Valerie Smaldone

CO-FOUNDER

Valerie Smaldone is a 5-time Billboard Magazine Award winner and is well known for her unprecedented success holding the #1 on-air position in the New York radio market on 106.7 Life-FM, an iHeart station. She has hosted, produced, and created several nationally syndicated programs featuring in-depth interviews with top recording artists such as Paul McCartney, Celine Dion, Rod Stewart, Elton John and Mariah Carey, among others. Having interviewed thousands of celebrities, performers, and entrepreneurs on radio, television, podcast and on stage, she is an accomplished interviewer who is always interested in procuring each individual’s unique story. Most recently, Valerie has added “producer” and “director” to her multi-hyphenate career. In 2022, she directed and executive produced a film, The Thursday Night Club featuring Gloria Gaynor in her movie acting debut. Most recently, Smaldone created and co-produced the docu-series, Divine Renovation, hosted by tv icon starring Erik Estrada. Her other broadcasting ventures include a weekly radio show, “Bagels and Broadway” which she created, hosted and produced, and where she had conversations with hundreds of theatre and food celebrities. Previously, Valerie helmed a nationally syndicated radio program “America Weekend with Valerie Smaldone…and Friends” distributed through the Envision Radio Network. Valerie has been a signature voice on heritage radio station 1010WINS, New York and on CHUP, Calgary, Canada, among many other national and international radio stations. A well-known voice-over artist, Valerie has been heard narrating the program “Fatal Encounters” on Investigation Discovery Channel. She has recorded commercials for clients like Tidy Cats Kitty Litter, IBM, Verizon, Publix Supermarkets, and Minute Maid as well as television promos for Dateline on NBC, The NBC Nightly News, The Today Show, The CBS Morning Show, Lifetime, Cinemax, Oxygen and many others. Valerie was the announcer for The Boomer Esiason Show on MSG for 4 seasons. She is the “Voice of God” for numerous prestigious live events including: The Kennedy Center, The Clinton Global Initiative, The Global Citizen Awards, The Concordia Summit in New York and Miami, The Milken Global Conference, The New York Emmy Awards, The Tony Preview Concert on CBS, The Drama Desk Awards, Broadway on Broadway in Times Square, Broadway Under the Stars in Central Park, The GLAAD Media Awards, The Point Foundation, and many more. A live event emcee and moderator, Smaldone has hosted events internationally including multiple HEALING SUMMITS in Germany and Portugal for the global brand Healing Hotels of the World, The Chemotherapy Foundation, FIDF, The Sass Foundation, The MS Society, The Dusty Awards and many more. On television, Valerie has appeared as host and interviewer for PBS as well as a special reporter on ABC and NBC for the Columbus Day Parade. As an actress, Valerie has appeared on “The Blacklist”, “Law and Order, Organized Crime”, “The Other Two”, “Tommy”, “Blue Bloods” and “Manifest” and has been a recurring character in the Fox Television series, “The Following.” On stage, she starred in comedies “The Guido Monologues,” and “What Are Ya Nuts?” Other notable roles include Kara Angelo, a character she created in the play she co-wrote, entitled “Spit it Out!”  She has performed in several acclaimed Off-Broadway plays: “Spalding Gray: Stories Left to Tell” at the Minetta Lane Theatre,  “Naked in a Fishbowl” at the Soho Playhouse, “Broadway’s Next Hit Musical” at The Triad, and “Girl Talk:The Musical” at the Midtown Theatre, has participated in several readings featuring celebrities like Mario Cantone, Ralph Macchio and Ally Sheedy, and was an onstage celebrity guest in the Broadway hit, “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.” Calling on her music background, Valerie hosted and produced a “Legends of Music” series at 92Y, interviewing music superstars (like Cyndi Lauper, Michael Bolton and Gloria Gaynor) in front of a live audience. At 92Y she has also interviewed best-selling authors. Smaldone created and launched “Hit Makers: Music Icons in Performance and Conversation with Valerie Smaldone” at The Sheen Center for Thought and Culture. Valerie is an adjunct instructor at School of Visual Arts in New York City and has been a private coach to professionals across many industries.

Monty Hobbs

CO-FOUNDER

With over 20 years of experience in the entertainment industry, Montgomery (Monty) Hobbs's enthusiasm for film and production has developed from his many unique experiences on set. Among his accomplishments is the pleasure of being involved with beautiful cast and crew teams in several successful projects. Although each project offers its own unique and memorable experience, some of his fondest are HBO's "East Bound and Down", Fox's "Sleepy Hollow," New Line Cinema's "We're the Millers", Universal Studio's "The Favorite," Warner Bros. "Swamp Thing," Hulu's "Reprisal," and Miramax's "The Georgetown Project." Monty's most recent project, the feature film " The Thursday Night Club", where he served as the Executive Producer, is a testament to his creative prowess. Starring Gloria Gaynor and based on Steve Manchester's successful novel, the film was shot in the late winter months of 2022. It tells the heartwarming story of five college friends who embark on a series of charitable projects, transforming not just the lives of those around them but also their own. The film's impact was recognized by The Los Angeles Film Awards (LAFA), earning the title of "Best Inspirational Film of 2022". It also received a Dove Seal Approval with a rating of 8 out of 10 and was nominated by The Rome Independent Prisma Award for Best Film. Currently airing on Sony's Pureflix Steaming Network and with a promising partnership with Bridgestone Multimedia Group (BMG), "The Thursday Night Club" is set to be available on all VODs and in retail stores in 2023. 2022 was a busy year, with "The Thursday Night Club" and seeing a vision develop on screen that brings people together for the greater good. Developed from the idea that there are still good people, Monty and his partners at Heartlight Entertainment created, grew, developed, produced, and filmed "Divine Renovation." Starring Erik Estrada and filmed in beautiful Wilmington, NC, "Divine Renovation" joins residents with unique situations and circumstances that have created a need in their lives with wonderful individuals and organizations ready to step in as a community to offer support and help to meet the needs. With a focus on how small actions create big impacts, each episode of "Divine Renovation" focuses on a personal and, at times, surprising journey of families in need and those who give their time and talents to improve the lives of others. "Divine Renovation" is now streaming #APPLE #AMAZON #TUBI #PLEX #UPTV

Steve Manchester

Writer / Author

New England's Storyteller Steven Manchester is the author of the soul-awakening novel, The Menu, and the '80s nostalgia-series Bread Bags & Bullies, Lawn Darts & Lemonade. His other works include #1 bestsellers Twelve Months, The Rockin' Chair, Pressed Pennies and Gooseberry Island; the national bestsellers, Ashes, The Changing Season and Three Shoeboxes; the multi-award winning novels, Dad and Goodnight Brian; and the heartwarming Christmas movie, The Thursday Night Club. His work has appeared on NBC's Today Show, CBS's The Early Show and BET's Nightly News. Three of Steven's short stories were selected "101 Best" for Chicken Soup for the Soul series. He is a multi-produced playwright, as well as the winner of the 2017 Los Angeles Book Festival, 2018 New York Book Festival, 2020 New England Book Festival, and 2023 Paris Book Festival. When not spending time with his beautiful wife, Paula, or their children, this Massachusetts author is promoting his works or writing.

Erik Estrada

Host / Partner

After completing two successful seasons of Divine Renovation, it only made sense to continue working together to spread messages of goodness. We can't wait for our upcoming children's book! Erik Estrada’s career has spanned so far over four decades, yet although, he had worked as an actor for years before his first television series, it was for his dynamic portrayal of Officer Francis ‘Frank’ Poncherello affectionately known as “Ponch” in the hit, ‘CHiPs’, that he became a household name.

Jay Batchler

Editor / Artist

We are truly fortunate to have Jay Batchler on board with us at JDG. His exceptional skills and unwavering dedication have been instrumental in making our projects a success. From his impeccable editing work on Seasons 1 & 2 of #divinerenovation to his incredible artwork for our forthcoming Children's book, Jay has consistently exceeded our expectations. We can't thank him enough for his valuable contribution to our team. Bio: Jay Batchler graduated from the University of North Carolina School of The Arts with a BFA in Film Editing. He currently resides in Atlanta and works on episodic and feature-length movies. Jay has worked on projects for BET, A&E—Lifetime, TV One, BYU-TV, CourtTV, BounceTV, AllBlk, Tubi, and The CW. See less

David Pascua

Photography / Associate Producer

David Pascua has officially joined the JDG family as an Associate Producer. David has been an invaluable contributor to the filming of Season 1 and photography of Season 2 of #DivineRenovation. With his talent and expertise, we're confident that he will bring a new level of creativity and professionalism to our team. We can't wait to see what we'll achieve together!

Christina Sciongay

Associate Producer

Meet Christina Sciongay, our new Associate Producer! Christina is not only a talented actress, but also the co-founder of the Connecticut Film Initiative. She has worked in various roles, including writer, director, co-producer, and actress in films. Her work has been showcased at the Mystic International Film Festival and the "She Directed" Campaign by Kate Bosworth, which promotes female directors. Christina is also a co-founder of Film For Therapy, where she creates documentaries highlighting the work of non-profit organizations. She is a graduate of the University of Connecticut, where she received a Bachelor's Degree in Psychological Sciences and English, and was a member of the esteemed Phi Beta Kappa. Recently, she completed her Master's in Public Administration with distinction. With her passion for public service, Christina is dedicated to making the world a better place. Her kind and caring nature shines through in everything she does. We're fortunate to have her as part of the JDG team.