frost enjoys over 25 years of experience in the entertainment industry, having worked at the highest levels of some of the most prominent television enterprises in the business. Frost most recently served as President of Sony Pictures Television Studios (“SPTS”), overseeing the studio’s rise to become the leading independent television studio. Frost is currently President of Bristol Circle Entertainment (“BCE”), a boutique production company focused on developing and producing premium and scripted dramas and comedies from some of the most preeminent writers and creators.

Representative Significant Accomplishments

• Frost orchestrated and successfully conducted the renegotiation with AMC for Breaking Bad that unlocked the rights for Sony to sell library episodes to Netflix, which exposed the iconic, yet then sparsely viewed series to new and broader audiences. This development helped to ultimately cement the iconic series as one of the greatest television projects of all time.
• Frost devised and implemented the strategy to move Norman Lear’s One Day at a Time from Netflix to CBS and Pop TV, marking it as the first major television series to move from Netflix to linear television.
• Frost devised and negotiated some of the earliest license agreements with the leading streamers, including Netflix, Amazon and Hulu, helping to usher in the era of original content at streaming platforms and achieved some of the highest license premiums paid to an independent studio by those streamers to date.
• Frost was instrumental in the rise of Sony Pictures Television Studios to its dominant position in the industry, overseeing the remarkable increase in the licensing of television series from less than a dozen to more than 50, including some of the most critically acclaimed and widely viewed programs on their respective platforms. Frost formulated and managed the business, licensing and creative strategy that resulted in the studio’s dramatic ascension.
• Under his newly formed production company, Bristol Circle Entertainment, Frost choreographed the development and licensing of the latest Vince Gilligan series, culminating in a two season straight to series order from Apple+ and significant premium license fee.

Bristol Circle Entertainment

Frost currently serves as President of Bristol Circle Entertainment, a premium production company dedicated to creating exceptional and distinctive television projects for digital, cable and broadcast platforms. Frost oversees all creative, business and production facets of the company, including devising and implementing the overall strategic focus of the venture. Shortly after the launch of the company, BCE’s first production, the Untitled Vince Gilligan Project, was licensed to Apple+ in the most significant and prominent television sale of the year. BCE is currently developing several premium properties based on underlying works of Stephen King, John Grisham and Stan Lee.

Sony Pictures Television Studios

Frost served as President of Sony Pictures Television Studios, managing all production, creative, business, marketing, research and programming divisions of the studio. Under his tenure, SPTS produced more than 50 television programs, distributed on more than 20 different platforms from broadcast to cable to streaming, including some of the most highly regarded and prominent programs on those platforms. SPTS’ productions encompassed all aspects of television, including scripted dramas and comedies, unscripted series, animation, game shows, soap operas, syndicated talk shows and television movies and limited series. As the largest and most prolific independent television studio, SPTS produced programming for virtually every major distribution platform, including Netflix, Apple+, Amazon, HBO, Showtime, Starz, FX, AMC, ABC, NBC and CBS. Productions included The Boys, Cobra Kai, Better Call Saul, The Good Doctor, Shark Tank, Wheel of Time, Crossing Swords, The Afterparty, S.W.A.T., The Blacklist and Outlander.

Frost was instrumental in recruiting and retaining some of SPTS’ premier talent for the studio, including Phil Lord & Chris Miller, Howard Gordon & Alex Gansa, Amy Lippman, Vince Gilligan, Carla Kettner, Neil Moritz, Norman Lear, Michele Fazekas & Tara Butters, Nick Stoller and Tyler the Creator. Frost also orchestrated the move of numerous series from one platform to another, following cancellation on the initial platform, including Cobra Kai from You Tube to Netflix, One Day at A Time from Netflix to Pop and LA’s Finest from NBC to Spectrum. Frost was actively involved in the creation of numerous new business templates and license agreements with broadcasters, streamers and cable networks as the industry evolved and the business needs of studios and distributors transformed. Frost also established Gemstone Studios, the innovative sub-studio within SPTS focused on creating and producing cost-efficient, quality “indie” style programming.

Formerly, as Executive Vice-President, U.S. Business Affairs for SPT, Frost played a lead role in SPT’s overall strategy and negotiations with the studio’s broadcast and production partners and talent, overseeing the studio’s U.S. Business Affairs Department, including day to day operations as well as strategic counsel on the company’s network, cable and syndicated television productions. Frost managed SPT’s negotiations between the studio and its partners at networks, production companies, talent, and other outside companies. In this role, Frost was one of the key architects of the initial licensing templates for emerging platforms such as Netflix, Amazon Prime and Hulu.

Earlier Positions

Frost joined SPT in 2008 from ABC Studios, where he served as Senior Vice-President, Business Affairs for the studio’s traditional production arm, as well as their digital media group. Frost joined ABC in 1997 as an attorney in the litigation department and, beginning in 1999, held posts in the legal affairs and business affairs departments for the production company, Touchstone Television, through 2003, when he segued into ABC Cable Networks as Senior Vice-President and Head of Legal Affairs. He rejoined Touchstone Television in 2005 as Senior Vice-President, leading the legal department before taking on his role at SPT in Business Affairs. Series in which Frost was involved include Lost, Grey’s Anatomy and Desperate Housewives.