Our Story
Half Yard Productions creates innovative unscripted and formatted content for a wide range of broadcasters, streamers, and digital platforms. We tell the stories we love & we believe that only the unexpected is entertaining.
Half Yard is a full-service production company, executing across all genres at the highest level, delivering long-running hit franchises like Say Yes to the Dress for TLC, loud & aspirational docuseries like Secrets & Sisterhood: LA for Hulu, critically acclaimed and visually stunning programming like The Last Alaskans for Discovery, as well as premium and impactful limited series like I Just Killed My Dad for Netflix.
Half Yard continues to create & develop lifestyle, docu, crime, competition, documentary and entertainment formats that celebrate diverse POVs and push the limits of storytelling.
Half Yard Productions LLC is a North Road / Chernin Group company.
Our Team
Dirk Hoogstra
CEO
Dirk Hoogstra is CEO of Half Yard Productions. Dirk joined Half Yard in 2019 as EVP of Development, and was promoted to CEO in December 2020.
Over the last 26 years Dirk has worked in the media industry as a network executive and producer, holding a number of senior positions including EVP and General Manager of A&E’s History. During his run at History he developed and oversaw scripted and unscripted series including American Pickers, Counting Cars, Mountain Men, Top Gear, Hatfields & McCoys, The Bible and Vikings.
Nicole Sorrenti
Chief Creative Officer
Nicole Sorrenti is a top creative with over 20 years of television experience as a Showrunner, Developer, and Executive Producer. As the Chief Creative Officer she oversees all of Half Yard’s output, heading up current and development, leading creative strategy, while expanding and evolving the business. She continues to make shows and develop formats for a wide range of networks including Netflix, Discovery, TLC (US & UK), CBS, Hulu, ID, Bravo, Lifetime, Channel 4 UK, Tru TV, HGTV, NatGeo, and Animal Planet. Nicole has been at Half Yard since it opened its doors, producing the pilot of Say Yes to the Dress, which has since grown into a global franchise, with various spinoffs both domestically and internationally.
Brittany George
Director of Development
Brittany has extensive experience developing and producing unscripted content ranging from premium documentary series to talent driven formats. Bringing a razor sharp mind to the process allied with a firm belief that content shapes culture, she has an attention to detail on every word & image we use to shape the very best ideas, push boundaries, and spotlight unique voices.
Lisa Steinberg
Director of Casting
Lisa has over 13 years experience in television. With a background in Broadcast Journalism, she combines her talent for unearthing compelling stories with her ability to engage in meaningful dialogues to create powerful, substantive and entertaining programming. For over 10 years she has worked to build and craft Half Yard’s casting into a department which keeps long running programs fresh and new programs innovative.
Patrick Nowack
Director of Post Production
Throughout Patrick’s 11 year career in media, he has worked in both Television and Digital mediums and has professional experience in all major editing platforms. He has also served as a Media Technology Specialist in the past and continues to incorporate that into his job to this day. Patrick has a pet tortoise named Cheeseburger, who he’s had since he was 12 years old.