Bio - Charlie Fink | Metaverse Consultant, Columnist, Author, Adjunct

Bio

Charlie Fink writes the weekly Forbes column "This Week in XR" and co-hosts its companion podcast. He is the author of the critically acclaimed AR-enabled books "Charlie Fink’s Metaverse" (2017), and "Convergence, How The World Will Be Painted With Data" (2019). Fink teaches XR and Metaverse Studies at Chapman University in Orange, CA.  Fink's forty year career at the convergence of popular culture and technology began at Walt Disney Feature Animation in 1987 where he famously came up with the idea for “The Lion King" and subsequently became the studio’s youngest creative vice-president. Fink's work in technology began in 1992 when he joined Tim Disney’s pioneering location-based VR company, Virtual World Entertainment, as its COO. In 1995, AOL recruited him to be Senior Vice President & Chief Creative Officer of AOL Studios (1995-1999). Fink was also President of American Greetings Interactive and Blue Mountain (2000-2004). His other experience includes exits from several startups and running the New York Musical Festival.
Fink gives keynotes on topics relateed to the Metaverse all over the world. His consulting practice is focused on helping tech companies tell their stories.

Highlights

Charlie Fink covers VR & AR for Forbes and teaches XR at Chapman University's Dodge Film School in Orange, CA. He is the author of Remote Collaboration, Virtual Conferences, The Future of Work (2020) and the AR-enabled books, Convergence, or How The World Will Be Painted With Data (2019), and Charlie Fink's Metaverse, An AR Enabled Guide to VR & AR (2017). One reads an AR book with a smartphone in their hand, where images, animation and video can literally pop out of the pages. His resume features the following experience.

Founder/CEO, Charlie Company, LLC (2004-2014) A digital marketing agency specializing in integrated lifestyle marketing campaigns for global brands, startups, and non-profits leveraging SEM, SEO, social, apps, content creation, viral, guerrilla and experiential channels; created & launched "The Other 98%" which now has 5M Facebook followers (for client Moveon.org).

President, American Greetings Interactive (2000-2004) drove transformation of e-card category from free to paid through aggressive consolidation strategy, scaling the first successful freemium model on the web to 4M+ paying monthly subscribers

Founder/CEO, eAgents (1999-2000) Founded venture-backed e-news publisher, subsequently sold to American Greetings Interactive

SVP, Chief Creative Officer, AOL Studios (1995-1999) Created some of the most successful web brands of the early Internet, including Motley Fool, Love@AOL (sold to Match.com), Real Fans Sports Network (sold to ESPN), Electra (sold to Oxygen Media), and others

Chief Operating Officer, Virtual World Entertainment (Disney-owned VR pioneer) (1992-1995) Developed Battletech Universe, the first VR cockpit simulator, opening and operating 12+ gaming venues, subsequently sold to Microsoft

VP, Creative Development and Production, Walt Disney Pictures (1985-1992) Originated concept and supervised development of “Lion King” as well as many other major motion pictures from Disney Animation’s second “Golden Age” including “Aladdin” & “Beauty and the Beast”

Producer of over 30 award-winning off-Broadway shows, festival productions, and documentary features between 2004 and 2017.

Chairman, New York Musical Festival: Best known as incubator of Broadway hits “Next to Normal” & “Title of Show” (2007-2017)