Banijay Rights Hires StudioCanal TV’s Sarah Mottershead To Join EMEA Team

EXCLUSIVE: Banijay Rights has hired Sarah Mottershead from StudioCanal TV for its EMEA team.

Mottershead has been appointed VP, Middle East, Africa, Israel, Greece & Cyprus, based out of London. This will put her in charge of stagey for the MasterChef and Peaky Blinders distributor in those territories.

Currently in the role is Robin Pollok, who we hear is exiting Banijay Rights at the end of the year.

At StudioCanal, she was VP, TV Series Sales, overseeing distribution in Central & Eastern Europe, the CIS region, Africa and Asia. She has also held roles at Shine International, whose assets are now part of Banijay Rights, and Fremantle.

Mottershead will report to Banijay Rights’ EVP, EMEA Sake and Acquisitions, Claire Jago, who called her “an experienced television executive with a wealth of knowledge” who would be “a huge asset to Banijay Rights in these pivotal markets.”

Mottershead is the latest recruit to the Banijay Rights stable. Earlier this year, it hired former BBC Worldwide director Isabelle Helle as SVP German-Speaking Territories and Poland, replacing Veronique Verges. On the marketing and comms front, it added former Passion Distribution exec Claire Douglas as part of a rejig.

Banijay Rights’ catalog includes Survivor, Big Brother, MasterChef, Peaky Blinders, Rogue Heroes, Marie Antoinette, Grantchester, Mr Bean and Black Mirror. At MIPCOM, it sold rags-to-riches drama series The Hardacres to several territories, as CEO Cathy Payne told Deadline that “grappling with how to fund scripted.”

“Banijay Rights’ vast catalogue of truly stand-out programming is renowned across the international content industry so I’m beyond proud to join this incredible team and work across these important territories,” said Mottershead.

Banijay Rights parent Banijay Entertainment last week posted sales of €688.9M ($743.6M), down 3.5% from €713.6M in Q3 last year. Banijay Group’s total revenue increased 8.9% to €3.1B in the first nine months of the year, thanks to 44% growth in its sports betting and gaming business. Adjusted EBITDA rose 15.3% to €546M.