David Abraham’s Wonderhood Sets Unscripted Programming Team

Wonderhood Studios, led by former Channel 4 chief executive David Abraham, has installed a production and development team in unscripted programming, led by Samantha Anstiss.

Anstiss joins the new company as a co-founder and creative director for unscripted, reporting to Abraham, who is the chief executive. Anstiss joins Wonderhood Studios from the BBC, where she has been creative director of Auntie Productions, the creative label that she jointly established three years ago. She is currently in production with a new Channel 4 series that has just been commissioned, and she will join Wonderhood Studios in October.

Also joining Wonderhood Studios is Emma Lorenz, who takes on the role of deputy creative director for unscripted. Lorenz will run development across unscripted genres. Lorenz joins Wonderhood Studios in July. She previously served as director of development at Lion Television, securing 26 commissions across her three years there. Previously, she was at the BBC and held roles such as the head of documentaries development and head of factual entertainment development.

The new company will soon announce a core team to head up its creative agency studio, and it is anticipated that further senior appointments in content production will be made in the future as it expands into new genres such as entertainment and drama.

Abraham said, “Wonderhood aims to attract recognized and respected talent from different parts of the creative industries and provide an exciting environment for new forms of collaboration. There are very few creative executives working in TV who have demonstrated such range, quality and consistency of original output as Sam, which is why I am so delighted that she will join us as a co-founder and the first creative director in our content studio.”

Anstiss said, “Wonderhood offers a fantastic opportunity for creatives from many disciplines to work together in a really innovative way. It will be a fun, dynamic and inspiring place where the best people come to do their best work in a nurturing and supportive environment. David’s extensive track record in broadcasting and brands and his experience in supporting big ideas, backing creative risk and talent was irresistible. We look forward to producing impactful and entertaining programmes that say something new about the world we live in.”

Abraham added, “Emma is smart, strategic and brimming with ideas; she is always challenging herself to create the next big thing. With these appointments, our unscripted capability is getting off to a great start. We are looking forward to developing big ideas for channels and platforms both here in the U.K. and internationally all of which will benefit from our new approach.”