Our Team

Krista Gano - Chief Executive Officer/Founder/Director

Krista Gano is a writer, director, and producer whose career spans film, theater, and high-stakes creative development. Her work lives at the intersection of story, strategy, and forward motion.

She began her career producing and acting in the feature film Chicks, Man before stepping into the heart of the Hollywood ecosystem, where she sharpened her business instincts as a trusted assistant to Academy Award–winner Dustin Hoffman. She later returned to her theatrical roots, working alongside Tony Award–winning producers Steven Eich and Randall Arney and acclaimed director Gil Cates at the Geffen Playhouse.

In 2002, Krista became Executive Director of The Groundlings Theatre, collaborating with comedic artists who would go on to define a generation — including Kristen Wiig, Annie Mumolo, Edi Patterson, Mikey Day, Jim Rash, and Will Forte. Her years there shaped her deep understanding of character-driven storytelling, performance, and the discipline required to bring bold ideas to life.

As a filmmaker, Krista has directed award-winning short films including Dime Short, The Family Hood, and Losing Antonia. As a writer, she co-wrote the feature comedy Invisible with Laura Carson — a Top 3% Coverfly-ranked script with attached talent and major studio interest — and has developed both original and adapted features across comedy, genre, and slice of life dramedy. She is currently preparing to co-direct her first feature, Comfort Food, a project she developed and is producing in Colorado.

Alongside her creative work, Krista co-founded Innovative Improv Solutions, an experiential training consultancy serving global brands and creative organizations. There, she pairs improvisational methodology with business strategy, helping teams communicate clearly and perform effectively in high-stakes environments. Clients have included 20th Century Fox, ESPN, Sony Electronics, Sony Networks Entertainment Group, Blue Sky Animation, The Recording Academy (The GRAMMYs), UCLA, National Geographic, Verizon Media, and Kaiser Permanente, where she continues to serve on faculty for over a decade in clinician–patient communication training.

Krista is also developed and helms the SeriesFest’s Pitch-A-Thon program, where she has coached creators across North America in clarifying, refining, and confidently presenting their work. The program has traveled to SXSW, TIFF, Second City, Trillith Institute, Twin Cities Film Fest, The Cherokee Nation Film Institute, and beyond.

Through Working Artist Group, Krista brings three decades of experience in story development, production strategy, and high-stakes creative environments to one core purpose: helping storytellers regain momentum. She is known for her ability to clarify narrative, identify the right next move, and prepare creators to enter the room with both confidence and integrity, supporting the voice of the artist while ensuring the work is strong ready to move.

Laura Carson - Chief Creative Officer/On-Camera

Laura Carson is an actress, producer and writer with over 30 years of experience.  She has taught theatre and filmmaking for 15 years at Idyllwild Arts Academy in Idyllwild, CA and is currently teaching on-camera acting classes with Working Artist Group in Denver, CO.  In addition to performing in several plays in New York and Los Angeles, she has had two of her short plays, "Picking Up the Pieces" and "Suicide Phone," produced in NYC.  Some of her film and television credits include LA to Vegas, American Crime, Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders, Drop Dead Diva, Grey's Anatomy, Gilmore Girls, Bruce Almighty,  and national commercials for Capital One, Chili’s and Applebees. 

Her award-nominated short film, Dime Short, (writer/actress) screened on the festival circuit last year.  She co-produced, co-wrote and acted in UnCorked, a 10-episode webseries.  Most recently, she is in post-production for the short film, Losing Antonia, (producer/actress) and is developing several features with 3by3 Entertainment (co-founder). 

Michael Churven – Instructor

Michael is a director, actor, writer, sketch comedian and improvisor based in Los Angeles. He is currently a company member of The Groundlings Theater where he teaches and performs weekly. He also trained at Second City Los Angeles and IO West and has performed at the Just For Laughs festival in Montreal, The Upright Citizens Brigade Los Angeles, San Francisco Sketch Fest and at several other comedy festivals throughout the world.

Michael also works with our corporate arm, Innovative Improv, where he facilitates workshops for companies looking to improve team dynamics and communication in the workplace.

His two-person show Party of Two that he co-wrote and performed with four-time Emmy nominee George McGrath was a sell out during its run at The Groundlings. His other acting work includes television appearances in ABC’s Modern Family and Adult Swim’s Mike Tyson Mysteries. He also appeared in the feature film Wild Night with Emily alongside Molly Shannon and his short film Troughman won Best Humor Award at the 2019 Hump Film Festival. He has a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Law from the University of Queensland, Australia.

David Jahn - Instructor

David received a B.S. degree in Music, Theatre and Dance from Illinois State University.  He became a Main Company member of The Groundlings in 1995, writing and performing with Will Ferrell, Chris Parnell, Chris Kattan, Cheri Oteri, and Jennifer Coolidge to name a few.  He’s been on the Groundlings faculty for the past 18 years.  David had the pleasure of directing the Groundlings Sunday and Main Co., steering the likes of Melissa McCarthy, Ben Falcone, Maya Rudolph, Nat Faxon and Will Forte. David believes in order to teach well, he must be auditioning and studying at all times.  He currently studies with Jonathan Slavin and Michael Adams.

He is the co-founder of our corporate partner, Innovative Improv Solutions, which delivers workshops centering communication and innovation with companies like Sony, 20th Century Fox, Westfield, Blue Sky Studios, ESPN, Fox Sports, Gossamer Bio, Dexcom and more.

David's credits include, Big Fat Obnoxious Boss, Men Women & Children, The Comeback, Bad Judge, Cougar Town, Kirstie, Modern Family, Arrested Development, Mobbed, Black-ish, Thank You For Smoking, & Doin' It Yourself.  David has also been featured in numerous commercials promoting anything from ingrown toenail medication to BMW’s. 

David believes in setting a supportive, nurturing, yet challenging environment for learning and our CO students have benefitted greatly from his guidance.

Jessica Anguiano - Consultant

Jess has worked for 20 years in the entertainment industry, from network television to independent film to professional theater for some of the biggest companies in the world including Disney, ABC, Hulu, and Paramount. She spent her first 15 years in the business as an actor, singer, improviser, and member of Actor’s Equity and SAG. She transitioned to tv production and is a member of  IATSE as a production coordinator for shows like Grown-ish and Rookie: Feds. Additionally, she was also a studio post coordinator for Grey’s Anatomy, Little Fires Everywhere, A Million Little Things among others.

Jess has produced several award winning films, and written and pitched pilots, feature films, and one woman shows. She has overseen productions with up to 400 crewmembers and produced her own projects with as few as 10.

Jessica also writes and produces female driven comedy such as The Family Hood, Out Romance, and a web series, Good Neighbors developed by her own production company, Hurricane Jessie Pictures. Her newest pilot, Dark Dark Matter is making the rounds in the contest circuit and is featured on The Black List and won for best pilot in the Save the Cat Screenplay Challenge among other fun accolades.