TORONTO, Feb. 6, 2020 /CNW/ - WildBrain Ltd. (the
"Company") (TSX: WILD), a global leader in kids and family
entertainment, is pleased to announce a number of key management
appointments. Michael Riley has been
appointed Chief Brands Officer (CBO); Deirdre Brennan has been named Executive Vice
President, Content Partnerships; Jianbo
Wei has been appointed Managing Director, China; Daisy
Wall has joined as Vice President, Short Form Content; and
Liz Thompson has been promoted to
Vice President, Marketing and Communications.
Eric Ellenbogen, Chief Executive
Officer, WildBrain, said: "These appointments represent further
steps forward in the reorganization begun last year and will help
us realize the greatest value from our leading portfolio of content
and brands. We're strengthening and aligning our team to propel
growth across brand building, creativity and business development.
Michael, Deirdre, Daisy, Jianbo and Liz bring considerable
expertise and give us a great mix of leadership skills to maximize
opportunities in today's media landscape."
Michael Riley – Chief Brands
Officer (CBO)
As Chief Brands Officer (CBO), veteran brand, content and
marketing executive Michael Riley
will draw on over 25 years of experience in company building, brand
and IP development and global marketing to identify and develop key
franchise opportunities for WildBrain's portfolio of renowned kids
and family brands, such as Strawberry Shortcake, Teletubbies, Rev
& Roll and Inspector Gadget, and he will identify new franchise
opportunities within the WildBrain ecosystem. Based in New York, Riley reports to WildBrain CEO,
Eric Ellenbogen.
Riley said: "With the growth of streaming platforms worldwide,
there has never been a better time to develop content-driven
brands. WildBrain owns some of the world's most-loved kids' content
and I look forward to working with the team to build out new and
expand existing brand strategies for key properties in our IP
portfolio."
Riley has previously worked for some of the biggest firms in
entertainment, consumer products and media, focusing on top
children's IP, including Strawberry Shortcake, Polly Pocket, Power
Rangers, Ben 10, and My Little Pony. As VP of Franchise Development
and Content Strategy & Distribution at Mattel, he was charged
with starting a division which identified, launched and expanded
Mattel's billion-dollar franchises. Prior to Mattel, Riley led the
start-up of Hasbro's Franchise and Entertainment Division, driving
consumer engagement to transform brands into kids and family
entertainment franchises.
Before working for Hasbro, Riley was Vice President of Strategic
Marketing at Bandai America, where he headed up a marketing group
to identify, build, launch and market kids' brands. Riley has also
worked for Sony's Consumer Products Division as Vice President,
Strategic Marketing, Film and Television, where he was a key member
of a cross-functional task force charged with eliminating silos,
promoting communication and spearheading and identifying key
opportunities for growth. In his early career, he built a
foundation in agency work (Saatchi & Saatchi), research
(Information Resources), and classic consumer products
(Nestle).
Since 2014, Riley has worked with IP 360 Group, a consultancy
firm specializing in creating and executing strategic plans to
launch, build and grow kids and family IP across all
platforms.
Deirdre Brennan – Executive
Vice President, Content Partnerships
Deirdre Brennan brings more than
20 years of leadership experience in children's entertainment and
media. Since July 2019, she has been
advising WildBrain's senior management team on content and
distribution strategy, priorities and processes. As Executive Vice
President, Content Partnerships, Brennan will play a key role in
WildBrain's content group, overseeing the Company's global
distribution business as well as its suite of Family-branded
broadcast channels in Canada
operated by WildBrain Television. Reporting to WildBrain President
Josh Scherba, Brennan is based in
Toronto.
Brennan stated: "Having worked closely with Josh Scherba and WildBrain in recent months, I
am incredibly excited to lead the distribution and broadcast teams
as we focus on creative excellence and valued content partnerships,
leveraging the power of WildBrain's integrated business."
An influential executive in the global media industry, Brennan
previously worked for NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment as General
Manager, Universal Kids; Corus Entertainment, where she oversaw all
aspects of the kids' portfolio as Vice President, Content;
and ABC TV (Australia), where
she was Head of Children's Television. She has also worked as
Director of Content/General Manager for BBC Worldwide
Australia and as Director of Programming, Nickelodeon
Australia.
Joe Tedesco has been named Chair
of WildBrain Television, reporting to Josh
Scherba. In this role, Tedesco will draw on his decades of
experience in broadcast television to focus on revenue
relationships, business development, regulatory matters and
government relations for the channels. Tedesco will also continue
to Chair the Programming Committee for WildBrain Television. We
look forward to continuing to benefit from Tedesco's expertise.
The content group's Stephanie
Betts, Executive Vice President Content and Current Series,
and Amir Nasrabadi, Executive Vice
President and General Manager – Vancouver Studio, each continue in
their respective roles reporting to Josh
Scherba.
Jianbo Wei – Managing
Director, China
As Managing Director, China,
Jianbo Wei will be responsible for
building an expanded business strategy to exploit the considerable
opportunity in China for
WildBrain's content and consumer products licensing. Bringing over
a decade of experience, Wei has previously managed business and
growth strategies in China for
many of the world's leading entertainment multinationals. Based in
Shanghai, Wei will oversee
Territory Sales Manager Lisa Lee and
report to WildBrain President, Josh
Scherba.
Wei commented: "I am delighted to join the WildBrain team and
energized to apply my many years of experience in China's entertainment industry to unlock and
grow value for WildBrain's content and brands."
Prior to joining WildBrain, Wei worked for NBCUniversal, where
he built and led a China team that
drove significant growth in content licensing. Before that, Wei
worked for The Walt Disney Company, as Director, Government
Relations for the Shanghai Disney Resort, managing relations and
engagement with third-party stakeholders including government
agencies, industry partners, business associations and schools.
Prior to Disney, Wei worked for Warner Bros., where he was
responsible for the international TV and new media distribution
business in China. He also worked
for a period with AGB Nielsen Media Research, focusing on strategic
planning, government relations, PR and marketing.
Daisy Wall – Vice President,
Short Form Content
In her role as Vice President, Short Form Content, Daisy Wall will play an integral role in
WildBrain's overall content strategy, developing and executing a
short-form digital program for the Company's creative slate. Based
in Los Angeles, Wall will work
closely with WildBrain Spark, the Company's AVOD business, and with
creative teams at WildBrain Studios. As a member of
WildBrain's development team, Wall reports to Stephanie Betts.
Wall said: "WildBrain has an incredibly rich collection of
content and brands, and the WildBrain Spark platform is second to
none for delivering short-form content. I'm thrilled to be diving
in to spearhead a new short-form program with the development,
production and WildBrain Spark teams. I look forward to
experimenting on new ways to engage, surprise, and inspire
young viewers."
Wall was formerly a Creative Content Producer with
NBCUniversal's DreamworksTV. There, she developed and produced
original short form series, as well as branded content for
Trolls, How to Train Your Dragon and Spirit Riding
Free. Prior to her time in digital, Wall worked as a producer
in New York for channels such
as Discovery, National Geographic, E! and MTV.
Liz Thompson – Vice President,
Marketing and Communications
Reporting to Scherba, Liz
Thompson has been promoted to the position of Vice
President, Marketing and Communications. Based in Toronto, Thompson has been with WildBrain
since 2011 and most recently led the successful global rebrand of
the Company. She oversees WildBrain's brand positioning, driving an
integrated marketing and communications strategy across the
Company's corporate, content and consumer product groups.
Thompson said: "The rebrand to WildBrain has been a unifying and
energizing force across the company and I am excited now to lead a
team of marketing and communications professionals as we build on
this momentum to continue our focus on creativity, imagination and
innovation."
For more information, please contact:
Media: Shaun Smith – Director,
Corporate and Trade Communications, WildBrain
shaun.smith@wildbrain.com
+1 416-977-7230
Investor Relations: Nancy
Chan-Palmateer – Director, Investor Relations, WildBrain
nancy.chanpalmateer@wildbrain.com
+1 416-977-7358
Trade media: Aimee Norman at DDA
Blueprint PR
aimee@ddablueprint.com
+44 (0) 20 7932 9800
About WildBrain Ltd.
At WildBrain we make great content for kids and families. With
approximately 13,000 half-hours of filmed entertainment in our
library – one of the world's most extensive – we are home to such
brands as Peanuts, Teletubbies, Strawberry
Shortcake, Caillou, Inspector Gadget and
Degrassi. Our shows are seen in more than 150 countries on
over 500 telecasters and streaming platforms. Our AVOD business –
WildBrain Spark – offers one of the largest networks of
kids' channels on YouTube, with over 145 million subscribers. We
also license consumer products and location-based entertainment in
every major territory for our own properties as well for our
clients and content partners. Our television group owns and
operates four family entertainment channels that are among the
most-viewed in Canada. WildBrain
is headquartered in Canada with
offices worldwide and trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX:
WILD). Visit us at www.wildbrain.com.
Disclaimer
This press release contains "forward-looking statements" under
applicable securities laws with respect to the Company including,
without limitation, statements regarding the impact of management
appointments on the Company and its business and the business
strategies and operational activities of the Company and results
therefrom. Although the Company believes that the expectations
reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, such
statements involve risks and uncertainties and are based on
information currently available to the Company. Actual results or
events may differ materially from those expressed or implied by
such forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual
results or events to differ materially from current expectations,
among other things, include the risk factors discussed in materials
filed with applicable securities regulatory authorities from time
to time including matters discussed under "Risk Factors" in the
Company's most recent Annual Information Form and annual Management
Discussion and Analysis, which also form part of the Company's
annual report on Form 40-F filed with the U.S. Securities and
Exchange Commission. These forward-looking statements are made as
of the date hereof, and the Company assumes no obligation to update
or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances, except as
required by law.
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SOURCE WildBrain Ltd.