Art, Entertainment, and Society with Brad Haugen

Art and entertainment play a central role in culture, shaping our preferences, attitudes, and values, and creating a sense of shared cultural identity. In the 21st century, new technological platforms have not only changed the way we consume art and entertainment, but they’ve also led to new genres of content and paved new pathways for creators. There’s been an explosion of new forms of expression, communication, storytelling, and connecting with others around the world.

At OSCILLATIONS, we’re interested in understanding these cultural changes and how we can leverage them to amplify creative expression and cross-cultural collaborations. On this front, there’s perhaps no better role model to look to than Brad Haugen, President of Westbrook Media at Westbrook.

We’ve all seen Will Smith and his family’s incredible adaptation to the new ways of doing media and entertainment in the digital and social technology age. Westbrook exemplifies several emerging trends, where celebrities are leveraging their brands in new, socially progressive ways. They’re working to reach younger audiences, who engage with content very differently. They’re partnering with other organizations in the Smith Family circle to make and promote socially impactful investments in startups. And they’re experimenting with categorically new kinds of storytelling at a time when Hollywood—and our increasingly interconnected world, more broadly—is undergoing rapid transitions and associated growing pains.

Westbrook’s mission is to empower artists to tell stories that connect the world. If you’ve read the OSCILLATIONS manifesto or listened to us read it on the first three episodes of our podcast, you might have noticed the alignment. At OSCILLATIONS, we’re all about empowering artists to guide the future of some of the most exciting—but also potentially scary—creative technologies that will be coming out in the next decade or two.

One of the reasons we’re so excited to talk with Brad is that he himself is a talented visual artist. You can see his paintings on his Instagram profile, and more recently showcased at art galleries. It’s extraordinarily rare to find such dedicated, technically proficient, and talented artists working on the business and entrepreneurial side of any industry. We’re thrilled to have the opportunity to get Brad’s thoughts on how entertainment is changing, how the attention economy can be used for social good, and how artists might tangibly shape the future by spreading their art and ideas in a rapidly changing world.

"Art is the signature of civilizations." -Beverly Sills
Join the movement from the very beginning. If you believe that #thefutureiscreative, support us with a like, a follow, and a share.
subscribe: YouTube / Instagram / TikTok / Facebook / Twitter / Vero / Substack / Patreon