New President in Place at ITV Studios France

September 14, 2016 Kristin Brzoznowski Top Stories
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LONDON: Franck Firmin-Guion, previously CEO of the French production outfit ALP, has been appointed president of ITV Studios France.

Firmin-Guion will be joined by Sébastien Petiot, who has been appointed COO of ITV Studios France. Petiot was previously COO of ALP. Firmin-Guion reports to Maria Kyriacou, the president of international at ITV Studios.

In this post, Firmin-Guion will lead ITV Studios’ next phase of growth, with a particular focus on exploiting ITVS’ and Talpa’s catalog of large-scale entertainment formats, along with building on the label’s first steps into scripted. Going forward, ITVS France will be Talpa’s production partner in the territory, with exclusive rights to produce all of Talpa’s new shows and taking on existing productions as Talpa’s current production agreements expire.

The news follows the departure of former ITV Studios France managing director, Francois Florentiny.

Kyriacou said: “Franck has a track record which is hard to match, not least in overseeing two of the most well-known entertainment formats on French TV—Survivor and Fort Boyard. His success diversifying his current production slate sets him up well for leading ITVS France. With Sébastien also onboard, they make a formidable team and are brilliantly placed to grow our business by making the most of both ITVS and Talpa formats, along with helping us make further strategic investments in the territory.”

Kyriacou added: “I would like to thank Francois for his six years overseeing the business; thanks to him we are well-positioned for future growth.”

Firmin-Guion said: “I am thrilled to join the ITV Studios Group and to be given the opportunity to run its French business. ITV has a very clear strategy to grow an international content business. With the combination of ITV Studios formats, Talpa formats and further strategic investments, I am sure in France we will have a pretty unique slate of programs and formats to exploit in the market plus the assets to contribute to ITV Studios’ international growth.”