When Justin Sena was recruited by Corner Lot CEO Andy Allen to head a new media production company, Sena knew that he was coming home personally and professionally.
Soon after he graduated from the University of North Florida in 2004 with a degree in business administration, Sena moved to California.
He worked as a producer and in other positions on television programs such as “Survivor,” “American Idol”, “Sarah Palin’s Alaska” and “The Bachelor,” among other reality shows and media endeavors.
When Allen, a founder of the Corner Lot real estate development company, tracked him down to run a new business venture, Sena was on his way.
“He saw an opportunity here. I was happy he was ready to move back,” Allen said.
While Allen is a graduate of Jacksonville University, he and Sena ran in the same social circles and met through mutual friends. They are close in age – Sena is 40, Allen is 41.
Sena originally moved to Jacksonville in 2000 to attend UNF.
“It has a good business school, I liked the campus and it wasn’t overwhelming in size – and I loved that UNF was so close to the beach,” Sena said.
“I wanted to stay in Florida and both UNF and Jacksonville just felt right to me.”
Sena said his sister and brother-in-law, Nicole and Andy Brown, and their twin 7-year-old sons live in Jacksonville.
He also has cousins here.
“I tried convincing everyone to move to Jacksonville when I lived here previously, and naturally they finally moved around the time I left to Los Angeles,” Sena said.
He said he has family scattered in Jacksonville, Orlando and Miami.
When Allen realized Sena had been involved in high-profile productions, he proposed Sena return to Jacksonville.
It wasn’t a hard sell.
“There wasn’t really much convincing,” Allen said.
More than development
Corner Lot primarily is a real estate development firm, but Allen wants Fun To Watch to focus on video and media production for the development industry as well as the broader market.
Sena said he was intrigued.
“Seeing a development, whether it be a (building) project or a production, you have to kind of see the vision. I can see what Corner Lot is doing,” he said.
As production manager and managing partner, Sena is the only employee of Fun To Watch.
He knows the challenges that come with a startup, like operating nimbly and without as many resources as an established production company.
Sena has some camera and lighting equipment, computers and other gear in a small office at 1000 Riverside Ave. in Suite 270.
Corner Lot Development Group bought the building, the nine-story Summit Tower, for $11 million on June 21.
Allen, Sena and Corner Lot COO George Leone registered Fun To Watch LLC with the state in March.
“It’s making smart moves and not going on only crazy ideas. We have to service companies and establish partnerships,” Sena said.
That means marketing to clients beyond the land development industry.
While Corner Lot is providing the platform for starting the business, Sena said he will answer to many clients beyond Allen.
“It’s primarily going to be funded by working with our clients,” Sena said.
“I’m not in-house producing (only) for Corner Lot.”
Sena said Fun To Watch offers him the opportunity to build a production company “in a city where the sky’s the limit when it comes to filming opportunities.”
Sena said his name often was among those scrolling by at the end of programming during the 16 years he spent on the West Coast.
“If you look at the ending credits of a TV show or movie you see a lot of names on there. A lot of times people will think that a producer will do everything and sometimes they do,” he said.
“So, what a producer does is a problem-solver figuring out how to put all the pieces together everything from creative to execution,” Sena said.
Filling a void
The creativity and execution is why Allen said he hired Sena.
“We saw an opportunity and a need in the community to step up a little bit of video production and to get ready for all the new businesses coming into town,” Allen said.
Allen acknowledged there are media, public relations and marketing companies serving Jacksonville as well as TV stations that offer video production services.
He said Fun To Watch is designed to fill a void those broader services might be overlooking by necessity and not by choice simply because there are only so many clients they can serve in one market.
“Eventually we’re going to be open to all kinds of clients when we’re ready,” Allen said.
“But ultimately our core is to showcase any Jacksonville-based business right now that has content to put out. We’re just not there yet,” he said.
Sena said that after reconnecting with Allen, “I was blown away by the growth of the city.
“Florida was my home, my family is here, and it’s an opportunity to start a business from the ground up in a city with momentum alongside a team of innovative entrepreneurs at Corner Lot.”
