Finding joy in life is easier said than done, but Shabnam Mogharabi is out to change that. In her role as CEO and executive producer of SoulPancake, a media and production company committed to making videos and content that matters, Shabnam is spreading joy to the world around her.
Her story with SoulPancake began more than eight years ago when she heard an interview on NPR with The Office’s Rainn Wilson, who talked about creating a website that would serve as a new kind of platform for spiritual, religious and philosophical ideas.
“Rainn Wilson stole my idea!” she thought when she heard it, thinking back to the thesis she wrote for her master’s degree about the need for media to make spiritual topics cooler. Unable to take her mind off the mission, Shabnam reached out to everyone she knew in Los Angeles to find someone who could get her in touch with Rainn about her desire to be involved.
Fast-forward to today, Shabnam, Rainn and their team at SoulPancake have touched millions with the viral videos they’ve produced like Kid President, My Last Days and the Tell My Story series. And as CEO, Shabnam, who started as co-director of content, shares her passion for joy to audiences around the world, inspiring them to spark joy in their own lives.
“At some point, it became cool to not care. It became cool to be indifferent and be apathetic… Being joyful is an act of rebellion and joy itself is a counterculture to the world we live in today.” — Shabnam Mogharabi
