{"id":266039,"date":"2026-04-13T19:47:07","date_gmt":"2026-04-13T19:47:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/266039\/"},"modified":"2026-04-13T19:47:07","modified_gmt":"2026-04-13T19:47:07","slug":"new-vertical-summit-highlights-industry-shift-kfi-am-640","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/266039\/","title":{"rendered":"New Vertical Summit Highlights Industry Shift | KFI AM 640"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The way we watch, and make, content is changing fast, and a new Los Angeles summit is putting that shift front and center.<\/p>\n<p>Zak Barnett Studios, Paul Ruddy Casting and Eris Entertainment have teamed up to launch the <a href=\"https:\/\/vertical.zakbarnett.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Vertical Summit,<\/a> a two-day event designed to help actors and creators navigate the rapidly growing world of vertical filmmaking. The event will feature panels, workshops, and networking opportunities with major players shaping this emerging space.<\/p>\n<p>Dubbed \u201cThe Vertical Revolution,\u201d the summit focuses on how storytelling is evolving for the 9:16 frame\u2014content designed to be viewed on smartphones. Industry leaders say this isn\u2019t just a passing trend, but a fundamental shift in how audiences consume entertainment.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe screen has rotated,\u201d organizers note, pointing to a new era where bite-sized, mobile-first storytelling is redefining acting, directing, and production.<\/p>\n<p>The summit\u2019s agenda reflects that transformation, with sessions covering everything from how to land roles in vertical series to the business models driving the format and what production looks like on a vertical set. A wide range of speakers\u2014from casting directors and showrunners to actors and producers\u2014will offer insight into how careers are being built in this fast-moving sector.<\/p>\n<p>The timing is no coincidence. As traditional film and TV production continues to fluctuate, Los Angeles city leaders are reportedly exploring a <a href=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/2026\/digital\/news\/los-angeles-5-million-subsidy-microdrama-production-1236644022\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">$5 million subsidy<\/a> aimed specifically at boosting vertical filming. City leaders say it&#8217;s all part of an effort to keep emerging production formats rooted in Hollywood.<\/p>\n<p>For creators and performers looking to stay ahead of the curve, the Vertical Summit signals where the industry may be heading next: straight up\u2014and viewed in the palm of your hand.<\/p>\n<p>KFI Live host Heather Brooker spoke to Zak Barnett about the event and why anyone interested in getting into the vertical business should check out the summit.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The way we watch, and make, content is changing fast, and a new Los Angeles summit is putting&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":266040,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[7048,3557,7053,26,7065,7057,4300,7061,7060,7054,7052,7056,7055,7066,6217,48,7068,52,51,47,50,49,7063,7062,973,7069,100,7064,2083,611,1839,4201,6220,7070,7049,7050,7051,7059,7058,7067],"class_list":{"0":"post-266039","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-los-angeles","8":"tag-7048","9":"tag-am","10":"tag-bill-handel","11":"tag-breaking-news","12":"tag-broadcasting","13":"tag-conway","14":"tag-eaton-fire","15":"tag-gary-shannon","16":"tag-gary-and-shannon","17":"tag-gary-hoffmann","18":"tag-handel","19":"tag-john-ken","20":"tag-john-and-ken","21":"tag-john-kobylt","22":"tag-kfi","23":"tag-la","24":"tag-la-fires","25":"tag-la-headlines","26":"tag-la-news","27":"tag-los-angeles","28":"tag-los-angeles-headlines","29":"tag-los-angeles-news","30":"tag-los-angeles-radio","31":"tag-los-angeles-talk-radio","32":"tag-media","33":"tag-mo-kelly","34":"tag-news","35":"tag-newstalk","36":"tag-oc","37":"tag-orange-county","38":"tag-palisades-fire","39":"tag-radio","40":"tag-radio-station","41":"tag-santa-ana-winds","42":"tag-stay-connected","43":"tag-stimulating","44":"tag-talk","45":"tag-talk-radio","46":"tag-tim-conway","47":"tag-wild-fire"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/266039","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=266039"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/266039\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/266040"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=266039"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=266039"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=266039"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}