Behind the action, the cameras, the thousands of hours of editing and meticulous attention to details, is a team that brings a rare appreciation and understanding of multimedia and the youth and action marketplace.
Unlike other production companies that outsource their services, our team of producers, writers, and videographers all work in-house.
Together we bring a diverse array of multimedia talents to create and distribute one-of-a-kind live and recorded event scale productions that have not only won multiple awards, but connect with viewers on an emotional level and keep our clients coming back for more.
Meet the core team
- Tamara Unvert, CEO
- Sumesh Thakur, President
- Marcie Guigar, Supervising Producer
- Tronica Johnson, Senior Editor
- Hugo Melendez, Operations Manager
- Natalie Gerber, Production Coordinator
- Bob Unvert, Founder (In Memoriam)
Tamara Unvert
CEO
If you’ve ever watched a championship ping pong match, that’s similar to what you’d see Tamara Unvert doing as she runs OceanWatch — her precision volleys keep OceanWatch running smoothly on a daily basis and always on time.
The former wife of OWPG’s late founder, Bob Unvert, Tamara brings years of history to the team, a wealth of knowledge, and a deep respect for the nuances involved in large-scale video production.
As a testament to her commitment to OceanWatch’s clients, after losing their state of the art facility to a fire, Tamara and the entire OceanWatch team temporarily relocated the business to Tamara’s home where they didn’t miss a beat. The first episode of their television series for Red Bull – “Re: Evolution of Sports” – was actually finished in Tamara’s home, where editors and other OceanWatch staffers worked around the clock using every room in the entire house (including the garage) to make their television premiere deadline.
Now running a full team after rebuilding a new post-production facility, Tamara controls the operations for OceanWatch and handles client relations.
In keeping with her late husband’s fun-loving spirit and relentless work ethic for a job well done, Tamara and her yellow Labrador retriever, Ally, makes sure the OWPG office provides an incredibly fun environment that consistently produces excellent work.
Sumesh Thakur
President
An award-winning producer with a fervent passion for video and film production, Sumesh Thakur sits at the helm of OceanWatch Production Group.
Sumesh graduated top of his class from California State University at Long Beach’s film school, where he also directed two award-winning short films. He joined OceanWatch in 1999.
Since then, Sumesh has produced hundreds of hours of video and film programming, airing everywhere from ESPN, ESPN2, and SpikeTV to the USA and Fox Sports Network.
Currently, Sumesh leads OceanWatch’s talented team of creative producers, editors and writers in creating award winning and compelling programming for a broad range of clients ranging from youth-centric brands to Fortune 500 companies.
From the peaks of Alaska to the largest underground mine in Bonne Terre, Missouri, Sumesh’s work has taken him to some of the most remote and hard to get to places in the world — especially when traveling with film equipment.
His talents range from creating documentaries, sporting events and youth marketing production programs for national television networks, as well developing media and B-Roll usage for large-scale corporations and PR/Advertising firms.
Sumesh’s enthusiasm for video and film production, as well as his never-give-up attitude, have won him numerous awards, including the illustrious Gold Medal at The New York Festivals for “Baffin B.A.S.E. Jumping Adventure.”
When not writing scripts, behind an editing bay, operating a camera or talking to clients, Sumesh spends family time in Irvine, Calif., where he lives with his wife Jenice and their two sons.
Marcie Guigar
Supervising Producer
Originally from Hawaii, Marcie Guigar graduated from Chapman University in 2003 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Film and Television Production. After graduating, she worked on a number of television shows including MTV’s “The Real World” and the hit car restoration show “Overhaulin”.
From liaising between clients and production staff to assuring quality and efficiency on all projects, Marcie is well versed in many aspects of production.
She’s recently been an integral part of 2 Red Bull original series- “Break’n Reality 2” is available on a variety of digital platforms. “Creators of Tomorrow” is currently in post-production and scheduled to air in 2015.
Besides her love of red wine and reality TV, Marcie enjoys the outdoors and spending time with her family.
Tronica Johnson
Senior Editor
A true Midwesterner, Tronica Johnson graduated with a bachelor of arts degree in film from Columbia College Chicago in 2003.
Immediately moving to Los Angeles after college, Tronica dove into the film world working on hit television shows including four seasons of “Overhaulin” on TLC and two seasons of “Living With Ed” on HGTV.
At OceanWatch, Tronica specializes in broadcast quality editing, show finishing, media management and color correction, as well as on-location editing and segment producing.
Recently, she played a critical role with OceanWatch’s production of the 2012 World Mixed Martial Arts Awards on Fox Sports Network and traveled around the country for Red Bull Flugtag.
Tronica enjoys hiking with her husband and new dog Sweet Pea, listening to audio books, gardening, and kickboxing.
Hugo Melendez
Operations Manager
Hugo Melendez is a graduate of Fullerton College where he played football, baseball, and studied music. In addition, he’s a graduate and certified Audio Engineer from the Los Angeles Recording School.
Hugo has freelanced for several post production houses and independent musicians. He’s had the unique opportunity to work with some of the best in sports and music which is where his passion lies.
Hugo wears many hats at OceanWatch. He oversees all equipment, archiving, and shipping matters, and is also the lead A/V technician for off-site location shoots.
When Hugo isn’t working, he enjoys spending time with his wife Rachael, their son Dominic, and their two dogs Rocco and Benson. He’s an avid golfer who likes playing and watching sports and traveling.
Natalie Gerber
Production Coordinator
After receiving her degree in Media Technology in 2003, Natalie Gerber moved from the UK to Los Angeles. She continued her education at the Los Angeles Film School and majored in editing. Since then she’s been working as an editor on a variety of projects including TLC’s “Overhaulin,” HGTV’s “Living With Ed”, Speed’s “Hot Import Nights,” and a number of commercials, documentaries and web series.
Her experience has made her an editor with the ability to work fast without compromising quality. She believes in the importance of being a good team player, being able to take notes, and also to be a part of a fun work environment that above all gets the job done.
Recently for OceanWatch, Natalie has traveled across the US as part of the Red Bull Global Rally Cross production team.
When she’s not hard at work, Natalie enjoys working out, watching movies, and spending time with her husband and son.
Bob Unvert
Founder (In Memoriam)
An avid deep-sea sport fisherman, Bob Unvert’s profound love of the outdoors was the impetus for starting a video and television production company, R.A.P. (“Robert Allen Production”), in 1985.
Originally started to service the growing market sector of sport fishing tournaments, Bob’s deeply rooted philosophy of “doing more for less” and fun to be around attitude, quickly catapulted R.A.P. to being one of the most sought after video companies in the outdoor space.
In 1992, R.A.P. changed its name to “OceanWatch Production Group,” expanding its services to include B-roll and TV outreach.
Almost a decade later in 2001, OceanWatch launched its own television programming series, “OceanWatch Production Group Sports Television” and “OceanWatch Production Group Adventure Television.” The series showcased big game fishing and exotic adventure sports from every corner of the globe, and helped better service the placement desires of clients.
Sadly, later that year, Bob passed away coming back from a television shoot on Baffin Island inside the Arctic Circle. Bob’s passing hit those who knew him hard, yet each took comfort in knowing that Bob was doing exactly what he loved to do.
The resiliency of OceanWatch Production Group has been woven into our company fabric. Less than a year after Bob’s passing, the company office in Costa Mesa, Calif., was destroyed by fire.
Oceanwatch rebounded quickly with new offices, new equipment and the American television debut of a weekly hour-long alternative sports program, “Re: Evolution of Sports,” on the new TNN.
Today, Bob’s incredible legacy and fun-loving spirit lives on at OceanWatch and in each of our productions.
The Baffin Island production, “Baffin Island B.A.S.E. Jumping Adventure,” has gone on to win the Gold World Medal for Television Sports Specials at the prestigious New York Film Festival and the “Mention d’Honneur” at the Milan Sport Movies & TV Festival.
