NBCU Staffs Up TV Production Team

LONDON: New appointments were made to NBC Universal International’s television production unit, with Alan Brown heading up factual and entertainment and Mario Stylianides leading comedy.

As heads of their respective areas, Brown and Stylianides will seek out and develop new TV entertainment opportunities in the U.K., as well as look for formats that can work internationally. Brown and Stylianides, under their respective brands, will actively pursue and develop high-end entertainment and comedy content and forge deals with top talent. Both will work to generate a pipeline of new ideas for non-scripted series to augment the format business led by Yvonne Pilkington, the senior VP of format sales and production.

Chocolate Media, a bespoke production label created by Brown, will produce high-quality factual and entertainment content for the U.K. Brown’s previous stints include working as a senior commissioner for entertainment at the BBC, as part of the team that started Strictly Come Dancing. Stylianides comes to NBC Universal International from Hat Trick, where he served as head of comedy since 2003.

“Attracting executives of Alan and Mario’s caliber speaks to how we are building NBC Universal into a ‘first stop’ destination for the U.K.’s top creative talent,” said Gareth Neame, the managing director for the U.K. “Our U.K. strategy lies in organic growth driven by local expertise, and the U.K. is home to one of the world’s best talent pools for production. It is a real coup to have both Alan and Mario join the team.”

Michael Edelstein, the president of international television production, commented, “The U.K. represents an important global market for NBC Universal. As such, it was critical to put in place the proper building blocks for our future growth. In Gareth, Alan and Mario we have three of the best creative minds and experienced producers in the business. I am confident that NBC Universal will now become a leading destination for top creative talent, and that our new production brands will deliver innovative content for the U.K. and the rest of the world.”

Brown remarked: “I love creating and making great television in the factual, reality and entertainment genres. Joining a leading media and content company like NBC Universal feels like the natural evolution of my career, but what really drew me to NBCU was the prospect of building an entirely new production brand. Chocolate Media will be a true representation of my taste and the types of shows I love to make, and I plan to expand it into a strong brand for NBC Universal encompassing all forms of features, factual and factual entertainment.”

Stylianides added: “NBC has such a great tradition of iconic comedy programmes in the U.S., and the company’s huge success reformatting The Office around the world is a testament to how good comedy can travel. My attraction to NBC Universal lies in the opportunity to build the international comedy division from the ground up and define what comedy can be for the company. Comedy in the UK is starting to find a global audience and NBC Universal allows me the perfect platform to give U.K. comedy a voice internationally.”

Neame continued: “In addition to building the team, we are defining production brands under the NBCU umbrella, each with their own expertise and editorial voice. Carnival stands for quality, highly-produced drama; Monkey gives us non-scripted entertainment with a fresh, original view; and Alan with his expertise in factual and entertainment, will build Chocolate Media into an equally strong non-scripted brand. We expect Mario to build out a strong Comedy brand for NBCU as well.”