The Art and Science of Storytelling

“Looking ahead one to three years in terms of where the consumer may be going is critical on the marketing front while thinking about the type of messaging that bridges consumers from where they are to where we want them to be and quantifying what works best,” Sugerman said. “It’s about ensuring that we deeply understand our consumer better than anyone else as we build-out not just our product but the messaging and everything in between while applying the Chicago Approach to marketing of theory, evidence, and evaluation.”

He still stays engaged with Booth by serving on the steering committee for the James M. Kilts Center for Marketing and connecting with current students. “I think it's important to maintain a bridge to your past as you move into your future,” he said. “My time at Chicago Booth had an impact on me professionally and personally that was quite profound. I want to make sure that I maintain that connection, even though it's been a long while since I've been there. The school has evolved so much over 20 years, and being a part of that is energizing and important to me.”

Today, Sugerman is still delighting and surprising audiences with his latest venture, Invisible Narratives. Sugerman cofounded the Los Angeles–based micro-entertainment studio in 2019.

At a time when the COVID-19 pandemic brought all major Hollywood studios to a complete standstill, Sugerman’s micro-studio knew they had the agility and flexibility to adapt. Tapping into the enthusiastic world of Esports fandom, they partnered with YouTube influencers FaZe Clan to create a feature horror film, Crimson. The film launched in October through Inviz.tv, Invisible Narrative’s direct-to consumer content and commerce online platform, packaged with merchandising to create an event tailor-made for a Gen-Z audience.

Using stringent safety protocols, the studio also filmed the sci-fi pandemic thriller Songbird this past summer in less than 20 days in partnership with producer Michael Bay, making it the first feature to be filmed in Los Angeles post-lockdown. The film will be released on Apple iTunes, Amazon, and Google—among other platforms—on December 11, 2020.

“Realizing that there would be a shortage of stories due to the Hollywood shutdown, we quickly came up with a creative small-set solution to filming a feature during the pandemic that we then put in front of the guilds and got approval,” Sugerman said. “We worked closely with them in making sure that the approach was very safe and secure.”

Throughout his professional journey, Sugerman has drawn on his experiences at Booth to successfully balance the art and science of marketing.

“It’s not just about having a science perspective, because I don't want to lose the human emotion and the elements that come with that instinct,” Sugerman said. “But it’s not all art to the point that you ignore insights from big data that could help point the way. It’s about having a combination of the two.”