APPOINTMENT OF SARAH REESE GEFFROY

STUDIOCANAL has announced the appointment of Sarah Reese Geffroy as SVP STUDIOCANAL STORIES & TV Series Development. She will take up her new role on May, 1st 2024 and report to M-K Kennedy, Executive Managing Director TV Series, and Ron Halpern, EVP Global Production & Talent Management.

As part of her new role, Sarah Reese Geffroy will thus be responsible for developing “STUDIOCANAL STORIES”, new label dedicated to Literary Adaptations for film and TV series [1]. She will handle the adaptation of successful literary works and exploit synergies between its catalogue, the largest in Europe with 9,000 titles and one of the most prestigious in the world, and those of various publishing houses from different countries. She will also have the task of supervising the development of STUDIOCANAL's TV Series, a department within which she held the position of VP Development TV Series since 2021.

Anna Marsh, STUDIOCANAL CEO, commented: “We are delighted that Sarah Reese Geffroy is STUDIOCANAL’s new SVP STUDIOCANAL STORIES & TV Series Development. With her diverse experience within STUDIOCANAL since 2015, Sarah has undeniably helped increase the appeal of our content. Her knowledge of the sales and production roles, as well as her trusted relationships with the production companies which form part of the STUDIOCANAL ecosystem, are major assets to achieve our ambitions in the franchise and adaptations market. In particular, she played an important role in the creation of our two new British production companies, Strong Film & Television and Birdie Pictures, in 2022. We look forward to working with Sarah soon and developing new literary projects, and to entrust her with the development of our new label “STUDIOCANAL STORIES”. I would also like to sincerely thank Audrey Brugère for her valuable contribution to promoting our literary adaptations work and send her all our best wishes for success at l’Olympia.”

Thanks to our ambitious productions and an ecosystem of production companies that are leaders in their markets, STUDIOCANAL attracts the best European and international film and television talent. The leading European studio also wishes to strengthen its influence among recognised and emerging literary talents. By investing in the field of intellectual property, STUDIOCANAL demonstrates its desire to extend its expertise to more promising adaptations and boost its interactions with a range of partners.

STUDIOCANAL is notably behind the adaptation of Michael Bond's iconic PADDINGTON books into three animated series, two BAFTA-nominated films and a third work which will be released in cinemas in 2024. Two of his next theatrical releases, BEATING HEARTS (Gilles Lellouche), adapted from Neville Thompson’ novel, and THE MOST PRECIOUS OF CARGOES (Michel Hazanavicius), adapted from Jean-Claude Grumberg’s tale, are selected in Official Competition at the Festival of Cannes 2024. STUDIOCANAL is also working on the series adaptation of Dick Bruna's pre-school books MIFFY, the series PLAYING NICE (JP Delaney) and HOW TO STOP TIME (Matt Haig), and the film THE MIDNIGHT LIBRARY (Matt Haig). Other projects will be announced soon.

SARAH REESE GEFFROY’S BIOGRAPHY

Originally from New Zealand, Sarah Reese Geffroy has worked at STUDIOCANAL for nine years, operating within the international sales, film production and then TV Series teams. Based in Paris, she has managed STUDIOCANAL's international television series development unit since 2021. As such, she has worked closely with the Group's production companies, in particular in the United Kingdom with Red Production Company (YEARS & YEARS, RIDLEY ROAD) and Urban Myth Films (PARIS HAS FALLEN). In addition, for STUDIOCANAL, she is also in charge of the creative development of the TV adaptation of the iconic series of children’s books, MIFFY, by author Dick Bruna. Before coming to France, Sarah was director of the French Film Festival in New Zealand, which takes place across eleven cities – a position which earned her a nomination for the Westpac Women of Influence Awards in 2014.

ABOUT STUDIOCANAL (a CANAL+ Company)

STUDIOCANAL, a 100% affiliate of CANAL+ Group held by Vivendi, is Europe’s leader in production, distribution and international sales of feature films and series, operating in all major European markets - France, United Kingdom, Germany, Poland, Spain, and Benelux - as well as in Australia, in New Zealand and in the United States. It finances, produces, and distributes 80 films per year. It owns the largest catalogue in Europe and one of the most prestigious in the world, boasting around 9 000 titles from 60 countries, spanning 100 years of film history. Close to 25 million euros has been invested into the 4K restoration of nearly 1 000 classic feature films over the past 5 years. In addition, STUDIOCANAL also produces almost 20 series each year and operates at an international level by globally distributing its scripted productions and CANAL+ Originals (2,000 hours of current and library content in distribution). All productions take place directly through STUDIOCANAL entities or with its award-winning network of 14 production companies in Europe and in the United States: BAMBU PRODUCCIONES (SP), BIRDIE PICTURES (UK), DINGIE (NETH), LAILAPS FILMS (GER), OPUS TV (POL), RED PRODUCTION COMPANY (UK), SAM PRODUCTIONS (DEN), STRONG FILM & TELEVISION (UK), STUDIOCANAL ORIGINAL (FR), STUDIOCANAL SERIES (GER), SUNNY MARCH TV (UK), THE PICTURE COMPANY (US), URBAN MYTH FILMS (UK), 2E BUREAU (FR).

CORPORATE COMMUNICATIONS

Elvire Charbonnel, elvire.charbonnel@canal-plus.com