Have you met Holly Gregory yet?
If not, you’re in for a treat. She’s one of the many talented personalities behind some of your favorite Pinna productions.
Below, we’re chatting with Holly about all things work and life. You’ll get to hear about her career prior to joining the Pinna family, the work she’s done with Pinna, her childhood aspirations, her travel goals, her current playlist, and so much more!
Our Q&A with Holly was a pleasure to put together. We hope you enjoy the interview every bit as much as we did.
Keep reading to find out more about Holly and her incredible contributions to the Pinna platform.
Interview With Holly Gregory — The Talented Face Behind Many Of Your Favorite Pinna Productions
Hi there! To start, why don't you tell us a bit about yourself and how you came to work with Pinna?
I’m Holly and I’ve always wanted to make media for kids. I started interning at PBS stations when I was in college and have never looked back. Kids are so smart and they deserve to have media that makes them laugh, think, and wonder. After years of working in audio for cartoons, I got interested in doing audio-only projects. And that led me to Pinna!
Please share what Pinna projects you’ve worked on. We’d love to hear!
- Don’t Break the Rules — It’s been a barrel of laughs since the first pitch to Pinna!
- Phobia Chat — This is a silly series of shorts with the favorite cat I’ve ever invented: Ima Scaredycat, the most ridiculous radio host you’ve ever met.
- Time for Kids Explains — I was very honored to help Time for Kids and Pinna develop a podcast version of this great magazine. It was made more challenging by launching at the onset of the pandemic, but it’s been really gratifying to help kids make sense of this complex world.
- The FurryTones — I loved directing this ensemble cast; all those actors in the room together was a wonderful treat.
- Audiobooks — I’ve worked on Through the Mickle Woods and the Poggle and Scamp series. These were a treat to work on because they were written by my mom. That was a very sentimental project for me.
What led you to this career choice? Any advice for our readers who may be interested in pursuing this path?
I think I ended up in this career because I love to read good books aloud. It is, next to eating cookies, my favorite thing to do. My advice to anyone who wants to be a media-maker is WRITE good stories and READ a lot out loud.
Growing up, what was your dream job? How does that compare to what you're doing now?
My dream job was to be a newscaster. I wanted to be on an early morning show smiling, drinking coffee, and dispensing the news. I am still telling stories to people, and I do smile a lot and drink coffee (or tea). There are just no cameras there. Which is fine because I like doing what I do in slippers and sneakers (and I imagine a news show would frown on both of those).
What (or who!) inspires you? We'd love to hear more about your creative process!
I’m inspired by great actors. I’ve been blessed to work with so many funny, talented performers that, when I’m writing, I often have one of them in my head. I’m also inspired by writers — I read tons of kids lit and love to geek out on word choices and character descriptions. I’m also inspired by dogs. Their joy is so pure; their love is so uncalculated. We should all endeavor to enjoy life like a dog.
Okay, let's have a little fun! If you could travel anywhere in the entire world, where would you go and why?
Galapagos Islands. I really want to see all of those creatures. I worry about protecting those wild islands from lots of tourists though, so I would only want to travel by hot air balloon and float unobtrusively above. Which is why the trip has been very difficult to plan…
Do you have any furry (or scaly!) friends keeping you company while you work?
I have a very unusual, very New York pet arrangement: I have a dog share. A friend of ours got a little shy white fluff of a rescue dog over COVID quarantine. When he went back to school in person, he was worried about the dog being lonely. So I stepped in as a Fairy Dogmother and get to enjoy the company of Sweetie during the day (and she still gets to snuggle her boy at night). She is a total goofball in our house, flopped on her back with a wagging tail and ball in her mouth, but she’s still shy to the outside world.
Let's talk food! If you could only eat one thing every single day for the rest of your life, what would it be? Why?
A tomato sandwich on toasted cheese bread with butter. Why? Because I have never not enjoyed it. I grew up with a garden and now enjoy the farmer’s markets of NYC. I personally believe that a tomato sandwich a day keeps the doctor away. Oh, and dark chocolate with nuts helps, um, your soul.
What do you enjoy listening to — music, podcasts, audiobooks? Can we get a sneak peek at your playlist? ;)
I am a very eclectic music listener. I like everything from classical to bluegrass and from hip hop to broadway. So my music playlists are super weird. I love audiobooks for long car trips. And I love news broadcasts for subway rides. Oh, and singalongs. I really love to belt out pop tunes.
The Wrap-Up
Pinna is an excellent tool for screen-free learning and fun all year round. Keep your kids engaged and entertained with Pinna’s comprehensive and growing library.
We’re all ears!
What did you enjoy most from our chat with Holly? We’d love to hear from you! Find us on all our social platforms – Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest – or email us at contact@pinna.fm.
