Today we’d like to introduce you to Miraya Berke.
So, before we jump into specific questions, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I grew up in Santa Cruz, CA and went to school at UC Berkeley, and have had a passion for event planning since I was a kid. As soon as I graduated from college, I moved to NYC to pursue events. After a few years of working at agencies, I decided to start my own event planning company, Pop Productions NYC, in 2014. I worked with a range of clients on community and experiential events.
Then in 2016, my friend and I had an idea to start a dessert festival, Dessert Goals, so I pulled from my planning experience and we created a truly beautiful and fun experience. The festival was a smashing success and we went on to plan more and more, in New York and LA! Last year I took over operations of Dessert Goals as a solo-founder. I’ve now planned eight Dessert Goals festivals, as large as four days and 6000 people, and am currently working on the next Los Angeles edition!
My favorite part of Dessert Goals has been creating experiences that spark delight and seeing thousands of happy faces. Last year I started to think about what else brings joy to me, and I realized in addition to desserts I love romantic comedy films. After some research, similar how I did for Dessert Goals, I discovered there had yet been a festival devoted to romantic comedies, so Rom Com Fest was born. This June in Downtown LA was the first Rom Com Fest, celebrating the genre with new and classic films, live events and of course many desserts.
I’ve lived in New York and Los Angeles, but currently am based in Oakland, though I am regularly traveling. I love that I get to plan events that make people happy because we all need more joy in our lives!
Has it been a smooth road?
I don’t think any entrepreneur can say it’s been a smooth road! Most of my days it’s just me alone with my laptop, it definitely can get lonely. It’s easy to psych myself out and overthink decisions. My hope is to grow and build a bigger team, to have people to bounce ideas around with, but the uncertainty has always been hard so it’s been safer to stay pretty lean as a company. My other biggest struggle is how to give myself a break, even on weekends or on vacation I feel like my brain is constantly on and thinking about my to do list. Fulling unplugging is really a challenge.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Rom Com Fest and Dessert Goals – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of and what sets you apart from others.
Pop Productions plans experiences that spark delight! We pivoted from client events and now focus on our event experiences, our two events are Dessert Goals and Rom Com Fest. Both of these festivals celebrate creators (of desserts and films) and bring people together to have feel good fun!
Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
I love how each neighborhood has its own vibe and personality. I least like the traffic and people’s hesitation to travel to different neighborhoods. When planning events, I have to think a lot about the location and accessibility.
Contact Info:
- Website: http://www.popproductionsnyc.com, https://dessertgoals.com, https://www.romcomfest.com
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: @mirayaberke
Image Credit:
Audience in seats – Amanda Lopez, Polka dot wall, Balloons with cake pops in cone – Colors Collective, People holding awards – Paula Ferro, All the rest of the photos – Pratya Jankong
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