Phil Gurin’s TGC GE adds 20th Century Fox & BBC Studios alums to expand international sales

Phil Gurin

LA-based distribution firm TGC Global Entertainment (TGC GE) has appointed a slew of execs, including 20^th Century Fox and BBC Studios alums, to expand its nascent sales business.

The firm was launched by format veteran Phil Gurin in January, with a slate including Canada’s Ultimate Challenge, entertainment formats Fridge Wars and The Singing Bee, and Parking Lot Payday, a gameshow from HDNET in the US.

Among its new recruits is Cecilia Ingebrigtsen, formerly with Magnify Media and Strix Television, who has joined to manage TGC GE’s sales into Europe and the Nordic territories, while Jess Khanom, who has worked for NENT Studios and 20th Century Fox Television, will be responsible for sales and acquisitions in Australia, New Zealand, Turkey and MENA.

Malgorzata Gudel, who has held roles at Monolith Films and Lagadere Studios, will focus on Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), while Janel Downing, previously off All3media International and BBC Studios, is handling sales into Latin America and Hispanic North America.

Format specialist Paulina Eklund, of Dick Clark Productions and Nordic World, will assist TGC GE as global distribution consultant, while, London-based Jane Baker, who has worked at DRG and Magnify Media, has joined TGC GE as its business affairs executive, and Los Angeles-based Philip D’Amour runs post production for finished programs.

Gurin heads up the firm as president and CEO, with the company aiming to provide direct access and format representation to major US and European broadcast and cable networks. He also aims to leverage global relationships to create opportunities for third-party independent producers looking to find a global audience for their IP.

“Our expanding international team reflects our growing slate of new and soon-to-launch entertainment, factual and documentary shows. Paulina, Cecilia, Jess, Malgorzata and Janel have the vision, experience and contacts to help us realise our ambition — which is to ensure that great content from the world’s best creatives continue to be made, sold and enjoyed by audiences around the world,” said Gurin.

“I launched TGC GE to offer content-makers and platforms real alternative to what I call the GEGs — the global entertainment giants — who dominate the distribution market. At TGC CE, we put producers and creatives at the heart of the conversation. It’s all about them, not our corporate priorities.”