Steve Whiting is an awards-winning producer/director, writer, program developer and live-events multi-media specialist. He began his entertainment and production industry career as a feature story writer for Modern Recording Magazine and assistant music producer to Vince Guaraldi on 5 of the early Charlie Brown "Peanuts" television specials. In the past thirty-plus years, living and working in San Francisco, Phoenix, New York and Los Angeles, he has created, written, produced and directed everything from jazz and children's music records and a Neilson/Arbitron #1 rated children’s television series, “The Plasticman Comedy Adventure Show”, to the "ROCK JOURNAL" nationally syndicated TV music specials; and from celebrity sports and music commercials to show segments for CBS SPORTS SPECTACULAR and serving as Day of Game Producer for FIFA World Cup Soccer matches at Stanford University and from stage direction of Miss America telecasts, to the State of the World Forum on CNN, and for the BBC, with Mikhail Gorbachev, PM Margaret Thatcher and President George Bush, broadcast live around the world. He privately directed Gorbachev’s pre-taped opening address to the subsequent worldwide Forum as well as directing Network Pool Coverage of the Stanford Convocation with President Bill Clinton. Steve produced and directed the video board production for all San Francisco 49ers home games at Candlestick Park since 1987. He continues to consult and producer content for the 49ers in Santa Clara.
Corporate Communications and individual projects include corporate internal, external and internationally-produced marketing communication videos, multi-media marketing materials and promotional work for large events as well as on-location corporate award and convention presentations. He produced and directed the video featured by the City of San Francisco in winning the NFL contract for the 1999 Superbowl. His creative corporate videos, booth, stage and video-wall display productions for Umax Technologies won runner-up “Best of Show” honors at Comdex – the largest trade show exposition in the world.
Corporate Video and Live Directing Productions include work for: The United Way, Google, the NFL, The S.F. 49ers, Sun Microsystems, Cisco, Monster Cable, Nintendo, Avnet, Inc., Hamilton-Hallmark, Apple Computer, Hewlett Packard, Umax Technologies, ITEK, IBM, 3Com, The City of San Francisco, Time Warner/AOL, Outback Steakhouse, FedExpress, Review for Nurses Tapes, Inc., The Hospital Satellite Network et.al.
In his early career, as Broadcast Production Director for J.C. Whitted & Assoc. Advertising, Steve created, produced and directed regional and national radio and television commercials including those which twice won American Marketing Assn. and NRBA Campaign of the Year Awards, among many other awards. He continues producing and directing radio and television spots for clients including the United Way commercials, the NFL Pro-Bowl, Outback Steakhouse, AOL, FedEx, etc. He directed award winning national commercials for the United Way featuring Mathew Broderick, and John Fogerty.
He also spent several seasons producing and directing live and tape-delayed NCAA Football and Basketball for both CBS and NBC affiliated stations. He has done over 25 national and regional Sports Preview Television Specials and commercials starring noted names in sports including Reggie Jackson, Kareem Abdul Jabbar, Danny White, Tom Landry, Joe Montana, Steve Young, et al.
For the San Francisco Forty-Niners and Olmstead Productions/e2k Sports, Steve produced and directed every live in-stadium video telecast since 1987 at Candlestick Park. This involved directing 25-plus people, coordinating all matrix scoreboard presentations and directing the full narrowcast television coverage of the game, including commercial roll-ins and announcers. He also coordinates and produces features for pre-game/half-time events. He’s assisted in pre-production and coordination of live events such as Superbowl XIX at Stanford, the NFL American Bowl football games in London, Tokyo and Mexico City and the annual EAST-West Shrine Football Classic. For ABC Sports NFL/Monday Night Football he directed coverage of the Joe Montana, Steve Young, Jerry Rice and Ronnie Lott Jersey retirement ceremonies.
At the 40th Cannes Film Festival in France, Steve co-produced and directed 14 daily on-location, live one-hour telecasts and a 90-minute special for The Hollywood Reporter/SelecTV. This show was the principal source of English language reportage of the festival and guest celebrities included Paul Newman, Liz Taylor, Prince Charles and Princess Diana, Mel Gibson, John Travolta, Sally Kellerman, Norman Mailer, et. al. Steve personally directed most interviews and supervised all editing of the shows. Clips of the shows were licensed and seen worldwide.
Steve's multi-national sports and entertainment specials credits also include directing televised road-racing coverage throughout America for “World Motor Sports Magazine”, work in Venezuela (in Spanish) and directing over 70 on-location dramatic scenes with Japanese and American talent for JVC Broadcast, Japan. He was Day-of-Game Producer for all World Cup Soccer matches telecast live from Stanford Stadium for the 1994 World Cup tournament, including the historic July 4th match between the USA and Brazil.
Under contract to TAFT Entertainment/Arlington Television, Steve was challenged to develop a new vehicle for first-run-off-network cartoons. He conceived, wrote, produced and directed the “PLASTICMAN COMEDY-ADVENTURE SHOW”...130 half-hours which aired daily in national syndication for five years.
For USA Productions, Whiting produced and directed for television the San Jose Basho Sumo Tournament. It was the first accredited Sumo Wrestling event ever held outside Japan and its coverage was seen across America on Sportschannel America and on Prime Ticket affiliated stations. It was seen throughout Asia on Prime International.
The State of the World Forum was a live telecast from Masonic Auditorium in San Francisco. It culminated in a panel discussion between Gorbachev, Thatcher and President Bush, which was seen around the world. Steve was charged with satellite transmission coordination and talent stage direction of the historic, world-wide event.
In association with e2k Productions, Steve has directed live big screen coverage of events across America, including major shows in Las Vegas with Rod Stewart, et.al and opening show coverage of the America’s Cup races on San Francisco Bay.
Whiting and Co. formed an association/partnership with Live Action Digital - and together developed a business of production and animation, which produces commercials, and content for television, video board shows and films and other media. Steve created and they grew StadiumEvac.com to produce content for NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL, NCAA Universities. During sports seasons, their evacuation and safety videos are seen by more than 1 million stadium and arena patrons weekly.
The Telly Awards are a national award presented annually in various categories to honor outstanding achievement and excellence in video, commercial and television production. Since 1998, Whiting & Co. Entertainment has won 17 separate Telly Awards for various clients’ projects in categories ranging from Best Animated Show Opening and Best Public Relations Video to Best Public Service Commercials (2003 with Mathew Broderick for the NFL and for the United Way, best commercial 2004, as well as Best Safety Public Service Video for SuperBowl XXXIX). Work done for Juristac Rancho Amah Mutsun Tribe won the 2009 Best PR Video Telly Award.
In 2010 Steve was asked to become a member of the Silver Telly Council and a Telly Awards Judge, and has been on the Council and judging awards submissions since that time.
Bachelor of Arts - Communication
San Jose State University
Masters Degree - Recording Institute of America
