Our Team
Since its inception, Splash Media has experienced tremendous growth. We consider our award winning team our biggest asset. Our in-house operations include sales and marketing, technical support, customer service, software development, and, of course, original television production. We pride ourselves in efficient teamwork and our ability to work with an outrageous sense of urgency. Allow us to introduce some of our staff:
Chris Kraft – Principal and Co-Founder
Chris Kraft has been in the media business since 1988. He founded Chris Kraft Productions in 1995. His award-winning career in film and video production was a natural progression from being an accomplished editorial and advertising photographer. A partial list of his clients include Nortel Networks, IBM, American Airlines, PRIMEDIA Productions, Compuware, LucasLicensing/Hasbro, The Town of Addison, NBC, Docucorp, Broadcast News Corporation, and many others. His vision for business television comes from seeing firsthand the challenge corporations face when attempting to speak directly to a geographically diverse audience.
Paul Slack – Principal and Co-Founder
Paul comes to Splash with over 20 years of direct marketing experience and has been involved with Internet marketing consulting since the nineties. Paul’s expertise has made him a sought after speaker in the Internet marketing community and he has been the featured speaker at the leading SEM industry conference, Search Engine Strategies. As a featured speaker at the conference, Paul has traveled around the country speaking at every conference location for over 5 years.
Paul stays on the cutting edge of Internet marketing by keeping abreast of industry developments and has been quoted as a trusted source in many Internet marketing articles. Over the last ten years, he has had the opportunity to train over 1,000 companies on the basics of Internet marketing and more recently, how to integrate Social Media into a successful marketing campaign. Slack is also an active member of the CEO Advisory Board, where he meets with CEOs of numerous companies in the DFW area on a regular basis to discuss strategic planning across different industries.
Paul is a proud husband and father to his wife, two sons, and daughter. He is actively involved in both his church and community.
David Henry – President
David has been in the media business for 23 years. He spent the past 18 years with CBS Radio in Dallas. David has held the positions of Senior Vice President, General Manager of KVIL FM, KLUV FM, KJKK FM, KOAI FM and KRLD FM, and Director of Sales. David was responsible for negotiating the longest Radio rights deal in the NFL with the Dallas Cowboys. He hired the top rated morning show at KVIL Gene and Julie, as well as the top rated morning show at KLUV, Jody Dean and the morning team.
He currently serves on the North Texas Super Bowl Host Committee and has worked extensively with the Dallas Cowboys, Dallas Mavericks, Texas Rangers, SMU, Texas A&M and the University of Texas Sports programs.
David has also been an Adjunct Professor at Southern Methodist University’s Temerlin Advertising Institute. David graduated from Southern Methodist University with a BBA in Marketing from the Edwin L. Cox School of Business.
Mark Hitchner- Director of Digital Strategy
Mark Hitchner comes to Splash Media with a vast knowledge of the digital media landscape. Mark was VP of Strategic Planning and Development at GlobalTec Solutions where he worked on strategic partnerships and new initiatives which included an IPTV channel that was developed completely in-house. His experience includes digital asset management, digital syndication, content licensing as well as digital distribution. Most recently Mark was with XOS Digital managing the digital ingestion and meta tagging of 1000′s of hours of college sports content on behalf of top tier colleges and universities. Mark received his B.A. from Furman University and his MBA from Rollins College.
Pete Kraft – Director of Technology
Pete Kraft comes to Splash Media after spending 11 years in the technology field. He spent five years at EDS managing and supporting corporate computers and networks. At Texas Instruments his responsibilities included maintaining and managing the global Windows server network at the company. For the last six years Pete has worked as an Engineer and Project Manager in sales support roles covering a wide variety of industrial technologies including telecommunications, broadcast, medical imaging, oil field exploration and many others. During that time, he consulted with customers to help them design custom computer platforms for use in medical testing, network security, and voice over IP applications. This experience allowed him to work closely with various hardware and software engineering teams at companies such as Intel, Red Hat, Microsoft, Cisco, Motorola and others. Pete’s experience also includes consulting on the development of a custom digital video delivery mechanism. Pete has always maintained a high level of interest in the digital video and streaming media market.
R. Brad Murano – Chief Creative Officer
Brad Murano brings his 20-year experience as an award-winning director, editor, and director of photography to Splash Media. As a co-founder of Film Xero, with Steven T. Miller, Brad produced and directed over 100 major label music videos. Additional production credits include “Walker, Texas Ranger”, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame + Museum in Cleveland, a custom 360-degree video delivery systems, Nutrisystem, Disney’s Buena Vista Datacasting, and EMI Catalog Marketing, among others. His varied experience provided the background needed to become a noted motion graphics and broadcast designer and a pioneer in utilizing digital technologies in image capture and post-production.
Morgan Arnold – Account Manager
Morgan Arnold is a Certified Google AdWords Professional, and comes to Splash Media from WebDex Media. His career began in Wal-Mart management where he helped open some of the first stores for the company on the West Coast. He spent the next 8 years working with the Union Gospel Mission of Seattle as Director of Retailing, and later as the Program Director for UGM’s Riverton Place Mens Recovery Center. Morgan and his family moved to Dallas in 2002 where he has worked as a Senior Account Manager and Vertical Markets Business Solutions Specialist at World Marketing, Manager of Account Services at Platinum Direct Mail Services, and then as an Internet Marketing Account Manager for WebDex. A partial list of former clients includes Citibank, Neiman Marcus, Universal Music Group, Wells Fargo, AT&T U-Verse, and American Airlines. Morgan is committed to help grow the online presence of his clients by providing “knock your socks off” service each day. Morgan graduated from Texas A&M University with a BBA in Marketing.
Jamie Fuller – Account Manager
Jamie Fuller comes to Splash Media from WebDex Media Group. She has been in marketing and advertising since 1995 since her graduation from the SMU Cox School of Business with a Master’s of Business Administration. Jamie worked for the award-winning advertising agency ‘The Richards Group’ where she served as an Account Manager for clients such as The Home Depot and EyeMasters. Since that time, she worked in Product Management, Channel Management and as a Director of Marketing on the corporate side of the business world until she became captivated with Internet marketing over six years ago. Before she joined WebDex, Jamie worked for four years as a full-time Internet marketing consultant to retail clients such as Cavender’s Boot City. Today she is living her dream of doing what she loves while helping companies be successful in the ever-evolving online world. Jamie is a Google Certified Advertising Professional and spends much of her time managing Pay per Click campaigns for her clients.
David Horton – Director of Engineering
David has over 15 years of experience in television engineering and production, both live and post production. He started his career at the ’96 Olympic Games in Atlanta, then went on to work for PRIMEDIA Productions in Dallas where David worked his way up to being the Assistant Chief Engineer. David has designed and built multiple facilities around the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex, both large and small. Some of the venues that David has worked in include the Dallas Cowboys, Dallas Desperados, and Dallas Mavericks, as well as Cotton Bowl events. He is also an expert in video format conversion, optimizing video quality playback in limited bandwidth applications and players.
Vanessa Kilgore – Copywriter / Search Engine Optimizer
Vanessa Kilgore earned her B.A. in Technical Communication from Texas Tech University. In 2009, Vanessa received a certification in Search Engine Optimization. She has many years of experience in writing a variety of documentation from instruction manuals to page copy for websites. She finds search engine optimization very exciting and is always looking for the best ways to complete a project and is constantly improving her skills. Vanessa keeps herself up to speed by reading many industry based blogs, finding out the latest technology being released in the industry, and constantly researching search engine optimization websites.
Kristine Macabare – Creative Developer and Project Planner
Kristine’s career in Internet marketing began in high school where she picked up web design and programming as a hobby. As a result of her desire for learning and past experience, her knowledge encompasses all aspects of search engine marketing, blog development and social media marketing, website design and usability, and email marketing. She’s assisted clients with Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn setup and customization. She’s helped several clients with their social media campaigns through staff training and consultation. Kristine has earned a B.A. in Journalism with a concentration in advertising from the University of North Texas and she continues to stay involved in the industry by contributing to the company blog and presenting periodic “lunch and learn” sessions to keep staff up to date on the latest industry changes.
Steven T. Miller – Director
Steve is an Emmy award-winning director, writer, and editor with over 20 years of experience in a wide variety of film productions. Teaming with R. Brad Murano to pursue their shared passion for creating moving images, they formed Film Xero and quickly developed a niche in the music video world. They produced, directed, and edited over 100 music videos from every major record label. They worked with Pat Benatar, Take 6, Alison Krauss, Kenny Chesney, and many more. Steve served as a governor on The Texas Board of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences. Steve’s corporate credits include projects for TXU, Pier 1, Nokia, Ford, GM, Red Baron, and a 360-degree project for Pennzoil featuring Jay Leno. Recently, he directed infomercials for ICON Fitness and Disney’s Buena Vista Datacasting, and has contributed his filmmaking skills to marketing pieces for Hasbro, Reliant Health Care, GlobalTec Solutions, and Mary Kay.
Ryan Martell – Lead Software Developer
Ryan has been developing software for nearly 25 years. When he was 17, he developed a cutting edge product used by furniture industry retailers for visualizing custom order upholstery. Later, he was the first employee at Bungie Software, where he coauthored several very successful computer games, such as Marathon, Marathon 2, and Myth: The Fallen rds. Deciding that he needed to become more sociable, he bought a sailboat, and spent two years sailing in the Caribbean and then three years in the Mediterranean. After ending his “first retirement” a couple of years ago, he came to Dallas to manage a real estate project. Ryan then decided his game background nicely complemented the streaming video market and became an integral part of Splash Media, LP. Since he has been with Splash Media, he has implemented an end-to-end video streaming solution, encompassing asset tracking, scheduling, authorization, and delivery via the internet.
Debbie Potaniec – Client Services Manager
Debbie comes to Splash Media with over 10 years of management experience. In her diverse management background she has served as VP of Information Technology, Assistant VP of Customer Support Services, Director of Product Development, Operations Manager, and Project Manager. As the Client Services Manager for Splash Media’s internet marketing services group Debbie is responsible for the Account Management and Production teams and their delivery of internet marketing services to our clients. Debbie appreciates having the opportunity to utilize her past people and project management experience to assist our clients in meeting their objectives.
Debbie earned her Project Manager Professional (PMP) certification in 2006 and became a certified Google Advertising Professional in 2008.
Linda Randall – Manager of Administration
Linda joined Splash Media as a result of the merger with WebDex Media Group where she held the position of Manager of Administration for more than three years. While at WebDex, she managed accounting, human resources and sales operations as well as facilities management.
During her twenty-three years of administrative work experience, Linda has worked with commercial, non-profit and government organizations. She has gained understanding of industries as diverse automotive, cosmetics and fragrances, legal, finance, retail and manufacturing.
Linda is also active in the community. She is currently on the Board of Wipe Out Kids’ Cancer, a non-profit organization that raises money for pediatric cancer research. She is also a member and past officer of the Dallas Junior Forum, an organization that provides volunteers for many non-profits including Ronald McDonald House, Wipe Out Kids’ Cancer, The Dallas Children’s Advocacy Center and Hope’s Door. At the same time, Linda successfully raised a family which helped hone her administrative skills. She has a BA from Douglass College, a division of Rutgers University.
Marq Sanchez – Director of Client Integration
Marq comes to Splash Media bringing a wide array of marketing and business management experience to the team. Having worked at American Airlines, Kraft Foods, Igloo Products and Ecolab, along with a BBA from Southern Methodist University and an MBA from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Marq offers perspective and insight to a variety of industries that bring added value to the clients we serve.
What began in 2007 with directing new website designs has now grown intoa holistic marketing approach offering our clients both online and offline marketing solutions with results oriented performance.
Marq was born and raised in San Antonio, Texas. He and his wife, Nina, Have four kids, which keeps them enjoying staying active in their school andchurch communities.
Steve Sosinski – Senior Producer
For over 15 years, Steve Sosinski has been producing e-learning programs as well as implementing and developing digital media technologies for a wide range of clientele. Steve is an experienced producer and project manager in the areas of video production, DVD authoring, streaming media applications and live internet/satellite simulcasting. Steve has produced and managed e-learning solutions for clients such as Ernst & Young, Nortel, IBM, Hill’s Pet Nutrition, Silicon Graphics, Wiley Publishing and SAP. Steve has an honorable discharge from the U.S Naval Reserve where he served as a cryptologic technical operator.
Steven Swaim – Senior Producer
Steven has a unique blend of professional experience that position himself well to work with companies to help identify ways a partnering relationship would benefit a potential client. Having been the Executive Producer of a regional Business News Magazine Television Show he saw the need businesses had to use the medium of video to help tell their story and he enabled them to do so in a way that was entertaining and educational to the viewer, and beneficial to the bottom line to the highlighted business. He also has over 15 years of executive level experience in the Corporate Finance arena with a focus in the Mergers and Acquisitions area and Debt and Equity placements. After spending several years as Managing Director for Chemical Bank New York’s Middle Market Corporate Finance unit he left to join a boutique Merchant Bank Group that specialized in workouts. In his capacity as Managing Director he became hands on with his clients, not only getting them the capital structure they needed to get out of there dire situation, but got involved in a hands on manner to assist them in their plan to capture a greater position in their marketplace. This gives Steven a unique perspective when looking and evaluating how companies may be underachieving and not reaching their corporate marketing objectives.
Bruce Wallis – Technical Lead and Developer
Bruce comes to Splash Media via the recent acquisition of WebDex Media Group. He has been working in IT since 1973. The past 26 years Bruce has spent providing unique software solutions for a variety of clients. His software development has covered communications software, database systems, and insurance policy processing systems. His duties allow him to create innovative business solutions for Splash Media and it’s clients. He also provides in house support for the Splash Media team.
Christy Wyatt – Client Services
Christy comes to Splash Media with 15 years of marketing and advertising sales experience. She stays in touch with the pulse of the marketplace by developing new business and keeping abreast of what the client needs. Her marketing responsibilities at Splash Media fit closely with her expertise including lead generation, client services and workshop coordination as an integral member of the sales and marketing team. Christy is very involved with her church and missions and volunteers for ACTS – Action Crisis Team – helping during natural disasters.
Toni Donaldson – Supervising Producer
As supervising producer of Splash Media, LP Toni comes to the company with extensive experience in live television, most recently with the FOX affiliate in Dallas. Her career began with production of live talk shows for PBS on the regional level in Amarillo. Toni went on to produce live newscasts for the local affiliates for NBC and CBS in Amarillo, as well as reporting in the Texas Panhandle. Prior to making the move to TTV, she spent the last eight years with FOX 4 News in Dallas. During her news career, she produced thousands of newscasts, including major news events and hundreds of breaking news stories. She now produces the majority of the content shot in the Splash Media studios. With her past experience in a career that often focuses on negative events, Toni is thrilled to work in an environment that now focuses on the positive by providing viewers with a much brighter financial future.
Michael McCoy – Solutions Consultant
Michael McCoy has over 10 years of sales and marketing experience working with clients such as American Airlines, Boeing, The Container Store, ITW, and Whole Foods. Over the years he has worked on numerous video projects including commercials, documentaries, feature films, live concerts, music videos, and sporting events. Michael’s diverse background allows him to tackle any video production project that a client might need. He believes in a hands-on approach from conception to the finished project to ensure that the client’s expectations are fulfilled.
