About Sam Sokolow
Sam Sokolow is a two-time Emmy Award-nominated producer, educator, and media strategist with more than 25 years of experience developing, financing, selling, and producing premium television, feature films, and digital content.
Sam is an Executive Producer of National Geographic and Disney+ʼs acclaimed scripted anthology series Genius, he leads his production company, Sammy Nice Inc., he is a Professor of Practice in Film and Television Production at Clemson University, and he is a public speaker.
Across his career, Sokolow has worked at the intersection of ambitious storytelling, independent production, studio-scale execution, education, and workforce development. His work has taken projects from source material and early concepts through development, packaging, production, and global distribution, while also helping train the next generation of filmmakers and build production capacity in communities throughout the United States and around world.
Executive Producer, Genius
Sokolow developed Genius from book to series and serves as an Executive Producer of the Emmy Award-winning anthology franchise for National Geographic, Disney+, Hulu, and ABC. The first season, Genius: Einstein, starred Geoffrey Rush as Albert Einstein and was directed in part by Ron Howard, who helmed the pilot. The series received 10 Emmy nominations in 2017, including an Outstanding Limited Series nomination for Sam. The second season, Genius: Picasso, starred Antonio Banderas as Pablo Picasso and received seven Emmy nominations in 2018, including a second Outstanding Limited Series nomination for Sam. The third season, Genius: Aretha, starred Cynthia Erivo as Aretha Franklin and featured Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Suzan-Lori Parks as showrunner. The season received three Emmy nominations in 2021. The fourth season, Genius: MLK/X, explored the parallel lives and legacies of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X. It premiered on National Geographic and ABC on February 1, 2024, followed by Disney+ and Hulu.
Producer and Studio Executive
Sokolow leads Sammy Nice Inc., an independent film and television studio. The company develops and produces original films, television series and premium digital content, while providing third-party production services in the United States and internationally. At Sammy Nice Inc., Sokolow oversees the full production process, from intellectual-property acquisition, story and format development, and packaging to financing, sales strategy, physical production, and delivery.
Previously, he was a founder of Nice Media Studios, an independent studio based in Los Angeles and Toronto; President of EUE/Sokolow, an independent television studio with operations in Los Angeles and New York City; and a founding partner of SokoLobl Entertainment, an independent television production company also based in Los Angeles and New York City.
Across those companies, Sam executive produced 20 original television series and produced 5 feature films, and he developed more than 200 original film and television properties with major studios, distributors, international co-production partners, star-driven production companies, and independent finance companies. He has set up dozens of projects with studios, networks, streamers, distributors, and production partners.
Educator and Mentor
Sam is a Professor of Practice in Film and Television Production at Clemson University, where he is building the College of Arts and Humanitiesʼ film-production curriculum. His teaching connects students directly to the creative, technical, and professional demands of contemporary film and television production.
In June 2025, he led an experiential-learning hands-on film production course supported by an education grant from the South Carolina Film Commission in which more than 40 students worked in crew and acting roles on a feature-style production while being directly mentored by professional educators with major film and television credits and experience. The course resulted in the micro-budget feature film Student Film: The Movie, giving participating students a feature-film credit before graduating college and meaningful experience working under production conditions of a professional working set. In July 2026, Sokolow repeated the experiential-learning course with a second education grant from the SC Film Commission that resulted in the micro-budget feature film The High Note, and another 30+ students who now have credits and professional-grade on-set feature film experience.
At Clemson, Sam's other courses include Filmmaking, Introduction to Documentary Production, and Film: An Introduction.
Earlier in his career, he taught undergraduate and graduate courses at the Boston University Los Angeles Program, which he helped develop from its inception. He has also guest lectured at UCLA, USC, Spartanburg Upstate, The New School, and NYU Tisch. He has conducted education and workforce-development workshops for film commissions and industry partners in the United States, Australia, Costa Rica, Croatia, and South Africa.
Filmmaker
Sam and his brother, Alec (Academy Award-nominated screenwriter of Toy Story) are currently co-directing and producing a feature documentary film about the present-day, lasting brotherhood of the 1986 Super Bowl Champion New York Giants based on Gary Myers' bestselling book Once A Giant. The Sokolow brothers have interviewed over 25 players including Phil Simms, Lawrence Taylor and Mark Bavaro, 2 owners, including John Mara, and head coach Bill Parcells. The film is due out ini 2027.
Global Workforce Development
From 2022 through 2026, Sam was the architect, builder and manager of a global workforce-development certification program with Stage 32, the international online community for film, television, and digital-media professionals with more than 1.3 million members.
The Stage 32 Certification Program was designed to help film commissions, production communities, and emerging crew members prepare for practical jobs in the expanding global production economy. The program has been used by film commissions and regional production partners across the United States, Europe, and the Middle East to train local crew members for a range of professional production roles.
Stage 32ʼs education and industry partners include AFCI, Netflix, the Cannes Film Festival, the American Film Market, Variety, and other leading entertainment organizations.
Independent Film and Digital Innovation
In 1997, Sam co-wrote, produced, and directed the award-winning independent feature The Definite Maybe, starring Josh Lucas, Roy Scheider, and Bob Balaban. In 1999, he became an early pioneer in online independent-film distribution, self-distributing The Definite Maybe via the internet before digital distribution became standard industry practice. The initiative was covered by outlets including Good Morning America and Time magazine, as well as film-industry publications and festivals.
Consulting and Speaking
Sam advises a select group of creators, production companies, studios, institutions, film commissions, and production communities on development, strategic positioning, packaging, workforce development, market readiness, and long-term growth.
He is currently a media consultant for The South Carolina Football Hall of Fame and the Iceland-based production company Solsten Sagas.
*Sam Sokolow is available for keynote talks, motivational speeches, panels, workshops, academic programs, film festivals, and industry events focused on television and film production, creative entrepreneurship, global production, workforce development, and careers in entertainment.*
Early Career
Sam's earlier professional experience includes creating and producing advertising and marketing campaigns for agencies including Wells Rich Greene, Moss/Dragoti, Partners & Shevack and with the in-house marketing team at the NFL.
Before entering advertising and production, Sam spent a year as a Metro and Crime Staff Reporter for the New York Daily News, covering all five boroughs of New York City.
RECENT PRESS:
https://www.thestate.com/news/state/south-carolina/article315578113.html
https://clemson.world/reel-impact/
https://www.wspa.com/your-carolina/clemsons-first-feature-film-student-film-the-movie/
https://www.foxcarolina.com/2026/07/31/clemson-film-students-get-hands-on-experience-making-movies/
https://greenvillejournal.com/news/clemson-students-hit-a-high-note-with-second-full-length-film/
https://www.pageturnpro.com/Progress-Printing/113277-Azalea-Mag-Spring-2026/sdefault.html#page/35
https://towncarolina.com/sam-sokolow-qa-inside-clemson-film-program/
https://www.bu.edu/com/articles/sam-sokolow-com91-behind-national-geographics-genius/
https://variety.com/2017/tv/news/genius-nat-geo-eue-sokolow-1202395467/
