Second Serving

Studios

Where Culinary Media Meets Social Impact

A Project Space 411 initiative

Second Serving Studios will be the nation’s first nonprofit media studio, complete with a soundstage and a one-of-a-kind filming kitchen designed to attract clients of all sizes, empower local creatives, and reinvest in our community.

Don’t Just Take Our Word For It…

  • A smiling man wearing a suit and red tie, sitting in an office with American flags and framed documents in the background.

    "Second Serving Studios is needed in Winston-Salem. This investment in media infrastructure in our Downtown core will turn creativity into jobs, investment, and dynamic growth for our community. Supporting a studio that is the only one of its kind in the Southeast means fueling an engine that will draw productions, put people to work, and strengthen the restaurants, businesses, and cultural life that keep our city thriving. This is more than a studio; it is a catalyst that will showcase Winston-Salem’s leadership in arts and innovation and ensure our community continues to grow and prosper."

    Allen Joines

    Mayor, Winston-Salem

  • A woman with short brown hair, wearing a black sleeveless top and a multi-strand pearl necklace, smiling with arms crossed outdoors near greenery.

    "Goodwill Industries of Northwest North Carolina is inspired by the vision for Second Serving Studios and the impact it will have on our community. Like Goodwill, this project blends purpose with sustainability — creating opportunities, growing jobs, and telling the stories that matter. We are excited to one day use the space for our own storytelling and to see how it will help lift up people and possibilities across our region."

    Barbara Maide-Stolle

    CEO, Goodwill Industries of Northwest NC

  • A woman with gray hair smiling in a kitchen with potted herbs, a wooden countertop, and a striped dish towel.

    "The custom-crafted, multipurpose kitchen in Second Serving Studios is going to be superior to any other in the region. It will attract expert talent from across NC and the country who are eager to have convenient access to a turnkey media production space that is also a state-of-the art culinary facility to use for cooking classes, demonstrations, and community events. The kitchen and the scope of work that can be done there is both visionary and practical. It's going to be a hub of creativity grounded in good business sense."

    Sheri Castle

    Host, PBS North Carolina’s The Key Ingredient

  • A smiling man wearing glasses and a blue short-sleeve button-up shirt, standing in front of a wall with guitars hanging on it.

    "Having a state-of-the-art facility like Second Serving Studios here in North Carolina will open the door to jobs for our talented veteran crew base and create training opportunities for the next generation of film and television artists, producers, and crew. Not every film or TV project will be a Hollywood blockbuster, but Second Serving Studios can provide the practical skills and steady work that keep our artists and crews rooted here in North Carolina—where they can enjoy a high quality of life while helping to tell our stories."

    Eric Johnson

    SVP, Head of Partnerships + Engagement/Supervising Sound Editor

A cooking demonstration or class taking place in a modern studio with a chef preparing food at a counter. The studio has large windows showing a street outside. Several camera operators film the event. An audience is seated and clapping, watching the chef on stage.

Let’s Tell You More…

Second Serving Studios is a state-of-the-art media studio that will attract mid-market productions and regional clients - from media outlets, corporate partners, and independent filmmakers to brands and individuals seeking commercial content - while developing a skilled local workforce through comprehensive education and training programs.  

As home to North Carolina's only professional culinary filming facility, we will offer unique capabilities for cooking shows, food documentaries, culinary education, and branded food programming alongside our traditional production services. 

Through strategic partnerships with regional businesses and educational institutions, we are establishing Winston-Salem, and North Carolina, as a competitive filming destination and create a sustainable film industry ecosystem that generates revenue through professional services.  

As a nonprofit media studio, we reinvest our revenues into community initiatives and collaborative programming that address critical social challenges and create pathways to creative careers for local residents and students.

A man in a light blue shirt and khaki pants is standing in front of a camera crew in a TV studio, preparing to record a video. The studio has large windows showing a city street outside, with two monitors above showing a close-up of the man, and the set includes a sofa, a bookshelf, and lamps.

Why It Matters

Winston-Salem has the talent, the history, and the spirit to be a creative capital - but lacks purpose-built facilities that can compete nationally. Second Serving Studios fills that gap, positioning North Carolina on the culinary content map while fueling economic development at home.

Economic Development Impact

By drawing productions and events to Winston-Salem, Second Serving Studios will create jobs, generate revenue, and strengthen the region’s identity as a creative hub.

  • ~20 new jobs will be created (including Production Assistants, Gaffers, Grips, Camera Operators, Food Stylists and Set Dressers)

  • ~$3.5M spent on labor/workforce within the first three years of opening the studio doors

  • With every production filmed in our space, hotel, rental car, and local restaurant and shop usage will increase. This project directly impacts our local economy.

Key Features

  • ~1,000 square foot soundstage suitable to accommodate any type of shoot

  • Fully customizable filming kitchen with flexible set design (residential and commercial looks available)

  • Commercial prep kitchen attached to the filming kitchen

  • Hollywood-grade post-production suite including:

    • Talent Green Room (with private bathroom)

    • Editing Suites (Avid, Premiere, and Resolve)

    • Podcast Recording Studio

    • Audio Mixing Studio

    • Live Control Room (capable of transmitting live programming and live directing)

    Dining/event space for private dinners and live tapings

A cooking demonstration or class with a chef preparing food on a kitchen island, an audience seated nearby clapping and cheering, and cameras filming the event inside a studio with large windows and television screens hanging from the ceiling.

Filming Studio

A woman in a chef's coat sitting in a green armchair at a consultation with three people in a cozy room with makeup mirror and bathroom visible in the background.

Talent Green Room

Four people working in a video editing studio with multiple monitors, headphones, and editing software, with one instructor providing guidance.

Editing Suites

Two people are in a radio recording studio with microphones, headphones, and soundproofing. They are speaking and smiling at each other.

Podcast Studio

Video control room with multiple operators at desks working on computers, monitoring multiple screens displaying live video feeds and broadcast content.

Live Control Room

Three people preparing food in a modern kitchen with a large island, stainless steel appliances, and a TV showing a cooking show in the background.

Prep Kitchen

Ready To See The Space?

We don’t blame you…keep scrolling!

Architectural floor plan of a building showing different rooms and spaces, including a vestibule, studio, prep kitchen, bar area, and various doors and structural details.

THE STUDIO SPACE

Floor plan showing rooms such as restrooms, women's room, storage, equipment room, green room, work room, audio, production control, and multiple corridors grid layout.

THE POST SUITE

Community Impact

Because we believe creative spaces should serve people, not profit, Second Serving Studios exists as a nonprofit so that every dollar fuels opportunity, equity, and community impact rather than private gain — and since a nonprofit media studio has never been done before in this country, Winston-Salem, a city built on firsts, innovation, and fearless creativity, is the only place it could ever truly begin.

At Second Serving Studios, our mission goes far beyond creating media—we’re building a hub of opportunity, creativity, and community transformation in Winston-Salem and beyond. This isn’t just about a production facility—it’s about using every camera, every cooking class, every mentorship hour to unlock potential, bridge access, and amplify voices that too often go unheard.

And speaking of opportunity, community impact, and equity, here’s how we plan to reinvest our revenue to create meaningful, lasting change across our region:

Five people in a kitchen preparing a meal together, some chopping vegetables while others are seasoning or cooking, with a stove and refrigerator in the background.

Community Classes & Chef Series

Hosting community cooking classes and a “Chef Series” featuring acclaimed international, national and regional chefs—with a number of free tickets reserved specifically for community members to eliminate cost of entry and ensure broad access.

Group of people laughing and studying together in a library or classroom with bookshelves in the background.

Mentorships, Apprenticeships & Scholarships

Reinvesting revenue from studio operations into paid apprenticeships and fellowship programs for students and non-students alike. This includes those who may not have traditional access to higher education but have talent, ambition and creative drive.

Microphone mounted on a adjustable arm above a computer monitor, which displays a game interface, with a small red toy car on the desk.

Collaborative Partnerships

Partnering with nonprofits and educational institutions such as University of North Carolina School of the Arts (UNCSA), High Point University, Wake Forest University, Forsyth Technical Community College, Winston‑Salem State University and Salem College to provide subsidized storytelling and production services—so nonprofits can tell their stories, and students and community creators gain access to professional- grade resources.

A crowded indoor event in a large hall with high arched windows and a large screen on the wall. People are browsing through merchandise, and some are engaging with each other.

Post-Production & Creative Workforce Infrastructure

Building editing bays and a podcast studio, maintaining a regional database of skilled workers (crew, media tech, culinary production, etc.) that’s shared with clients, the North Carolina Film Office, and industry partners — effectively anchoring Winston-Salem as a regional creative hub and feeding the statewide media ecosystem.

People dining in a dimly lit restaurant, some wearing casual clothing, seated at wooden tables, with bottles and glasses visible, and a server standing nearby.

Monthly Creative Networking & Community Engagement

Hosting free monthly events for creatives, nonprofits, educational partners, and community members to collaborate, connect, and build relationships. These gatherings strengthen the local creative community and spark ideas, partnerships and new ventures.

A group of people seated around tables in a conference room watching a woman present at the front of the room. Participants have laptops and notebooks, with a large screen displaying content behind the presenter.

Economic Impact & Regional Multiplier

With the studio’s projected $3.5 million investment in local workforce over three years, we’re aligning with North Carolina’s growing media economy—where filming and production recently generated more than $302 million in direct in-state spending in 2024. The ripple effect will boost not only creative careers, but also local restaurants, hospitality, retail and regional economic vitality as national clients visit, hire local talent, and engage with our community.

Help Us Build Something That Builds Others

Second Serving Studios isn’t just a facility — it’s a community engine designed to create access, opportunity, and economic mobility for people across Winston-Salem. When you donate, you aren’t simply helping us build a studio; you’re helping us build a space that will lift others for years to come. Your support creates jobs, fuels education, expands storytelling for nonprofits, and opens doors for emerging creators who haven’t had access before.

If you would like to request information including financials, pitch deck, renderings, or additional project information, please REQUEST MORE INFORMATION.

To explore partnership tiers and corporate partnerships, please email our Executive Director, Jake Camp.

5% Cover the Fee

Project Space 411 is a 501c3 non-profit and all donations are tax deductible. Our EIN is 84-2683881 and our IRS confirmation letter can be downloaded from our website. To learn more about Project Space 411's mission, programs, and successes, visit www.projectspace411.org