5 | Justin Ching: J-School Productions

This week we speak with Justin Ching, producer and founder of a production company named j-school based in Los Angeles. Justin was recently named a Forbes 30 under 30 in the Media Division for Defining and Driving the World of News and Content. He’s made several hit series for Amazon, FOX, Showtime* and YouTube including the sports news show @TheBuzzer, the comedy series The Fighter & The Kid, and the docu-series Z Dream, the highest-rated program on FOX's SPEED Network.

Justin has a lot to say about the current state of the media and entertainment industry. We speak to him about: 

His path to becoming a producer,

How he used his production company to reach across the aisle to other minority groups,

The financial mechanisms behind filmmaking, and 

What it takes to work in an industry where you need thick skin


More importantly, Justin’s personal story is an empowering one about how to find your own voice.  

*Point of Clarification: We mistakenly mentioned Showtime in the episode. Justin has never produced anything for Showtime, but his producing partners have. 

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Relevant Links Mentioned in the Show:

Justin’s production company, j-school: https://j-school.co/
Tim McNeal, VP of Creative Talent and Development at ABC, who gave Justin the opportunity to intern at ABC Primetime when he was in college: https://www.abctalentdevelopment.com/about_staff1.html

Justin on the 2018 Forbes 30 Under 30 List: https://www.forbes.com/pictures/5be1eedf31358e5b4335b156/justin-r-ching-29/#ceeebf01d10e

Justin was part of UPenn’s first and only spoken word group, The Excelano Project. Check out a recent spoken word piece by Karen Yang: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ItC1EihPT0A&list=PLpZuXS6T59FLwX9-m0rNWrIRkVB8SbsY3

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Justin’s bio: Justin R. Ching, who began his career with YouTube Originals, helped launch channels like VICE and has produced shows for Fox and Amazon, including most recently the NFL docuseries “Ritual”. He also has an Asian American docuseries in the works for Food Network. Through his production company, j-school, he aims to empower underrepresented groups to tell their own stories.

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Justin's contact Info: As Justin mentioned on the show, he welcomes anyone interested in the industry to reach out to him. His email is [email protected]. Follow him on all social platforms for the latest: @justinrching.

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Each week on Rock The Boat, co-hosts Lucia Liu and Lynne Guey take you into the minds of an Asian American entrepreneur, technologist, or creative  and ask them how they view success, what they struggle with, and what it means to rock the boat.

A big thanks to our audio editor, Molly Schulson! Check out her personalized audio story collection at tellmystoryaudio.com. 

As always, please subscribe and share this episode with anyone who you think could benefit from it. Leave us a kind review and maybe a 5-star rating ;) 

If you have suggestions for topics about the Asian American community, or a personal story that you’d like to share, email us at [email protected]. Follow our journey on Instagram and Twitter @rocktheboatnyc, and sign up for monthly newsletter updates on our website gorocktheboat.com 

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