Jessica Mariko
I like creating things that don’t already exist.
That's been the common thread throughout my career, whether I was producing attractions for global entertainment companies, building original businesses from the ground up, or redesigning the systems behind them.
I'm happiest when there's no blueprint.
For more than 20 years, I've helped bring ambitious ideas to life through themed entertainment, immersive experiences, hospitality, and entrepreneurship. Along the way, I've had the opportunity to lead creative production and development for projects at Universal Creative, Universal Kids Resort, Merlin Entertainments, LEGOLAND Resorts, SeaWorld Orlando, and original ventures I've created from scratch.
What I enjoy most isn't working within one industry. It's connecting ideas that normally wouldn't belong together.
Some of my favorite solutions have come from
blending theater with hospitality, psychology with storytelling, branding with operations, or guest experience with business strategy.
Looking at challenges through multiple lenses often reveals opportunities that aren't obvious when you stay inside a single discipline.
I love creating experiences people didn't know were possible, but I'm just as excited about creating the systems, processes, and teams that make those experiences possible in the first place.
To me, creativity doesn't stop at the guest experience. It can improve the way people work together, solve problems, and bring ambitious ideas to life.
Outside of large organizations, I've founded and produced original concepts including DRIP, The Haunted Road, A Drive-thru Halloween Experience, and now FreeDirt. Each has been an opportunity to start with a blank page and ask, "What if we built something people didn’t know they needed until they experienced it?"
Whether I'm collaborating with a startup, consulting on a new venture, producing an immersive experience, or helping shape an idea that's still taking form, I'm happiest creating things that don’t already exist, but should.
If you're building something ambitious, I'd love to hear about it.
Let’s create something extraordinary together.