Check Out Greg Donis’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Greg Donis

Hi Greg, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
Big picture… it’s a pretty simple story with how I got to Los Angeles and working in the entertainment industry. I had the ‘Cali’ dream of living in LA and making some cool TV shows. What’s not so simple? The roadway to the ‘dream’…. Starting over, getting a Green Card, having door after door closed due to limited connections, a particular agent telling me Canadians were ‘too hard of a sell, an EP asking where Canada was, another agent falsely representing me, time wasters, non-payments and death threats – it was a rolodex of hurdles. Imagine having multiple award nominations and helming TV series such as Transformers: Beast Machines (FOX), Saw Dogs (Discover Channel), Cabin Truckers (A&E) and Livin’ Loud (MTV) – yet, having door after door closed once they knew where I moved from. It wasn’t an easy….but as you read on, the roadway cleared up.

Going back to the day I left Canada to live in LA full-time… I had crossed the border with my Visa in hand, had a hit television series airing on FYI and A&E with two Leo Award Nominations for best direction and program announced that same week. I was riding high and felt I had everything going my way… and as I mentioned above – it wasn’t so easy. Navigating my career and breaking through the brick walls were nothing more than hurdles, after-all, I had a track record of 15 years in the industry working as a Showrunner and Director and had sold a 6-part television series to MTV. There was no way I was going to allow others to dictate my success or failure. That’s what fed my passion.

Fast-forward…

Interesting enough, I broke through with the same sensibility I had getting my first Showrunner job in 2010…I created, developed, pitched and sold Livin’ Loud (MTV). Years later I decided to created, develop and pitch a true crime series… O.J. Simpson: Blood, Lies & Murder (Peacock / AMC Networks), finally getting myself and work through the ‘front door’ of the film and television hub…known as Hollywood. Following the success of the series, I had multiple projecs from a feature film with Universal Pictures titled Bisping: The Michael Bisping Story, 40 Year Old Property Virgin with HGTV among others. And now, my follow up to the OJ series… a television first, Los Ski Mask Boyz, a new true crime series that my producing partner Conejo and I have created, shot and now pitching to a variety of Networks. Along with myself and Conejo, Ice-T (Law & Order SUV, Body Count) has come onboard as an Executive Producer. Los Ski Mask Boyz, stay tuned.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
After finishing up schooling at the Academy of Art University, where I took Motion Pictures & Film, I bought a book discussing the business of Directing. I remember this day like it was yesterday… I took the book home, peeled the plastic seal and opened page one. It read, ‘So you want to be a director’… The author went on to say that less than 1 percent of directors make enough money to make a living. Just to make sure I was given enough gut punches, it continues with these words ‘Directors will have a tougher hill to climb than actors’. If my memory is correct, I broke out into a sweat as I knew how hard it was for actors to make a good living. I instantly closed the book, and tossed it into the garbage. I wasn’t about to let some author who decided to write a book dictate how my future bank account would look. Well, I will say this… the road has been tough, with a ton of hurdles, but, with dozens of credits to my name I think I’m doing alright. Saying this, never let someone dictate your passion and dreams if you truly believe in yourself.

Here’s an funny, sad and crazy story…

In terms of ‘struggles along the way’. In 2009, my producing partner and I had a concept we believed in, and instead of looking to pitch a Network for funding, we would raise the money, shoot it and then go to Network. Well, we did in fact raise the money and shot the series… lucky for us, we sold it to a prominent network, MTV. It did not come without struggles – for example…. During the ‘adventure’ of building out this ‘dream’, we had our largest investor die – at their desk – face down in our investment contract. We were to receive 75 percent of the budget through this particular investor. Because he was such a huge supporter of ours and was a lock for the cash, weeks prior we decided to lock talent, crew and locations with a set start date. Now missing 75 percent of the funds, we both decided to continue and would lock down the rest of budget while in production – yes, we decided to start shooting with only 25 percent of the budget. It was a go! Now, obviously this could have gone sideways extremely fast – but, our vocabulary never did contain the words stop, give up or quit. This was our first TV Series that we sold, which looking back on it…. It’s pretty crazy that we pulled it off. We put everything on the table and in the end, it worked out. The project was called Livin’ Loud and did in fact air on MTV. We could do whole podcast on the highs and lows of that show – but for now, you get the point… DON’T GIVE UP ON THE DREAM.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I’ve been in the entertainment industry since 1997, holding both executive and creative positions responsible for the oversight of industry firsts and award-winning / nominated programs. Everything from Showrunning to Directing to Producing…

I’ve delivered content from extreme locations including Canada, U.S., Guatemala, Beirut and Syria to studios around the world from Dubai, Vancouver and Los Angeles. Delivering a variety of genres from docusoap, true crime, biography, social experiment, renovation, lifestyle, competition, video game titles, animation and documentaries. Credits include Discovery Channel, MotorTrend, FOX, HGTV, A&E, MTV, FYI, Reelz, Sony Pictures, Discovery +, AMC Networks, Peacock and Universal Pictures among others.

Most recently I was credited with Concept By, Executive Producer, Producer, Director and Editor for the true crime series to O.J. Simpson: Blood, Lies & Murder – streaming on Peacock (Domestically) and AMC Network (Internationally). Built around exclusive interviews with renowned blood spatter expert and former FBI Rod Englert, limo driver Allan Park, Americas most infamous houseguest Kato Kaelin and former director of the LAPD crime lab Michelle Kessler. Tom Lange, the LAPD detective in charge of investigating the double homicide of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman takes viewers through his never-before-seen 450- page case journal, gripping new evidence, crime scene and autopsy photos along with shocking videos that were kept from seeing the light of day.

Following the success of O.J. Simpson: Blood, Lies & Murder, 2025 has been busy developing multiple pitch packages for a number of projects from unscripted to scripted. From the scripted IP Appetite for Dysfunction, a TV series based on Grammy Award winner Vicky Hamilton’s autobiography Appetite for Destruction. Vicky discovered and developed Guns N’ Roses, Motley Crue and Poison among others – having over 250 million in record sales. To Los Ski Mask Boyz, a fresh take on true crime… A television first for a reason, gathering at an undisclosed location in the heart of Tijuana Mexico are three deadly and ruthless Hitmen, two former Cartel and of all people…one former Police Chief. If you think the boogeyman is real – think again!

What am I most proud of… ? 100 percent, bringing what others think is impossible to the screen. Further to that, I feel this sets me apart from others within our industry.

My career dates back to the mid 90’s editing TV commercials for the largest casinos in Las Vegas… Caesars, MGM Grand, Circus Circus, Treasure Island, Rio among others. In the late 90’s and early 2000’s I got my first directing opportunity with the pioneer of CGI animation – Mainframe Entertainment. The production company was headed up by Christopher Brough, Gavin Blair and Phil Mitchel who created the ground-breaking music video “I Want My MTV” by Dire Straits. My first project with the company was a program titled Reboot, the first all-CGI animated television series, airing on ABC among 24 other countries around the world, paving the way for companies like Pixar, Disney and DreamWorks. The hit series gathered multiple awards throughout the years including a WorldFest-Houston Gold Medal during its 47-episode run. With a diverse and long-standing following, Reboot has premiered on Hulu in the United States on September 20, 2022 and released internationally on Disney+. Becoming the 9th most streamed program across all platforms during the week of September 22, 2022. During my five years with the Mainframe Entertainment, I directed the #1 rated animated television series, Transformers; Beast Machines for FOX / Hasbro, Action Man airing on FOX and co-produced & distributed by Suban Entertainment and Sony’s hit series Heavy Gear, originally airing on The WB and later distributed by Netflix.

In 2001 I was hired by Electronic Arts as the creative producer for two of their 2002 hit gaming titles, NASCAR Thunder and Madden NFL featuring Minnesota Vikings QB Daunte Culpepper. I was hired to revitalize game play, style and tone from the camera’s to original music to character animation and in game audio – Madden NFL became the highest selling sports title of the year while NASCAR Thunder held its own, outselling the previous years’ title.

During the mid 2000’s I moved into unscripted programming, from a virtual reality series titled Bisping: Full Count ,featuring UFC World Champion Michael Bisping – a UFC first, to prominent events such as the immensely successful Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Games, with record viewership of 3.8 Billion – producing both the Biathlon and Cross-Country Ski events. I sold my first television program in 2012 titled Livin’ Loud, airing on MTV – taking on multiple roles from Executive Producer, Showrunner and Director. My track record includes two 2016 Leo Award nominations for the A&E Networks / Blue Ant Media’s series Cabin Truckers – Best Program & Direction in a Reality Series. The popular 13-part series has aired in 112 countries and at one point was Blue Ant Media’s #3 best-selling series out of 284 programs. In 2013 I was nominated for a Canadian Screen Award – Best Direction in a Reality Series for the Discovery Channel series Saw Dogs, topping the networks primetime average and the first to take viewers behind the high-stake world of chainsaw carving.

The past few years I’ve been part of a variety of projects… Producing & Directing MotorTrends first digital custom car series Under Pressure: 9K – focusing on the aftermarket customization work of SoCal custom shop, 9K Racing, not only diving into the world of high stake builds but a portal into the culture and community of the tuner world. Executive Produced Universal Pictures theatrical release Bisping: The Michael Bisping Story – winning the 2021 Leo Award, Best Feature Length Documentary revolving around the electric former UFC Champion… Following up with an over the top fun TV series, Directing and Producing HGTV’s 40 Year Old Property Virgin, where Genexers and Millennials try to find their first home. AKA, overstaying there welcome with mom and dad – Production company, Buck Productions.

2025 looks to be busy year with some amazing projects! Keep an eye out for Los Ski Mask Boyz – The anti-hero true crime series…

Any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general?
Having a mentor is important as we all know how much they can help guide our careers. I’ve taken the blunt approach in the past and just asked if they would mind being there for me while I navigate my career, AKA, ‘Being a mentor’. I’ve had two, each guiding my career from different points of view – which is important.

Let’s go back to 2004, a time when Facebook launched and my unscripted career was also about to take off…

One of my mentors was Scott Moore – CEO of Uninterrupted Canada, former President Rogers Broadcasting and Veteran of 8 Olympic games. I first met Scott on the CBC TV series Making The Cut as he had hired me as one of the directors. The program was an unscripted competition series, and a TV first working with one of the ‘Big 4′ sports leagues, in this case the NHL, where the winner received a professional contract with the NHL Florida Panthers. When the series wrapped I asked if he could help me with my next moves within the industry. A month later we were pitching a concept I developed for the Comedy Channel. We never received the green light, but having this experience was incredible, further to that, Scott really showed me the ropes and how to run a pitch meeting. Since then I’ve sold my own concepts and or was brought on to help pitch to Networks. Livin’ Loud (MTV), Bisping: Full Count (Samsung) and most recently O.J. Simpson: Blood, Lies & Murder (Peacock) received green lights among others.

My first mentor, Derik Murray, was instrumental in helping me become the Producer, Showrunner and Director I am today – every facet of production was put on my shoulders while working with his company, Network Entertainment. Derik, the Founder and CEO has produced multiple award winning programs such as BRATS, Facing ALI, I Am MLK Jr. and I Am Patrick Swayze.

During the summer of 2005, Derik brought me on to helm three of his programs – Anne Murray: The Music of My Life, Gordie Howe: Mr. Hockey and Ron Lancaster: The Little General, airing on CBC (Prime time slot). It was a massive opportunity as these were my first live action directing gigs as the lead director. About a month into the Anne Murray production I got a call to meet Derik in his office. We were behind schedule and knew that my time might be coming to an end. He leans back in his chair, pauses and says, ‘Do you want the ball? I paused…and of course said ‘Yes’. Those five words I’ve never forgotten. PS, it’ a football reference whereas the NFL QB is the lead and takes his team to the promise land. In short, he was saying, keep doing what you’re doing, but dig in – not with just a 110 percent effort, rather a 210 percent effort…I would need to step outside of my comfort zone and make it happen! The ‘project’ was on my shoulders and would be either a success or failure…and I wasn’t about to fail. It’s like a professional football player going into camp as a rookie with the Dallas Cowboys, Deion Sanders then takes you under his wing and shows you how to compete, be a professional and go the extra mile to make our dreams come true – Derik was my Deion Sanders. And the show? Well, I delivered the program and received a phone call from the Network saying they had ‘no notes’. A first for Network Entertainment, and as I realized later in life, was very rare for that to happen. At the time it was the highest rated program during that time slot, and saying that…it ended up all working out, with the help of my mentor.

I do want to say that a person should never put all of their eggs into one basket so to speak….mentors are great to have but we all need to branch off and become ourselves within this complicated business.

Don’t be scared to make mistakes – Just don’t do it again.

Don’t be scared to ask questions – Know the right time to ask them.

Don’t be scared to take a gamble – Although a calculated one.

And don’t forget, even Steven Spielberg who became a major Hollywood Producer and Director was almost fired from the film, Jaws.

Moving from mentors to networking…I do what many others do and go to a ton of mixers, meetings and festivals – it’s not complicated. Although how I work a room is thought out with a solid game plan. I move around the room and don’t get caught speaking with any one person for too long, there’s only so many hours to meet others, after all, people drink and get caught up with conversations. In general, I don’t drink while networking, rather I’ll have a club soda with a lime – looks like a Vodka, no one asks why I’m not drinking and I’ll never wake up in the morning thinking ‘What did I say that for…”, I want to be on my game! Always be positive, even if the conversation isn’t – be that person everyone remembers for your positivity and character. Obviously reach out to those who you connected with – although be patient if they don’t get back to you promptly. Most of all, don’t oversell yourself with exaggerated or false credits, veteran producers and directors know when others are not being truthful – the next time you see them, they most likely won’t give you their time, rather the brushoff – the Hollywood nod and smile.

So go get that project! Make it happen! Put the work in! And last but not least, grow some thick skin… you’ll it need in this business. We all do.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.gregdonis.com
• Instagram: @gregdonis
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregdonisproducerdirectordevelopment/
• Other: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2268087/