Heading to LA this November? LAVDM 3.0, the LA Vertical Drama Market, runs November 5 to 7, 2026 in Los Angeles. Get your tickets here: https://ticketbud.com/events/48dd3234-a0c1-11f1-bba2-42010a717021

It started with about 15 people at a mixer. Now it's the first industry event dedicated entirely to vertical drama.

Pauline's very first podcast guest is back. Dana Protsyshak, founder of the LA Vertical Drama Market (LAVDM), returns to The Vertical Reach Podcast for a catch-up on everything that's happened since they first met for lunch just over a year ago, the same day as one of Dana's early mixers.

Dana shares how a monthly meetup for people curious about vertical dramas (short, addictive video dramas made to be watched on your phone) grew into a market with 300+ attendees in its first year and 400+ people across three floors and 50+ events in its second. She also opens up about the summer that shook the industry, when AI arrived fast, productions paused or shut down, and even the people who thought they were ahead of the curve had to learn how to adapt.

Pauline and Dana also get into:

• How AI is opening up new kinds of stories, from dragons to elves to fantasy romance, and why it still needs human creativity
• Why script supervisors may be one of the most important roles in AI production
• What "pivot or perish" means to Dana, and why staying committed to your choice matters
• Why brands have been slow to enter the vertical space
• Dana's personal win: finishing her first novel after nine months of writing every day

Dana also gives a first look at LAVDM 3.0 this November: more business panels on financing, marketing, and distribution; new roundtable discussions; speed networking; and a live-action boot camp where creators can bring a vertical script, work with a mentor, shoot their pilot on real studio sets, and present it to a live audience, all in three days.

If you're a filmmaker, writer, actor, or creator curious about vertical storytelling, this is the room to be in. Don't miss it.

🎟️ LAVDM 3.0 | November 5–7, 2026 | Los Angeles
Tickets: https://ticketbud.com/events/48dd3234-a0c1-11f1-bba2-42010a717021

ABOUT DANA PROTSYSHAK
Dana Protsyshak is the founder of Dana Productions, the LA Vertical Drama Market (LAVDM), and Vert-I-Go Media, a creator- and community-friendly vertical drama platform. With 35+ vertical projects across writing, development, and production, she is one of the leading voices shaping vertical drama in North America. Through Dana Productions, she runs a writers' room spanning original development, adaptation, and localization, produces AI-driven vertical series, and evaluates series and creators for festivals, studios, and acquisition platforms. She is the author of four novels and the creator of OtheR, a dystopian series in development for both vertical and long-form formats. Dana also founded the VertIGo Vertical Pitch Competition and hosts the ongoing Vertical Mixers in Los Angeles.

ABOUT THE VERTICAL REACH PODCAST
The Vertical Reach is about that moment when you stretch upward, personally and professionally, to meet what's above where you are. Host Pauline Gray, award-winning screenwriter and narrative strategist, talks with creators, founders, and storytellers who are reinventing themselves in real time.

New episodes every Tuesday. Subscribe so you don't miss one.