CMA NY: New Jersey Meet Up!

Calling all New Jersey children's media professionals! Celebrate the back-to-school season with CMA NY at a special meetup in Montclair, NJ!

Hosted by CMA Board Advisor and children's media executive extraordinaire Amy Friedman and kids' media creator and award-winning producer Maddie Kroll. Join us for a gathering of Montclair community members over light bites, drinks, and conversation. Whether you're reconnecting with familiar faces or meeting neighbors who share a passion for creating kids' media, we hope you'll make it out for a fun evening together. 

If you haven't been able to make it to our regular NYC events, this is the perfect opportunity to gather closer to home. We can't wait to see you in NJ!

Amy Friedman is the Founder and President of Redhead Consulting, advising top organizations including The Aspen Institute, Common Sense Media, and LionForge Entertainment. A multiple Peabody Award winner, she previously served as Head of Kids and Family at Warner Bros. Discovery, overseeing HBO Max/Max, Cartoon Network, and Cartoonito, and was a creative architect of Nickelodeon, with senior leadership roles at Noggin, TeenNick, Scratch, Sprout, and Universal Kids. Known for her strategic vision and inclusive storytelling, Amy is a founding Board Advisor to the Children’s Media Association, serves on several nonprofit boards, and was recently honored as one of Cablefax’s Most Powerful Women in Media.

Maddie Kroll is an Emmy Award-winning producer and Head of Creative & Licensing at Boppo, where she leads creative strategy, original content development, and licensing partnerships for a new generation of screen-free interactive storytelling and play.

Before joining Boppo, Maddie led content development and production for several interactive audio experiences at Tonies, helping bring beloved characters and worlds from Disney, Pixar, DreamWorks, Paramount, and other leading children's brands to life. She began her career as an associate producer and member of the Emmy-winning creative team behind Blue's Clues & You!, and her work on Gabby's Dollhouse: Cat-tastic Scavenger Hunt received a Licensing International Excellence Award.

Whether she's developing original IP, collaborating with licensors, directing voice talent, or shaping interactive gameplay, Maddie loves bringing ideas to life from the very first spark through final production, building experiences that meet kids where they are and invite them to join in the play.