Marielle Zuccarelli Rejoins GRB

LOS ANGELES: GRB Entertainment has hired Marielle Zuccarelli as COO, in addition to appointing company veteran Michael Branton to run a new branded-entertainment division.

Zuccarelli, who previously served as president of international for GRB from 2003 to 2012, will now manage GRB’s growth and profitability, overseeing program development, international distribution and acquisitions, as well as corporate strategy and business development. Prior to rejoining GRB, Zuccarelli served as executive VP of international distribution with Sonar Entertainment.

Zuccarelli has also spearheaded the launch of the company’s new branded-entertainment division, appointing longtime GRB executive Michael Branton as executive VP of branded entertainment, to run the new initiative.

GRB’s branded-entertainment arm will be dedicated to sponsor-driven content and will offer advertisers and marketers the opportunity to produce original programming for broadcast, cable and digital/OTT platforms. The division will also focus on bringing to market content specifically geared toward VR applications.

GRB Entertainment’s president and CEO, Gary R. Benz, said, “GRB’s history of producing and selling culturally diverse and relevant programming around the world has helped grow our brand and fuel our expansion. Marielle understands this trajectory better than anyone, and we’re confident that her talent and expertise will help propel GRB at this exciting and challenging time in our business. In addition to broadening our development slate—including scripted and unscripted—Marielle will play a key role in our new branded entertainment initiative, working alongside Michael Branton, who has been a major player at GRB since the beginning. For me, an entrepreneur who started this company at a very different time in the industry, it’s quite gratifying to see longtime collaborators emerge as leaders in their own right at GRB.”