Latinx billionaire Jessica Sarowitz on building a film studio in Baldwin Hills

LA Stories Unfiltered with Giselle Fernandez

Jessica Sarowitz made her fortune through the payroll company she founded with her husband, Steve — but she was not raised with that sort of wealth. While growing up, she remembers that even though she spoke a different language and looked different from her classmates, her parents instilled a confidence in her that she still carries with her today. Most recently, Sarowitz served as an executive producer on the documentary “With This Light,” which follows a nun in Honduras known as the Mother Teresa of Central America. Sarowitz is building a five-acre film studio in the heart of Baldwin Hills and the Crenshaw corridor, which she hopes to use to empower diverse filmmakers and artists while encouraging the storytelling of underrepresented groups.