Romain Bessi Appointed CEO of Newen Studios

Romain Bessi has been appointed CEO of Newen Studios, effective January 31, succeeding Bibiane Godfroid.

Bessi piloted the international expansion of Newen Studios, and he will now take over from Godfroid, who has decided, in agreement with Gilles Pélisson, to free up more time for developing new personal projects.

Bessi’s main focus will be to further enhance Newen’s growth both in France and internationally. He joined the Newen group as managing director in 2018 and took on an extra role heading up TF1 Studio in 2019. Since the start of 2021, Bessi has supervised all Newen Studios operations.

In 2015, the TF1 group took a 70 percent stake in Newen, and Godfroid joined Newen at the same time. She took over as CEO of Newen when the TF1 group bought out the rest of the production company in 2018.

Pélisson, chairman and CEO of the TF1 Group, said: “I would like to thank Bibiane Godfroid for her exceptional contribution at the helm of Newen Studios over the last three years. Her vision and talent have enabled Newen Studios to become an established player in the audiovisual industry, in France and now internationally too. I wish Romain Bessi every success in his new role, convinced that his background, experience and professionalism uniquely qualify him to continue driving Newen Studios forward and strengthen ties with broadcasters and platforms in France and abroad. At a time of heightened competition, Romain Bessi and all his colleagues can continue to count on the active support of the TF1 Group.”

Added Godfroid: “During my six years at Newen Studios, I have had the privilege of working with great people, exploring new avenues and creating new content. Thanks to the teams at Newen Studios, both in France and internationally, Newen Studios is today one of Europe’s foremost producers and distributors. I’ve now decided to put my personal goals above my work goals, but I will stay in close touch with the audiovisual industry and its talents. I would like to thank Gilles Pélisson for his unwavering support and everyone at Newen Studios—especially Romain Bessi, who is taking over from me.”

Bessi commented: “The last few years have witnessed the transformation of Newen Studios into a dynamic, major established player with a diversified mix of genres, geographies and activities. Our talents, and their complementarity, are our strength. Together we will further develop the group, with ambition and kindness, while staying true to our authentic European roots and our core mission: create the best stories and bring them to the rest of the world. I would like to thank Gilles Pélisson for his trust in me, his encouragement and for having consistently supported Newen Studios on its great journey. And of course, I would particularly like to thank Bibiane Godfroid. We have chalked up some fine achievements and shared some great times, and I hope that she will enjoy more of the same—or even better—in the future.”