“Not everything I do is related to movies, but many things are,” said Balbach, who was recently back in Ohio to visit family. “Most of our franchises get their start with a movie. Some of the big franchises I’ve worked with are ‘Minions,’ ‘Wicked,’ ‘Fast and Furious’ and DreamWorks animation titles. I do occasionally attend premieres and get to see the stars on the red carpet. It’s a great moment to celebrate the movie.”
Her official title is pretty impressive, Balbach is executive vice president of Global Brands Strategy and Creative for Universal Products and Experiences.
“That means that I get to work with all of our big brands like ‘Jurassic World’ and DreamWorks properties like ‘Shrek’ and I get to manage the franchise,” said Balbach who has 65 people on her team. “If you think about a movie like ‘Wicked,’ for instance, they want you to come and see the movie and then it’s my job to help keep it relevant and alive beyond the screen. How do they stay alive 365 days a year?”
The stated mission is “to extend the characters and stories of NBCUniversal by bringing them to life in immersive retail and theme park experiences, as well as in product categories such as toys, collectables, books, apparel, lifestyle categories, video games, digital initiatives like AR and more.”
The business is activated through licensee partnerships or through direct operations across its expansive theme park destinations, e-commerce platforms, live-entertainment venues, and retailer relationships around the world.
“We are constantly exploring new retail concepts,” Balbach said. “One of those is a pop-up on Universal CityWalk that features our vault properties like ‘Felix the Cat.’ Vault properties are Universal titles that are nostalgically popular - like ‘ET’ or ‘Jaws.’ They have a fan base based on the original film. We’re not doing more content but people still want them.”
CityWalk at both the Hollywood and Orlando theme parks feature restaurants, movie theaters, nightlife and retail shops and connect the parking lot to the park gates.
Growing up in Oakwood
Balbach, a graduate of Oakwood High School, was always interested in the arts.
" I was in the school plays, on the debate team. I had a horse named Billy when I was a tween and I showed and hunted with the Miami Valley Hunt Club and was a junior rider in middle school.”
When she headed off to Georgetown University in Washington, D.C., she had planned on becoming a doctor, but veered, deciding she’d rather be a creative in some capacity and study commercial art.
“After college I went to art school in Baltimore and became a graphic designer. I enjoyed solving problems creatively, packaging, doing brochures and posters.”
Bachbach spent the bulk of her early career in Minneapolis working as a creative director for Target. If you saw a Christmas campaign, for example, it was Balbach who was figuring out how to promote the products on television and how to decorate the stores.
“I worked on the red-and-white themes and the Target dog, keeping them fresh. I just love beautiful things, and I like solving problems and using creativity to communicate something,” she said. “I think creativity is a super power for all of us. I think everybody can learn how to be creative, how to think differently. Often times creativity is just a different fresh perspective.”
Heading for L.A.
At the age of 50, and after 13 years at Target, Balbach decided it was time for a change. She moved with her younger son to Los Angeles where her older son was going to college. She worked for Dreamworks Animation which a year later acquired by Universal.
“When I first started at Universal 10 years ago, I worked on the ‘Jurassic World’ program, the brand and product. I had a chance to present the work to Steven Spielberg. From a girl from Dayton, Ohio to be in LA and new to all of it, it was a ‘WOW! I made it!’ moment. It was great. He was lovely.”
These days, her job is to “activate fandom.”
“We want to build fanship for our properties, we want to make sure you love ‘Jurassic World’ or ‘Wicked’ and give you everything we can to share your love.”
Balbach works with the product team.
" I decide what demographics we want to talk to, what messages we want to convey, our long-term brand strategy. I have strategists who plan and a creative team who does packaging and retail guides, partners like Target who sell the products in the stores.
“For ‘Wicked,’ for example, there are thousands of products from toys to high-end fashion and home goods, martini shakers. Part of the conversation would be what colors to use and if you saw the movies you know it would be pink and green. It’s what fits for the broader story. ”
Opening Epic Universe
Balbach is extremely proud of helping to plan the grand opening for Epic Universe, the new theme park in Orlando that just opened in May, 2025.
“I worked on the marketing campaign with advertising agencies and other internal and external partners. Universe is the next generation of theme parks and is designed to truly immerse you in your favorite properties so you can celebrate Harry Potter, Nintendo, How to Train Your Dragon. How do you market that? You need to announce it to the world and get people excited and make them want to come. A grand opening moment is a multi-layered, very complex system of PR and entertainment and advertising and social, all of the levers you can pull.”
Balbach said what she loves about theme parks is that they are ultimate wish fulfillment.
“Now, post-Covid, everybody wants an experience. You want to walk into Harry Potter with your family and be immersed.”
Balbach said what’s fun about her job is that gets to play with some of her favorite characters, get an insider peak at the new things that are coming and work with some of the smartest people in the business.
“When you go out of our Orlando offices, you can hear the people on the rides screaming and laughing and having the best time possible. It’s a great reminder of why we do all this!
“What’s great about a theme park is that you feel the emotion of your favorite stories coming to life and you walk in and are surrounded by what you’ve only imagined or seen on a screen. And you do it with your kids or grandkids and it’s memories you’ll never forget and that’s amazing.”
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