FirstLookTV Expands Executive Team

FirstLookTV has made a triad of senior hires in a new growth strategy aimed at capitalizing on its U.S. and U.K. true-crime hits Meet, Marry, Murder; My Lover My Killer; and #DEAD2ME.

Lucy Middelboe has been appointed head of business. Middelboe joins FirstLook’s business leadership department to strengthen the indie’s existing co-production and presale collaborations, as well as establish new partnerships and steer the social content strategy.

Andie Clare has been tapped as director of production. Clare’s slate will include over 70 hours of productions already in place for 2024, with a further 20 hours in advanced development.

Both Middelboe and Clare join FirstLookTV from Icon Films. The two will work on a non-exclusive basis, with an expectation of greater leadership roles in the coming months.

Rachel Bowering is now creative lead on development. The ex-BBC Midlands senior will be armed with a fund to curate and invest in projects which the company feels respond to the changing content market.

Will Hanrahan, founder of FirstLookTV, said: “We’ve delivered over 300 hours of content from our Midlands base using innovative business approaches with our partners. Now with significant increased revenues from our overseas license sales, we feel confident that it’s the right time to take advantage of U.K. broadcasters’ stated aim to invigorate Midlands-originated content. Meanwhile the continuing success of our production models mean we can add factual genres to our existing slate. We have wanted to recruit major industry hitters to cope with our increased output and in Lucy, Andie and Rachel we believe we have.”

Middelboe commented: “I’m thrilled to be part of such an ambitious and creative company, leading the way with new funding models and production workflows. FirstLookTV delivers great content at attractive price points, which is exactly what the market needs.”

Clare added: “It is an exciting time to be joining forces with the talented and innovative team at FirstLookTV. I am looking forward to continuing the investment in production talent in the region to deliver distinct and authentic content.”

Bowering continued: “I couldn’t be more excited to join FirstLookTV and be part of this nimble, talented team that proudly represents TV production in the Midlands. This is an incredible opportunity to fuel the creative spark right from the heart of the country, unearthing and nurturing exciting content that will captivate audiences across the world.”