Quippy, quirky social-first series ‘The Peach Tea’ spills it on Atlanta’s film and television scene

Up until now, Atlanta film buffs haven’t really had a fun, visual, short-form and consistent way to learn who’s who in the city’s bustling film and television ecosystem. Everyone has heard that certain actors, directors and film creatives live among us, but we’re not exactly sure who they are.

Two Atlanta-based industry veterans, Kimberly Wistedt and Jenny Austin, are making them known.

Wistedt is an Atlanta-based casting agent with deep connections in the film and television industry, here and around the country. For more than 13 years, she worked for Fincannon & Associates, a veteran national casting company launched in 1983 and located in Fayetteville, Georgia, south of downtown.

In June 2026, Wistedt branched out on her own as an independent casting director. Soon after, she added the role of producer and creative lead on a new social-first interview series, The Peach Tea, that delivers high-energy, unfiltered, candid conversations with local celebrities.

Austin’s role is host of The Peach Tea. The series’ co-creator, Austin is also an actor who’s had roles on The Walking Dead, The Righteous Gemstones, Outer Banks and The Summer I Turned Pretty. In addition, she’s also a one-time entertainment correspondent with Dish Network, where she honed her craft as a reporter and press junket correspondent covering the Academy Awards and other major industry events.

The co-creators got to know each other when Austin worked for Wistedt at Fincannon & Associates as a casting associate, focusing on shows shot in the Southeast.

Together, Wistedt’s connections and industry knowledge and Austin’s experience in front of and behind the camera helped the pair plunge into the Peach Tea project.

Billed as “An Atlanta interview series for the people making the work,” The Peach Tea’s social-first format is optimized for Instagram, YouTube and TikTok, where the series has quickly gained traction.

According to Austin and Wistedt, the series jumped to 80,000 viewers in its first five days when episode 1, season 1 featured actor Randy Havens — Mr. Clarke, the science teacher in the blockbuster Netflix series Stranger Things.

After the first episode in June with Havens, these guests followed in episode 2: Atlanta-based Outer Banks actor Caroline Arapoglou; Atlanta-based actor Michael Aaron Milligan of the Netflix series’ The Hunting Wives and Outer Banks; and Vampire Diaries’ director and cinematographer Darren Genet, who has a home in metro Atlanta.

Atlanta-based rapper, actor and record executive T.I. also sat down with Austin in the episode, along with hip-hop’s Young Dro and P$C, who shared insight on 20 years of hip-hop in the city.

Wistedt says a work relationship with T.I.’s agent and manager from a previous film project helped them score the interview.

“His publicist thought it was a great outlet for [continued] publicity, and that’s what we want,” Wistedt says. Through the collaboration, The Peach Tea gained access to T.I.’s 14 million followers.

Wistedt continues, “As we grow and dial in further, we’ll time our [interviews] with projects that we know are releasing and that have been shot in Atlanta and stars that are currently on the ground here.”

Following each episode, the co-creators shoot — at local, women-owned Studio at Stilwell — teasers that drop daily on social.

Great guests are one strong element the co-creators are cultivating from the start, and another is Austin’s prowess as a host.

“She asks the most amazing questions, and she has this fantastic fearlessness,” Wistedt observes.

When asked how the art of the on-camera interview became her forte, Austin says it’s something she’s been doing since college days. “But now, after years working across many different parts of the entertainment industry, I bring a completely different perspective to every conversation than I did in my early 20s,” she notes. ”And I understand the world my guests live in because I’ve experienced many parts of it myself.”

All the way around, the co-creators’ shared lived experience with their interview subjects is something Austin says makes The Peach Tea different. “There are so many interview shows now, but the industry experience Kimberly and I bring gives us a deeper understanding of our guests and the stories they’re telling.”

For her part behind the camera, Wistedt adds, “I use my casting side of things as the talent liaison, and I network with agent managers to help procure talent for the show.”

Along with the co-creators’ film industry acumen, a “right place-right time” factor seems to be at play, as well.

“We knew we really had to do this, because LA and New York obviously have so many outlets, but Atlanta doesn’t,” Wistedt notes.

So what’s up next for the young social series?

“We’re currently preparing for our third episode [shooting] the first week of August, where we hope to have four more guests,” Wistedt says. And they will alert the growing fan base and keep it thirsty with a steady release of energetic social clips.

The third episode will feature another element of the show that is already becoming a standout and a series definer: the Spill or Sip closing segment, where guests get one final question in a completely shareable moment.

“The Peach Tea is a quippy, quirky, cheeky interview series,” Wistedt closes, “one that’s designed to be fun and socially consumable.”

To learn more: @spillingthepeachtea.

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Carol Badaracco Padgett is an Atlanta-based freelance writer who focuses on film and television, the automotive industry, architectural design and collaborative storytelling projects.