ABOUT US

Jo Merrill is the Chief Financial Officer for Falcon’s Beyond. She is responsible for economic forecasting and the financial health of the company. Jo oversees its capital structure and addresses any issues within the overall financial picture. She determines the best mix of debt, equity, and internal financing while elevating her investment ideas for the company’s capital to the board.

Prior to joining Falcon’s Beyond, Jo served for more than four years in the role of CFO at Entertainment Technology Partners, an event services company based in Orlando, Florida. She refined and developed the group’s shared service offerings and was instrumental in driving ETP’s growth in both national and international markets.

Jo was the Vice President of Finance and Corporate Controller at Hard Rock International for ten years. She joined Hard Rock during the purchase of the business by the Seminole Tribe of Florida and was primarily responsible for oversight of worldwide financial accounting, reporting, and integration of all Hard Rock worldwide businesses. She supported capital raises and helped expand the footprint of hotels, casinos, and restaurants into more than 70 countries.

Jo spent more than eleven years as a senior manager at PwC. She worked on four continents, providing specialized audit and consulting services to primarily multi-national public companies. Jo spent several years working with PwC’s Global Capital Markets Group, a dedicated global team of professionals providing high-value advisory services to non-U.S. companies keen to enter the United States and other international capital markets.

Prior to joining PwC, Jo was a senior auditor at KPMG UK where she cut her financial teeth, becoming a Chartered Accountant in England and Wales and serving clients primarily in aerospace and manufacturing industries.

Jo earned her BSEng, Mechanical Engineering from the University of Bath in England. While attending the prestigious research institution, she worked as a mechanical engineer at Rolls-Royce Aero Engines. Jo is also a Certified Public Accountant.

David Schaefer is the Chief Development Officer of Falcon’s Beyond. In this role, he takes the lead on developing plans to grow the company through new business deals while managing existing client relationships. He also collaborates with the Falcon’s Beyond C-suite to determine company goals, and he maintains close contact with the chief financial officer on budgets and costs.

Before moving into his position with Falcon’s Beyond, David served as Vice President of Falcon’s Creative Group for more than 14 years, where he managed the efforts of the Falcon’s Treehouse design team. His enthusiasm and critical eye, combined with his design and mechanical engineering expertise, expanded the already legendary ability of Falcon’s to react to clients with supreme flexibility and efficiency.

Early in his career with Falcon’s, David took the lead on several complex, international efforts that resulted in prestigious recognition for the creative design firm, including the Thea award-winning Dragon’s Treasure™ attraction in Macau. The success continued when it came time to realize Turtle Trek 3D 360° at SeaWorld Orlando. David’s attention to detail throughout design and construction was integral to ensuring that the experience opened on time to rave reviews and massive crowds. On the National Geographic Encounter: Ocean Odyssey project, David served as a cornerstone manager for every facet, spearheading such crucial tasks as vendor management, vendor integration, and on-site show programming.

David’s unflappable, level-headed attitude is his trademark. He is a master at navigating the waters of imagination and technical requirements to strike the perfect balance between creative goals and pragmatic solutions. His intense focus and design and engineering abilities inform every Falcon’s Beyond project.

David started his career as a project engineer at Skee Ball, Inc. where he took the lead in new product development. He also helped organize the implementation of a new manufacturing facility in Montgomeryville, Pennsylvania.

David received his Bachelor of Science in mechanical engineering from The University of Wisconsin.

Yvette Whittaker is the Chief Corporate Officer of Falcon’s Beyond. Her main responsibilities are setting and enforcing the company’s policies and guidelines, acting as a client liaison, determining the corporate strategy, and helping to maintain the public image. She consistently taps into the best ways to manage and streamline processes for business operations, scheduling, budgeting, client relations, and marketing.

Prior to becoming the CCO, Yvette was the Executive Vice President of Operations for Falcon’s Creative Group. As a founding member of the Falcon’s family, Yvette was integral to the success of the start-up. Working alongside the dynamic husband and wife team of Cecil and Marty Magpuri, Yvette utilized her skills as a task master, communicator, and business manager to help lift the company off the ground. She immediately made her mark on the operations side of the business, innately understanding what it would take to guarantee that the small company would not only meet but exceed their own expectations. Yvette also represented the company’s diversity, not only because she was a female leader but because she is a first generation American and came to Falcon’s after a stint as a stay-at-home mom. Because of her background, she has an uncanny ability to juggle multiple challenging projects at once while ensuring that each one receives the same attention, quality, and care that is synonymous with the Falcon’s name.

Yvette’s steady guidance paved the way for success on dozens of projects that Falcon’s produced during its 21-year history. Four of those earned Thea Awards for Outstanding Achievement: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Curse of DarKastle, Dragon’s Treasure™ attraction, and Becoming Jane: The Evolution of Dr. Jane Goodall.

Experience has given Yvette the gift of perspective. She is a pragmatic leader, always thinking two steps ahead in order to make the most informed decision possible. She puts herself in other people’s shoes to gauge how information is absorbed. Yvette is a caring and nurturing role model and an accomplished ambassador who inspires the entire Falcon’s Beyond team.

Simon Philips is President of Falcon’s Beyond, a newly created position for the company. Simon’s visionary approach to brand building has helped shape the strategic direction of some of the world’s most iconic franchises – including Disney, Pixar, Star Wars, Marvel, CoComelon, Pokémon, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and Yu-Gi-Oh. As President, Simon will oversee the future growth and expansion of entertainment-based business and development of Falcon’s IPs. This includes developing and implementing comprehensive corporate strategies for future growth across all commercial operations of the company and its wholly owned subsidiaries. Leveraging his deep industry expertise and relationships, Simon will also focus on strategically building the infrastructure of new consumer products, entertainment content and synergies. He previously served as Senior Advisor to the Falcon’s Beyond Board of Managers.

Previous to this new role, Philips was Managing Director, Global Consumer Products at Moonbug Entertainment, the company behind properties including CoComelon, Blippi and Little Angel. His previous experience includes serving as Executive Vice-President & General Manager of The Walt Disney Company EMEA and President of Marvel Entertainment International, where he was responsible for targeting new businesses as well as growing and increasing the depth of Marvel’s existing businesses. He also oversaw and acted as the Executive Producer for several of Marvel’s hit animated series, including The Super Hero Squad, The Avengers – Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, and the Marvel Japanese anime series.

In addition to propelling Disney’s and Marvel’s iconic characters in the marketplace, Simon also breathed life into Pixar’s and Star Wars’ brands through the licensing business across hard-lines, soft-lines, FMCG, and publishing.

Simon joined Marvel from 4Kids Entertainment where he managed their international multi-billion-dollar Pokémon, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and Yu-Gi-Oh franchises.

Prior to 4Kids, Simon established LDI, a media and entertainment company whose reach spanned the Middle East, Mediterranean Basin, and Latin America. LDI became one of the leading independent licensing agents in the world. Simon diversified LDI’s business interests into broadcast media and production through the acquisition of The Dori Media Group.

Simon started his licensing career in London in 1991, working on behalf of the British Olympic Association, where he licensed the world’s first Olympic-branded video game, which was also the first video game to include third-party advertising.

Cecil D. Magpuri is the Chief Executive Officer and co-founder of Falcon’s Beyond. In this role, he directs the company’s endeavors and establishes a road map for the future. He maintains high-level oversight of all significant creative and operational developments. Cecil is also a member of the Falcon’s Beyond Board of Managers.

Before becoming CEO of Falcon’s Beyond, Cecil served as the President and Chief Creative Officer of Falcon’s Treehouse, a company he co-founded in 2000 that was later rebranded as Falcon’s Creative Group and expanded to include Falcon’s Digital Media and Falcon’s Licensing. He molded it into a well-respected and award-winning themed entertainment design firm that collaborated with some of the biggest names in the business to produce innovative guest experiences. Cecil personally led the design efforts for new technology products and attraction systems, which resulted in dozens of patents.

Prior to spinning up his own company, Cecil was the director of attraction development for Clarity Studios, where he assembled a team of professionals to provide turnkey attraction design services to theme parks and corporate clients. Previously, Cecil was a creative director at Universal Studios, where he developed the initial concepts for two major attractions, one of which was Twister: Ride it Out! He played a pivotal role in their development and was responsible for the creative outcome of these landmark projects. He was named co-inventor and was awarded patents for both attractions. While at Universal Studios, Cecil collaborated with Ron Howard and Brian Grazer to conceptualize a brick-and-mortar experience based on the captivating story of Apollo 13.

In the early 1990s, Cecil worked under the tutelage of the legendary and Academy Award-winning Don Iwerks at Iwerks Entertainment, where he held a senior project designer position. It was here that Cecil became interested in combining cutting-edge technology with immersive storytelling to create unique guest experiences.

For three consecutive years, Cecil was named to the Blooloop 50 Theme Park Influencers list, joining the likes of Kathleen Kennedy, Bob Iger, and Joe Rohde. In 2010, Cecil received the Asian Heritage Award for Innovation and Technology. He is an advisory board member for the University of Central Florida’s Themed Experience MFA program. He also sits on the advisory board of the onePULSE Foundation, which was established after the tragedy at Pulse nightclub in 2016. Cecil is an active member of the Themed Entertainment Association (TEA), the Visual Effects Society (VES), and the International Association of Amusement Parks and Attractions (IAAPA).

Cecil received his Bachelor of Arts in applied arts and sciences with an emphasis on environmental design and a distinction in art from San Diego State University in 1991. 

L. Scott Demerau is Executive Chairman of Falcon’s Beyond. In this role, he oversees corporate structure and finance, strategic business expansion and relationships, and ongoing value creation for stakeholders and investors.

Scott Demerau, working alongside Juli Demerau, his wife and business partner of 33 years, has been a force in family entertainment for more than three decades. Together, Scott and Juli founded, built, and operated three significant brands in the amusement & theme park industry, and created the proven model for “Big-Experience, Small-Footprint” theme parks associated with resorts in major tourist centers worldwide.

Previous to his current role, Scott was Chairman and CEO of Katmandu Group, where he oversaw the growth and expansion of the Katmandu Parks, and was instrumental in establishing a 50/50 joint venture relationship with Meliá Hotels International (MHI). Following its merger with Falcon’s, Katmandu Group now serves as the operations wing of Falcon’s Beyond, responsible for Falcon’s-related guest experiences in parks and resorts worldwide.

As co-founder of the first Katmandu Park in 2007 in Mallorca, Spain, Scott had a vision to transform the beach holiday entertainment industry. In 2012, under the Demerau leadership, Katmandu formed the joint venture with MHI, one of the world’s largest hotel operators, to expand the Mallorca site into immersive, fully-themed Sol Katmandu Park & Resort, jointly develop and operate additional properties, and open Katmandu-themed children’s resort camps in Meliá hotel sites around the world.

In 2019, Katmandu formed a strategic partnership with Falcon’s Creative Group to expand Katmandu’s original IP, master plan new parks, and develop custom rides complete with original IP Content. In 2021, the couple spearheaded a merger between Katmandu and Falcon’s Creative Group to form Falcon’s Beyond, a fully integrated development enterprise to propel IP-driven parks, resorts, media, and merchandise around the world.

Scott and Juli Demerau embarked on their career in family entertainment immediately after graduation from university. In 1985, Scott and Juli co-founded Fantasy Golf Development Company to create, construct, and operate the Mountasia Family Fun Centers, a multi-attraction FEC chain of $2M-$7M projects. Over the next eight years, while building and operating 24 locations throughout the southeast USA and in Mallorca, the emerging company strategically planned a public offering as Mountasia Entertainment International (MEI). In 1993, Scott guided MEI through a successful IPO, which was 10x oversubscribed, achieved a PE over 70x, and began trading publicly on NASDAQ.

Within a year of the IPO, MEI acquired the Malibu Grand Prix IP, formerly owned by Warner Communications. With 25 racing-centric amusement parks, the acquisition doubled MEI’s portfolio of owned locations, spanning the US from California to Florida with more than 3,500 employees. Over a two-year period, a major consolidation program reshaped the company into a network of corporately owned and managed LBEs. This company became the largest LBE operator chain in the U.S. before selling to a private venture group in 1996.

Scott and Juli were named in Entrepreneur magazine’s list of “40 Under 40” in 1991 and were awarded Inc. Magazine’s Entrepreneurs of the Year award in 1994 for the creation of Mountasia Entertainment. Time celebrated their success, and in 1994 Fortune ran an article on the Demeraus entitled “Profit Lessons for Disney.” Among many other awards, in 2016 Sol Katmandu Park & Resort was recognized as the #1 hotel in Europe for innovation in service by the European Hospitality Awards, and in 2016 was named the #1 Business Idea in Leisure Category by Actualidad Económica. TripAdvisor gave Katmandu Park a Travelers’ Choice 2020 Best of the Best, and ranked it among the top ten amusement & water parks in Spain.

Scott is also President of Fun Stuff, a Falcon’s Beyond subsidiary which holds a 50% interest in the joint venture with Meliá Hotels International, and he serves on the JV Board.

He holds a degree in Business from Ferris State University in Michigan.

Scott and Juli Demerau are philanthropists at heart and support charitable endeavors or causes which reflect their personal priorities and values. Their collective pledge is to “do good in the world by contributing to meaningful organizations that improve the lives of others.” Their philanthropy has particularly focused on orphanages, underserved populations, and the mentoring of young business minds.