Today we’d like to introduce you to Jesus Okendo.
Hi Jesus, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I’m a huge fan of reality competition shows like Survivor and MTV’s The Challenge. I have watched for many years and have dreamed about being on a show and competing in challenges I see on TV. It is easy to watch from my couch and say “I can do that!” and believe I would dominate challenges on a show. I’m an adventurous person and thrill seeker. If someone were to say, “let’s jump off a cliff”, I’d say “when and where?”
Throughout the pandemic I spend a lot of time biking and running around San Diego – at Mission Bay, Crown Point, the PB Boardwalk, and Fiesta Island. I would hike a lot at Cowles Mt. and no matter where I was, I was continually being inspired by San Diego’s beauty and land. I found myself staring at the beach and creating Challenges in my head – envisioning a group of folks digging up puzzle pieces, racing with sandbags, jumping in the ocean to soak their shirts in water and then use them to fill up a bucket. My mind was constantly firing off ideas and I was excited and inspired.
In August 2022, I saw a random Instagram story looking for people to play in a one-day game of Survivor. I applied, played and won! This was my first LRG (Live Reality Game) and it was an eye opening experience that made my world a little bit larger. From this experience, I realized my dream of hosting a game was possible. I spent many afternoons at Birdrock Roasters in La Jolla writing games.
In July 2023 I hosted the first San Diego Challenge (an LRG based on MTV’s The Challenge), which was a two day LRG at Crown Point Beach. It was a beautiful mix of friends, strangers, and acquaintances. When the game wrapped, I was immediately asked “When is the next one?”. Slowly over the course of the last two and half years, the community has grown. From word of mouth and then through Instagram, more and more people requested to play. People would see us on the beach or at the park and ask how to join. We get a lot of interest from locals, but people from out of San Diego and even out of state have come to compete in The San Diego Challenge. They want to compete, they want community, and they want to experience a competition they watch on TV on a beautiful beach in San Diego.
Since the initial game, our flagship game, The San Diego Challenge, we have expanded to host the Survivor Trials (a one-day Survivor game) and customized Amazing race games. The turn out is amazing and the ever growing community inspires me to go bigger and be more innovative.
A huge part of my story is just being brave enough to do something – start creating, writing, building. It is great to dream, but it has to be followed by action.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
No journey is without its obstacles. Everytime we have experienced a bump in the road, it has been important to learn from it and carry it into the next experience. Every bump in the road has only made each following event strong and better. Being able to gain feedback from others has helped us create challenges that are appealing to a diverse group of people and help us be as inclusive as possible. We want this experience and community to be something everyone can be part of.
We have an abundance of male-identifying Challengers that have joined our family, but at times, finding enough female-identifying Challengers has been a struggle. We want our LRGs to be well balanced, diverse, and representative of all. We have come up with creative ways to invite more inclusivity. We recently hosted a Ride of Dies season where all Challengers created their own male/female teams of two with their BFF, partner, wife/husband. We look forward to hosting a Pride/LGBT season.
Being able to tell a story of what we do and convey that to others what the experience is like can be a struggle. If someone has never seen one of the shows our games are based on it can be confusing. We have made a huge effort to capture the heat of competition on video to recreate them into Instagram reels to showcase the fun and community we have built.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Game on Production is all about having fun! We do that through games known as Challenges and although competition is at the heart of what we do, our focus is community building and bond and connection that happens through fun positive experiences.
We specialize in creating memorable, customized experiences that help others feel confident, build relationships. and Challenge their beliefs about themselves. There have been people that thought they would be last place and end up winning the entire event. Seeing how proud of themselves they are and how much belief they have in themselves in a very tender moment lets us know we did something very right.
What sets us apart is that we are creating a unique experience that is based on something millions of people will only ever watchon TV. We are bringing this to you community and maybe into your home, if you’ll let us. We are happy to host customized LRGs for birthdays, anniversary, engagements, and any occasion really. We specialize in unique experiences that are meant to bring people together through fun!
I’m most proud of the community we have built and the connections and friendships people have made. Additionally, I’m proud that our games are well balanced. There is something for everyone. You do not have to be the strongest or the smartest. We have blended a good mix of games that ask for a variety of skills and backgrounds.
We want others to know there is something for everyone here and everyone is included.
So maybe we end on discussing what matters most to you and why?
What matters most to me is community and a sense of belonging. Growing up, I was not the most popular kid. I wasn’t even the strongest or the smartest. I felt like I didn’t have a place in the world. I didn’t play sports because I was afraid I would get picked and that I was not good enough. I lacked confidence and belief in myself. It wasn’t until I started trying new things and challenging myself to get out of my comfort zone that I found my confidence and then my community. For me, life has been about stepping out of my comfort zone, taking risks, and trying new things despite my fears b/c I know on the other side of that is adventure. On the journey not only will I meet amazing people, I will gain learnings about myself that will help me grow.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thesdchallenge
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jesus-a-okendo-b98907364/
Image Credits
Shawn Lee
