Creative marketing and production company 19th & Park is thrilled to announce the addition of two new faces to their team: Executive Producer William Oaks IV and Head of Production Morgan Saunders.
Oaks brings well over a decade of hit television production experience, most recently on CNN’s The Wonder List. Saunders’ production credits span the globe, having worked on a number of top-ranking series for Netflix, National Geographic, and Travel Channel.
“With their collective experience in producing digital, commercial, and original series, having Will and Morgan helm the production department is an exciting step forward in shaping 19th & Park into a long-standing player in this field,” says Tahira White, 19th & Park Co-Founder and President. “Our dedication to changing the faces of leadership roles in advertising continues and I’m thrilled to have these two incredibly talented individuals at the forefront.”
William Oaks IV
Oaks’ producing career has seen a true evolution, from production intern to line producer, and most recently, to 19th & Park’s newest Executive Producer. With a wide-ranging production resume from the BET Awards to Victoria’s Secret Fashion Shows to the Emmy-nominated CBS special Bruno Mars Live at The Apollo, Oaks approaches his projects with an eye for the theatrical.
“I started in special events, which brought out the theater in me,” says Oaks, who studied dance at Howard University in Washington, DC. “I love the whole spectacle, and I’ve been able to lend that passion and multimedia skill to so many platforms, including news, live specials, commercial content, and unscripted storytelling.”
“Coming to 19th & Park encompasses everything I’ve done over the years,” continues Oaks. “They’re innovative in how they approach creativity, especially in terms of the inclusiveness in their projects. It feels good to produce content for people who are like me, and to work with creatives who are thinking more diversely.”
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Morgan Saunders
Saunders joins 19th & Park following a four-year tenure in the Nonfiction Originals department at Netflix, where she managed a plethora of partner-produced titles, such as Tidying Up with Marie Kondo, The Floor is Lava, and Love is Blind. Before that, she oversaw West Coast production for studio shoots, live music festivals, and events at Revolt TV.
“I believe in black-owned businesses with black females owning the narrative and the content being produced,” adds fellow 19th & Park newcomer Saunders. “I’ve never had that before. It’s truly important for us to own that content and tell those stories.”
Working her way up the ranks of the media and TV industry ever since she graduated from Virginia Commonwealth University, where she met 19th & Park Co-Founder/CEO Whitney Headen, Saunders broke into the industry at National Geographic as a production executive assistant on numerous nonfiction series, including The Incredible Dr. Pol, Snake Salvation, and The Secret Life of Predators.
She went on to work at boutique production companies Sirens Media and Halfyard Productions, where she helped develop original content greenlit for A&E, ABC, and TLC. She then expanded her production experience working on programs for the Travel Channel, followed by a return to Nat Geo, where she led their Impact Media program, which supports initiatives like saving uncharted ocean spaces and endangered species.
As Saunders pivots to the agency world, she is confident that her years of client-side experience and production background will prove an asset.
“Working in the commercial space has been a new challenge for me, but production is always production regardless of the content,” concludes Saunders. “I’m excited to be at a place where I get to vary my storytelling lens.”
Reel 360 News wishes William and Morgan the best of luck at 19th&Park.
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