Business of Entertainment

Ellen Doherty
Chief Creative Officer
Fred Rogers Productions

Ellen Doherty (she/her) is Chief Creative Officer for Fred Rogers Productions, overseeing the creation of television and digital content for the company’s PBS KIDS series—Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood,
Peg + Cat, Odd Squad, Donkey Hodie, and Alma’s Way. She is the creator, head writer, and executive producer of the award-winning Through the Woods, a short form series about nature. Ellen also serves as an executive producer on FRP’s newest series Donkey Hodie and Alma’s Way, which both premiered on PBS KIDS in 2021. In 2018, she was nominated for a Primetime Emmy® Award for Mister Rogers: It’s You I Like, the retrospective tribute to the 50th anniversary of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood. An Emmy® Award-winning producer and writer with more than 20 years’ experience in children's media, Ellen was previously executive producer and story editor of the PBS KIDS series Cyberchase. She oversaw production of television and digital content for the series for six seasons, including several shortform video series. Ellen began her career as an associate producer on the award-winning PBS KIDS series Reading Rainbow. She has a B.A. in Communications from Boston College.

Norman Praught
Entertainment Tech
Entrepreneur

Norman Praught is an entertainment tech entrepreneur and intrapreneur, who has launched startup companies and spearheaded new ventures within major studios, including Disney, Sony, DreamWorks, Lucasfilm, and Amazon. He is deeply passionate about storytelling and fostering artist collaboration in emerging media. At Disney, Norman developed the business plan for the company’s first major venture into interactive educational content. At Sony, he established the business infrastructure for independent film companies in Hong Kong and Berlin, and received an achievement award for his work on an early prototype of the Sony Store in San Francisco and New York. During his time at DreamWorks, Norman was part of the finance team that modeled deals and secured investments for major film franchises, including Shrek and Kung Fu Panda. As Head of Finance at Lucasfilm Animation, he worked on Clone Wars, Rebels, and Strange Magic. Additionally, Norman has launched two independent studios: Netsuke, which produced a magic, spell-fighting game, and, most recently, Luminous Blue, an animation studio focused on creating original children’s stories and experiences.

Kara Corwin
Global Head of Business and Legal Affairs
Moonbug Entertainment