Conveyor Media is one of those journeyman production companies that just gets on with the
business of creating of some of the most-loved factual series on air without drama or fanfare. So,
as the L.A.-based entity turns 10 this year, Realscreen is sitting down with co-founder and president Colin Whelan to understand what makes the prodco tick.

Conveyor was the brainchild of Whelan and partner Jay James, who teamed up to open the
company in 2014. Whelan had just departed his role as VP of alternative development and current
programming at Syfy, while James had stepped down as exec VP of development at Wilshire
Studios, the reality production arm he helped launch for NBCUniversal.

The duo started strong, with series and shows such as New Girls on the Block (the first reality show with an all-transgender cast) for Discovery Life, Bargain Mansions for DIY/HGTV, Cooking on High for Netflix, and projects including the Justin Bieber Roast Red Carpet for Comedy Central.

But the partnership only lasted until 2017, when James was offered the chance to run
development at the Game Show Network and Whelan was left as sole proprietor of a busy and
growing prodco. Although he had twice tried to launch an indie more than a decade before, this
time Whelan says he felt ready to make a go of it on his own.

“I wanted to work for myself because I just felt like, if I succeed or if I fail, it’s going to be on me,” he explains. “Running an indie, you have to be really aware of the fact that everything is your
fault, full stop. You can’t blame others. You have to take responsibility and you have to own the
mistakes — and I’m fine with that.”

Whelan felt he had an advantage over other indies thanks to the decades he’d spent working at factual
mainstays like Syfy, TLC, Fremantle, Pie Town and E! His role, as he saw it, was client service: “doing whatever I can to make it as easy as possible for the client and make great shows,” he says. “I
always viewed this as a get-rich-very-slow scheme,” he adds with a laugh.

My job is to make a show that I feel will be interesting to the audience. I’m always rooting for people that I like.

Over the years, Conveyor has intentionally built a diverse slate, as Whelan believes that good producers shouldn’t be confined by genre, but rather focus on the stories and people that speak to them most. That’s certainly true of one of Conveyor’s latest: Keke Wyatt’s World, which kicked off on WE tv last October. The show follows the R&B artist as she navigates her career, along with being a wife, daughter and mother to 11 children.

“My job is to make a show that I feel will be interesting to the audience,” Whelan explains. “I’m always rooting for people that I like. I love Keke and I want this show to help her in life. I really want it to be a good thing for her.”

It’s an approach that might help explain why Whelan has had such a remarkable track record with
famous and high-profile subjects over the years, including Bieber, Jack Osbourne, Tracy Morgan, Tess Holliday and others.

How does he manage it? “I just check my ego at the door,” he explains. “The celebrities can tell
we really want to do right by everybody we work with. We want to create an environment where
people can feel comfortable and make a great show together, knowing that I don’t have any tricks
up my sleeve or an agenda to torque the show in any kind of unrealistic, mean-spirited way.”

Last year, Conveyor’s slate reached approximately 40 hours, built by a team of about 70 people across all projects, full-time and freelance. Whelan says he prefers a smaller, more agile staff because it means he can adapt quickly to get deals made, and he knows that flexibility allows him to compete against larger indies and majors. As he explains it, he can offer “speed and full, honest transparency so that they know where the money is going.”

And maybe that’s another reason why Conveyor has made a mark over the last decade. Whelan brims with energy and humor, and offers full transparency when it comes to his agenda.

“Business in 2024 is really hard, it’s really competitive,” he explains. “But I don’t ever remember it being easy, if I’m being honest. I’ve never had shows fall from the sky. So that doesn’t deter me.

“At the end of the day, I’m grateful to be a part of this business and work with so many people I
genuinely like and enjoy. It’s nice to feel like I’ve found my tribe.”

(Pictured, top: Ranch to Table for Magnolia Network)