Ron Watermon, Founder & CEO of STORYSMART®
Ron Watermon is a media entrepreneur, executive producer, documentary filmmaker, Emmy-nominated screenwriter, author, and founder of STORYSMART®.
He is currently building toward the launch of STORYSMART® STUDIOS, an independent media company focused on developing, producing, owning, and distributing original intellectual property across film, television, publishing, podcasts, and other media.
At his core, Ron is a creator and builder.
Throughout his life and career, he has been drawn to creating things that did not previously exist. He has a talent for bringing together the people, resources, and partnerships needed to make visionary dreams real.
Whether producing Super 8 movies as a kid, launching a Soviet exchange program in college, building coalitions, running political campaigns, developing civic initiatives, producing television, creating digital media projects, writing a book, directing documentaries, or building companies, he has consistently gravitated toward opportunities to pioneer, innovate, and create.
Ron’s professional journey spans government, professional sports, media, publishing, filmmaking, and entrepreneurship.
He served in communications, legislative, public affairs, and leadership roles before joining the St. Louis Cardinals organization, where he ultimately became Vice President of Communications.
During his nearly two decades with the Cardinals, he helped lead communications, content development, broadcasting partnerships, digital media initiatives, and public affairs efforts for one of professional sports’ most respected organizations.
The projects Ron remembers most fondly were often those built from scratch. He helped produce original media content, developed digital storytelling, created digital archives, built partnerships, led revenue-generating initiatives, and brought together talented teams to create something meaningful.
Ron also produced the weekly television program Cardinals Insider with Ozzie Smith and pioneered episodic storytelling projects on social media such as #TheFrontOffice and #BirdToTheFuture.
Ron founded STORYSMART® as a video storytelling business built around a simple belief: organizations should own the stories created on their behalf.
Over time, the company evolved into legacy filmmaking, publishing, consulting, documentary production, story development, and intellectual property creation.
Today, Ron’s work is increasingly focused on developing and owning original media properties. As a producer, filmmaker, writer, and entrepreneur, he is building a growing slate of documentary and true-story projects while cultivating relationships with filmmakers, journalists, authors, investors, and strategic partners.
He is also the author of STORYSMART® Storytelling for ALL®: How to Take Control, Protect Your Rights, and Profit from Your Story Like a Hollywood Insider.
The book reflects his belief that creators should understand ownership, rights, business strategy, and value creation with the same sophistication that they understand storytelling itself.
Through STORYSMART® and the future growth of STORYSMART® STUDIOS, Ron is working to build a modern independent media company that brings together creators, collaborators, rights holders, audiences, and investors around shared success.
Learn more about Ron's work @ storysmart.net or connect via LinkedIn.
