Building Stories Like Assets: How Patrick Marino ended up in Hollywood

When it comes to the world of show business, Patrick Marino‘s entry was not stereotypical. Raised in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, Marino was first exposed to real estate brokerage by watching his parents work their own businesses. It is while watching them work that Patrick learned valuable lessons about negotiation, valuation, and the importance of relationships – the principles that ultimately navigated his path to Hollywood.

“Everything I learned about business started with watching my father work,” said Patrick Marino.

That life education that Patrick benefited from was highly influential. By the time he graduated from university his career path was already set in investing. Over decades, Marino would continue to develop a magnitude of skills that would set him up well. From the successful evaluation and execution of investments, to building a portfolio of commercial and multi-family real estate endeavors, Marino honed his values-based approach that became the pillars of his M Group Companies.

Once Marino reached a hearty real estate plateau, he took his abilities of optimizing underutilized assets to his role as Principal at Action Park Media – a media and entertainment company Marino founded with actor and director Kevin Connolly, best known for his starring role in the popular HBO series Entourage. While some may see this change as quite a shift in trajectory, to Patrick Marino, this foray into media was not viewed as a departure from his work in real estate, but, in actuality, a continuation of it.

“Whether it’s real estate or media, the fundamentals don’t change,” Marino said. “Relationships, discipline, and long-term thinking matter.”

Created as a cohesive partnership, Action Park Media has Marino at the helm of strategic planning and scalability while Connolly leads the creative aspects and talent relations. With that dynamic pairing, success came early with podcasting – a medium with low production costs with high-level engagement. With their program Victory: The Podcast, APM leveraged a built-in fanbase by reuniting Connolly with Entourage creator Doug Ellin. Action Park Media would then go on to create more podcasts centered around sports, culture, and personalities; but, Marino knew that this was not the end goal for him or APM.

Instead, the company’s next phase centered on long-form films and television, where he believes that intellectual property has the opportunity to grow more substantially. The company’s first major feature film – Lice – is a horror-comedy that wrapped principal photography in Canada in 2025. Set in a Long Island high school, the film follows a parasitic outbreak that spirals into chaos and military lockdown. Featuring Justin Long and Emile Hirsch, Connolly also appears in the Jonathan Bensimon-directed film that combines satire, teen drama, and horror.

In addition to the development of scripted content, APM is also looking to expand into the development of documentary opportunities, including an initiative in collaboration with the Pro Football Hall of Fame. It is that understanding of the value in premium documentary content that is setting the stage for the next level for APM because, as Marino stated, “Action Park Media is built for longevity, not trends.”

Beyond being behind investment and multimedia success, Marino manages to keep his philanthropic commitments including to the Dan Marino Foundation, the Baby Face Foundation, and HomeStrong in Los Angeles. Like his business philosophy, his approach to philanthropy is long-term and community-based, rather than relying on single acts of charity.

Whether it is the development of portfolios through M Group Companies, or the creation and growth of media platforms through Action Park Media, Marino’s underlying philosophy and approach remains the same as those that were fostered in him during his youth.