Our Team
Meet our Team behind the scenes of creating “Two Week’s Notice: The Departure of Hella Sketchy”

Erik Thureson
Executive Producer/ Director/Writer
In 2019, Erik experienced the tragic loss of his 18 year old son, Jacob, to an opioid overdose. In honoring his son’s legacy, Erik courageously confronts the stigmatized issues of mental health and substance abuse encouraging audiences to join in the collective effort to remove the barriers that prevent open dialogue about mental health and substance abuse.
With over three decades of learned experience from Disney, Oscars, Fox Sports, GSN, and the NFL in the areas of programming and production, Erik’s skillset is rich and vast. The depth of his industry experience accompanied with an extensive education from CSU Fullerton, UC Santa Barbara, UCLA, Emory University, and Berkeley College of Music, make him a powerful force of creativity. From creating client engagement solutions to managing over $65M in digital product development, he knows how to identify road blocks and develop solutions to overcome them. Erik sees potential pathways, in situations and people.
From the jungles of El Salvador to track side at Nuremberg Ring, From lighting grip to Executive producer, Erik not only has a wealth of experience and knowledge, what makes him stand out is his heart for others both behind the line and on the screen, his intentional presence with people as his priority changes lives and creates deep, rippling impact.
He is passionate about serving others and creating films that make the world a better place.

Zak Abitz
Cinematographer / DP
Zak Abitz, 35, is a cinematographer based in Phoenix, Arizona. He earned a bachelor’s degree from FSU majoring in film and has been working in the film industry since 2010. While starting his film career in Oklahoma, he worked on many commercial shoots as well as a viral Pacman short film. After moving to Phoenix in 2015, Zak has continued to master the cinematographer role, serving on over a dozen music videos, multiple short films, and many short form documentaries. Zak has been married for 9 years, and now father to a 3 year old son. Because of this connection to his son and Jacob’s story, he is grateful to be involved in this project. He hopes to bring more awareness to the mental health struggle of each generation as well as helping people understand that creatives can be more than just their work.

Pedro Marin
Film Editor
Pedro Marin is a seasoned video producer and musician, with over 25 years of expertise in both realms. With a keen eye for detail and a knack for video production, he has crafted many engaging videos across various genres and platforms and has collaborated with a diverse range of artists and clients. Pedro’s work ranges from live concert films, music videos, 2D/3D animation to short films and documentaries. His passion for visual storytelling is matched only by his dedication to music, where he has flourished as both a live and studio musician, resulting in a few Latin Grammy nominations.
With a wealth of experience under his belt from years of touring to multiple albums recorded and videos produced, Pedro continues to push the boundaries of his craft, seamlessly blending his passion for music and visual storytelling to create engaging and memorable experiences for the audience. His dedication to excellence, quality and professionalism shines through in every project he undertakes.

Sammy Plumier
Line Producer
Sammy has been in production for 20+ years in many roles, on both sides of the line — on stage/screen to behind the scenes. From live stage management, event producing, crew and/or vendor management, talent coordination, scheduling, line producing, logistics, business development, client relations and travel coordination – Sammy gets stuff done and has some fun.
Sammy thrives in the midst of chaos + rises to the occasion in stress, pivoting and adapting while bringing people together for an experience of excellence. Sammy brings a wealth of experience with a heart of honoring those around her.
Her extensive experience in multiple roles and environments (executive management, production manager, wrangler of things and/or people, host/talent, script writer, location + studio shoot production) that make her a well rounded producer.
Sammy is joining the TWN crew because she knows + believes that this is an important story to tell — and wants to support it’s unfolding however she can, with a passion for people to feel less alone, and for us to better care for one another.

AJ Mather
Music Supervisor
AJ Mather is a recording and mixing engineer based in Phoenix, Arizona. He grew up in St. Paul, Minnesota in a musical family and began playing drums at the early age of eight. His love for drumming pushed him to learn how to record the bands he was in, which ultimately led him to his passion for recording and mixing music. Now, with over 18 years of experience in the industry, he has helped many artists release a product that feels both professional and authentic to their unique voice. He is the lead studio engineer at Christ’s Church of the Valley, where he manages their recording facility, aids in the release plans for all their projects, and records & mixes all of CCV Music’s albums. AJ’s work has been heard on ESPN’s College GameDay, Scott’s Bass Lessons and Nintendo Wii’s Country Dance. He has also engineered projects for many national acts including Gavin Degraw, LeCrae, Cory Wong, Cody Fry, Tenille Arts, and more.

Ivan Talamantes
Production Sound Mixer
Ivan Talamantes is an Audio Engineer started like a musician, more than 22 years of experience in the music and recording industry from touring, studio to church and corporate events. Worked on thousands of live concerts, hundreds of album-recording projects, advertising commercials, always looking to opportunities to add value with the art of mixing. Love to be part of a great story using sounds.

David Sulpizio
Producer / Animator
Growing up in Virginia, my journey in the creative arts began as an editor creating skate edits with my friends. My curiosity and passion for visual storytelling led me to delve into the world of visual effects (VFX), where I discovered my ability to breathe life into my edits. As I transitioned into my role as an animation producer, my goal became clear: I wanted to combine my knowledge and skills to create timeless stories. I see animation as a versatile medium for all ages, capable of conveying complex and profound narratives. I had the privilege of befriending Hella Sketchy, as I was a huge fan of his beat production skills, an incredibly talented artist gone too soon. My goal is to honor the depth and diversity of Hella Sketchy’s life through my work for Cupid Soldiers studios.