MarVista Secures Investment, Restructures Senior Management

LOS ANGELES: MarVista Entertainment has secured new investment capital from a group led by venture capitalist Brian N. Sheth as it looks to accelerate expansion plans and has also announced a new management team under CEO Fernando Szew.

The capital investment will be used to expand MarVista’s production slate and bolster its acquisitions as it looks to enhance its 2,000-hour-plus distribution catalogue. “In an industry that has failed many independents, MarVista has demonstrated a solid business model that continues to thrive in this challenging market,” commented Sheth, who is the president and co-founder of Vista Equity Partners. “Fernando and the team at MarVista have driven continuous growth of their production and distributionpipeline, and as an investment group, we see significant potential with this additional capital to further build this dynamic company.”

Founding partner and president Michael D. Jacobs will be exiting his role at the end of the year to "pursue other interests," MarVista said, but will continue to serve as a consultant. “I am proud to have played an integral role in building MarVista into a formidable production and distribution company," Jacobs said. "With the new team that we have assembled and the influx of an equity investment, I have no doubt the company will continue to flourish under Fernando’s direction."

Stepping in to run MarVista’s production activities is Robyn Snyder, upped to executive VP of production from her role as senior VP of development and production. Reporting directly to Szew, she will oversee all aspects of MarVista’s original programming, including series and feature films. Snyder’s team now includes Sharon Bordas, previously a production consultant for the company, in the role of VP of development and production. Manning acquisitions, meanwhile, is Stephanie Slack as senior VP of co-productions and acquisitions.

“Since founding the Company in 2003, we have seen incredible growth at MarVista as we expanded beyond our initial third party distribution operation," said Szew. "With our new team in place and our new investors, led by Brian N. Sheth, we are poised to reach a new level of growth and to continue our commitment to producing quality content. This is an exciting time for MarVista, and all of us are grateful to Michael for the dedication and commitment he has made to the company’s success. We appreciate Michael’s continued contributions to our development and production state, and we are confident that our new team has the experience and talent to exceed expectations in their respective roles."