EXCLUSIVE: Paris-based toon home Hari has added to its ranks.
The Grizzy & the Lemmings firm has employed Toby Jones as Head of Gross sales, and promoted Sophie ‘Kido’ Prigent as Director of Strategic Partnerships & Financing.
The hires come amid a strategic push at Hari to develop the worldwide footprints of toons similar to Grizzly and Thriller Lane. They comply with a settlement struck final week with Retail Monster for a serious licensing and merchandising program.
Prigent, who has labored at Hari for 3 years, was beforehand Head of Distribution. Now, as a part of the management workforce, she is going to oversee all revenue-generating exercise, together with TV and digital distribution, L&M, new format financing and content material extensions.
She’ll stay in Paris and report back to Hari co-founder and co-CEO Josselin Charier.
Jones, who will report into Prigent from his base in London, joins from rival youngsters TV firm Cake. He’ll oversee world gross sales of reveals similar to Grizzy & the Lemmings, Thriller Lane, The Weasy Household and Child Lemmings, and his first worldwide market might be MIFA in June.
Former Kew Media Distribution staffer Jones has labored at Cake because it acquired the belongings of Jetpack Distribution, the place he beforehand labored. As Deadline revealed in September final yr, the deal noticed Jetpack founder Dominic Gardiner becoming a member of Cake as Managing Director of Distribution. Jones was one in every of a few Jetpack workers who transferred to Cake, and was promoted to Senior Gross sales Supervisor within the course of.
“We’re getting into a brand new chapter for Hari – one pushed by daring ambition, worldwide development, and 360-degree franchise constructing,” mentioned Charier. “We’re creating authentic IPs with the facility to journey – throughout platforms, territories, and into popular culture.
“Kido has performed a key function in delivering this imaginative and prescient, and this new function displays each the dimensions of our ambitions and the belief we place in her management. With Toby becoming a member of, we’re reinforcing the foundations for Hari’s subsequent section of worldwide development. His sturdy monitor document, deep trade relationships, and hands-on distribution expertise make him a robust addition as we speed up our world growth.”
It’s been a troublesome time for France‘s youngsters TV makers and sellers over latest years, with Hari’s compatriot, Cyber Group Studios, within the technique of being bought after working into monetary hassle, and TeamTO being acquired by Riva Studios having filed for chapter.
Hari, nevertheless, has been launching new reveals and taking a look at growth. Final yr, it took Grizzy universe sequence Child Lemmings into manufacturing after Warner Bros Discovery EMEA and France Télévisions board the 78-part toon.
