Gabriel Brakin is Chief Operating Officer at Participant, the leading global media company dedicated to entertainment that combines the power of a story well told with real world impact and awareness around today’s most vital issues. As COO, Brakin oversees company-wide Business Affairs and Operations, Legal, Corporate Strategy, M&A and the People & Culture functions, and is responsible for ensuring that the company operates in alignment with its mission and values.

During his 15 years with the company, Brakin has overseen the development, production, distribution and investment arrangements for more than 100 films which have collectively earned 86 Academy Award® nominations and 21 wins, including Best Picture winners Spotlight and Green Book; Best Documentary Feature winners American Factory, CITIZENFOUR, and The Cove; and Best Foreign Language Film winners Roma and A Fantastic Woman, as well as Participant’s acclaimed, award-winning episodic and short-form digital content, including EMMY®-winning When They See Us. Additional releases Brakin has been involved with include Judas and the Black Messiah, John Lewis: Good Trouble, Dark Waters, Just Mercy, RBG, Wonder, He Named Me Malala, Lincoln, Contagion, The Help, Food, Inc., Descendant, All the Beauty and the Bloodshed, America to Me and Keep Sweet: Pray and Obey.

In 2017, Brakin spearheaded Participant’s effort to become the largest US entertainment company to earn a B-Corporation Certification in recognition of the company’s social and environmental approach to its work.

Prior to joining Participant in 2008, Brakin was an entertainment and media attorney at O’Melveny & Myers LLP. He currently serves as an Advisory Board Member of the UCLA Ziffren Institute for Media, Entertainment, Technology & Sports Law and as a member of the Executive Branch of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences. Brakin holds a JD from the UCLA School of Law, and a BA in Political Science from UCLA.