Justin Leonard and Blaize Potts drift during HOTPIT Autofest

HOTPIT The Drift Series (2026)

When HOTPIT Autofest was presented with the opportunity to develop a nationally televised docu‑series, the goal wasn't just to give people another competition series. It was to tell the human story behind one of motorsport's fastest‑growing disciplines — drift culture.
Stev Stephens of StevStreet Entertainment brought that vision to life. A member of an award‑winning production team with credits on globally recognized programs, including American Ninja Warrior and The Amazing Race, Stephens shaped the storytelling approach for the series and invited Stulac Marketing to partner on media production, marketing strategy, and partnerships. Together, the team set out to educate audiences on the roots of drifting — the drivers, judges, organizers, commentators, and tight‑knit community fueling the sport's explosive growth. Centered around HOTPIT Autofest's unique blend of grassroots competition and culture, the series captures a world where seasoned pros and average joes share the same stage.

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Problem

HOTPIT Autofest and StevStreet Entertainment needed a new way to:

Organize and manage more than 2TB of footage from multiple multi‑day drift events, captured nonstop from drones, livestreams, track‑side interviews, and roaming videographers.
Streamline collaboration between producers, editors, and clients to handle the post‑production workflow efficiently.
Shape the exciting footage and narrative crafted by Stev Stephens into two broadcast‑ready, 22‑minute episodes that audiences will enjoy, and that meet all technical specifications for a national television broadcast.
Inspire drivers, sponsors, and connected communities to actively share and promote the series premiere on Racer Network.

Solution

Role: Media Production | Marketing Strategy | Partnership Consulting

We joined HOTPIT The Drift Series as a strategic and creative partner, transforming raw, high-energy footage into a cohesive, nationally broadcast docu‑series.

Production Consulting: Implemented Frame.io with Adobe Premiere Pro for seamless collaboration, enabling efficient management and delivery of over 2TB of footage captured from drones, livestreams, and track‑side interviews.

“Frame.io played a critical role in helping us manage an otherwise overwhelming editorial process on the series. With a large volume of footage, fragmented interviews, and limited ability to track events in real time, the platform gave us a centralized way to review, organize, and annotate everything efficiently. It made the workflow manageable, and it’s a tool I intend to continue using across future projects.” - Stev Stephens, Producer, HOTPIT The Drift Series

Editing Support: Collaborated with StevStreet Entertainment to craft two 22-minute television episodes, refining story arcs, pacing, and integration of music by S8NT Elektric, whose music underscored the entire series, while meeting Racer Network’s national broadcast standards.
Marketing & Partnerships: Produced personalized versions of the Racer Network promo commercial for six featured drivers, empowering them to promote the series through their own channels and communities, and building organic buzz ahead of the premiere.

HOTPIT The Drift Series (2026) - Official Racer Network Commercial

Result

The collaborative effort delivered immediate momentum for HOTPIT Autofest and the drifting community:

Preview Party Success: A VIP + public event sponsored by Garagistic was held at Odyssey VR in Corona, CA, on March 18, 2026. A massive car lineup amplified the atmosphere, drawing racers, insiders, and newcomers for an immersive pre‑premiere experience. The episodes earned praise for an honest portrayal of the sport from veteran drift drivers.

Three Days of Momentum: The preview party on March 18 set the stage for the Racer Network premiere on March 19 and S8NT Elektric's album launch on March 20 — a three‑day cascade of excitement reaching both drift and punk music audiences.
Community Amplification: Personalized trailers sparked organic sharing on social media and major buzz from drivers’ networks, expanding reach through drift and car-related communities.
Audience Development Test: Weeks after the premiere, StevStreet Entertainment and Stulac Marketing conducted a controlled feedback test, sharing Episodes 1 & 2 via a private Vimeo showcase to approximately 100 direct contacts through a cold text outreach. No paid media, no platform distribution, and no audience warm-up, creating a neutral test environment. Roughly 90% of recipients had no prior exposure to drift competition whatsoever. Within the first few days, the showcase generated 120+ views and 2,693 impressions through algorithmic reach alone. Feedback was active and specific — viewers unfamiliar with drifting reported they now understood and were genuinely excited by the sport, drone footage was consistently cited as a standout hook, and the most repeated question across respondents was simply: "When is the next episode?"

The engines are still cooling —more metrics coming soon.

“Working with Stulac Marketing on HOTPIT The Drift Series allowed us to efficiently pull together the right creative and technical resources to tell a story within a completely new space. Together, we shaped a narrative that not only captured the energy of drifting, but helped translate it for an audience unfamiliar with the sport. Through that process, we began to see how episodic storytelling can contribute to building an audience around the brand, not just documenting the events themselves. It also opened the door for continued collaboration and future expansion of the series as a scalable property for both HOTPIT and our respective companies.”- Stev Stephens