IM Global is a major international sales and distribution company founded in March 2007 by Chief Executive Officer Stuart Ford, with offices in Los Angeles and London. The company is one of the most active and high profile film and television sales operations in the worldwide entertainment community and is a prominent presence at the major international film festivals and markets. In addition Ford and several of his colleagues are regular speakers at industry gatherings around the globe.
IM Global's
main slate of theatrical films includes crime thriller ST. VINCENT, to be directed by Walter Hill and starring Mickey Rourke; psychological thriller AFTER.
In November
2008, the Company unveiled a specialty/arthouse film sales arm, IM Global Acclaim, further defining for
buyers and for filmmaking talent the Company’s conviction to operate in diverse
areas of the distribution arena.
Pictures under the new banner include: Rebecca Miller’s Berlinale ’09
Official Selection feature, THE PRIVATE
LIVES OF PIPPA
The IM Global Home Entertainment division,
headed by former Showtime executive
IM Global Television
rounds out the Company’s roster of international sales operations with industry
veteran
The IM Global executive team reporting to Ford is comprised of a number of
established industry executives, including Senior Vice President, Worldwide
Sales & Acquisitions
 | Stuart Ford Chief Executive Officer |
| IM Global Chief Executive Officer Stuart Ford is a respected and prominent figure on the international film sales and distribution circuit. He spent 8 years at Miramax Films where he held positions as head of International Operations, Co-Head of Acquisitions and most lately, Co-Head of Miramax International. He ran Miramax International at a time when that company was one of the most powerful players in the international film sales community, handling major titles from filmmakers such as Quentin Tarantino, Robert Rodriguez, Kevin Smith, Wes Craven, Anthony Minghella, Rob Marshall, Stephen Daldry, Fernando Mereilles, Zhang Yimou, John Madden, Stephen Frears, Roberto Benigni, Lasse Halstrom, George Clooney and Steven Soderbergh. Ford’s other career activities have seen him practice as an entertainment lawyer in the U.K.; executive produce Buena Vista International's GOAL! trilogy of films, as well as FIFA's Official 2006 World Cup film; and prior to starting IM Global, acting as President of First Look International, one of the longest established companies in the international film sales community. Ford was educated at St. Edmund Hall, Oxford University (BA and MA, Law). | |
 |
Gavin Reardon President, IM Global Television |
| Gavin Reardon is a respected entertainment executive with over twenty-one years experience in international licensing and marketing of film and television programming. As President of IM Global Television, he is responsible for building a television division for the successful independent distribution company. Most recently, he was President of …and action! Distribution, a venture with renowned German television producer Action Concept. Before joining …and action! Distribution, Reardon was President of GRB Entertainment where he developed and executive produced a 52 episode reality series; developed and financed a 22 episode action series through pre-sales; and, through international sales, co-financed a U.S. network primetime reality series. Previously he spent 3 years as Vice President of MTM International Distribution where he distributed primetime U.S. network and first run syndicated series. Prior to his stint at MTM, Reardon spent three years at Republic Pictures International Television where he represented a library of over 1500 films including the Academy Award-winning film The Quiet Man, Johnny Guitar, Sands of Iwo Jima, It’s A Wonderful Life, as well as the network series Beauty and the Beast. | |
 | Ruzanna Kegeyan Senior Vice President, Worldwide Sales & Acquisitions |
| Ruzanna Kegeyan comes to IM Global with a decade of extensive knowledge and experience of independent film in the international marketplace; including worldwide sales, bank financing, distribution and marketing. Prior to IM Global, Kegeyan first worked with C.E.O Stuart Ford at First Look International. Before First Look, Kegeyan had a five-year tenure as Senior Vice President of International Distribution at Syndicate Films International/Yari Film Group where she handled worldwide sales, facilitated bank closings with various financing institutions, and oversaw a staff of ten that encompassed contract negotiations, collections and servicing. Amongst the many titles that Kegeyan handled worldwide sales for included the Oscar Award winning film CRASH, directed by Paul Haggis; HOSTAGE starring Bruce Willis; THE MATADOR starring Pierce Brosnan; THE ILLUSIONIST, starring Edward Norton; and HOAX, starring Richard Gere. Before the Yari Film Group, Kegeyan was Vice President of International Distribution at Splendid Pictures, overseeing day-to-day operations of the department and was involved in films such as the highly regarded sophomore feature, NARC, directed by Joe Carnahan, starring Ray Liotta; and AGENT CODY BANKS. Kegeyan joined Cutting Edge Entertainment in 1998 as the company's Director of International Distribution, where she built strong relationships in the international community and helped to strengthen the company's library and assets. In 1996, Kegeyan joined the boutique sales company August Entertainment where the company produced and distributed films such as TRUE ROMANCE and LAWNMOWER MAN. | |
 | Tim Grohne Senior Vice President, International Film & Television Sales |
| Tim Grohne, IM Global’s Vice President of International Sales & Distribution, has an extensive background in film marketing and sales. Prior to joining IM Global, Grohne worked at First Look International as Vice President of International Sales, where he was primarily responsible for sales to European territories as well as overseeing operations at the company’s offices in London. Grohne previously worked at Celsius Entertainment, a company he helped found in 2004, as Head of Marketing & Distribution. During his tenure at Celsius, he managed sales in many key territories in addition to overseeing the development of international marketing campaigns for the company’s slate of films. He began his career in advertising, working for specialist film agency The Creative Partnership. As Creative Services Director he developed international and UK print campaigns for studios, independent distribution companies and international sales agents. | |
 | Alana Crow Senior Vice President, Business & Legal Affairs |
| Alana Crow joined IM Global in January 2008. In addition to handling the contract negotiations for IM Global, Crow handles a myriad of other business & legal matters for the company, including, acquisitions, digital downloading, banking and finance, litigation, trademark, copyright and marketing. Crow is also actively involved in the legal committee of the Independent Film and Television Alliance, the trade association for the independent film and television industry worldwide. Prior to IM Global, Crow was the senior attorney at First Look International overseeing and managing contract negotiations. Prior to FLI, Crow was Director of Business Affairs for CBS International, A Division of CBS Enterprises, where she handled all foreign sales agreements for parts of Europe, the Middle East, Australia and New Zealand. Crow was born in Los Angeles, California and educated at The University of California at Los Angeles, BA and Whittier College of Law, JD. | |
 | Catherine Quantschnigg Vice President, Home Entertainment, Sales & Distribution |
| Catherine Quantschnigg joined IM Global at its inception, prior to which she was at CEO Stuart Ford's First Look International. Previous to First Look, Quantschnigg was at Showtime Networks Inc. where she worked in domestic and international program distribution and sales. Before Showtime, Quantschnigg worked for more than four years in television production in Los Angeles where she produced shows for domestic and international television stations such as Animal Planet, TLC, Spike, Telemundo, BBC England, ZDF, ORF and others. Quantschnigg was born and grew up in Austria where she graduated from the University of Vienna with a Master's degree in Political Science and continued her studies at the University of Miami in Florida and Universidad de los Andes in Colombia with a research scholarship. | |
 | Frank Prugo Senior Vice President, International Operations |
| Frank Prugo is Senior Vice President, International Operations, where he is responsible for physical delivery on projects for all of IM Global’s divisions. Prugo has held various positions at many prestigous companies throughout the motion picture and television industry, including NBC Universal, Orion Pictures, Filmways Pictures, and First Look International. His comprehensive knowledge of post production and international theatrical delivery systems and requirements maintains a high level of product delivery, cost-efficient expenditures and consistent delivery success throughout his career. | |
 | Amal ElWardi Director, Acquisitions & Distribution |
| Amal ElWardi assisted CEO Stuart Ford in managing the international division at First Look Studios prior to IM Global's inception. For IM Global she currently evaluates script submissions and finished films for sales agency acquisitions as well as assists in creating international film sales forecasts, monthly and market sales reports, and outlines deal memos for worldwide deals. ElWardi has attended all major theatrical markets and festivals worldwide, coordinating company presence, organizing distribution of materials to international clients and press, and providing marketing and promotional support. As a part of IM Global's team, she has assisted in bank loan closings with financial institutions in order to facilitate gap financing of feature films. Prior to First Look International, ElWardi assisted the C.E.O of FilmBank Capital in conducting research for financial structuring and valuation analyses for single picture and film slate financing with Castle Rock Entertainment and Warner Brothers Studios. | |
 | Miguel Palos Financial Controller |
| Miguel Palos joined IM Global in September 2008 to handle all accounting and finance matters including financial statement reporting, budgets and forecasts, cost allocations, and the company’s day-to-day financial operations. Prior to joining IM Global, Palos worked for Ernst & Young in the Assurance and Advisory Business Services division. He provided financial and operational accounting services to such clients as Fox Filmed Entertainment, Universal Music Group, Endeavor Agency, EMI Blackwood Music, The Tennis Channel, and The Walt Disney Company, including ABC Studios and ESPN.
Palos graduated from the Leventhal and Marshall Schools at the University of Southern California, with a B.S. in Accounting and a B.S. in Business Administration with an emphasis in Finance. He additionally obtained a M.S. in Accountancy, Magna Cum Laude, from the Mendoza College at the University of Notre Dame. | |
 | Bonnie Voland International Marketing & Publicity |
| Prior to joining IM Global, Bonnie Voland was founder and principal of B. Voland International, an international publicity, marketing, sales, and co-production consulting company. Her clients included First Look Studios, Palm Pictures, Live Entertainment, Fine Line Pictures, Artisan, and Grupo Novo, and many independent films, for both U.S. distribution and international sales, at the most renowned film festivals and markets around the world, including Cannes, Toronto, Sundance, Venice, and AFM. She has also run Golden Globe and Oscar campaigns for several films, including Germany's nominee for Best Foreign Film, SOPHIE SCHOLL, in 2006. Before opening her own company, Voland headed the international publicity department at Buena Vista International, handling all releases for the Disney, Touchstone, and Hollywood Pictures divisions overseas, for such films as WHO FRAMED ROGER RABBIT, DEAD POET'S SOCIETY, PRETTY WOMAN and DICK TRACY. Prior to Disney, Voland was the senior publicist at The Samuel Goldwyn Company, ran the press office at the Toronto Film Festival, was a journalist in Paris, and a stage actress while living in New York. | |
 | Babacar Diene Executive Assistant to CEO Stuart Ford |
| Babacar Diene joined IM Global in August 2008 and is currently the Executive Assistant to Chief Executive Officer Stuart Ford. Prior to joining IM Global, Diene worked as assistant to the President of Icon Entertainment International and president of GreeneStreet Films International for a year. He also was a trainee at ICM for two years, where he worked in the Motion Picture and TV talent departments. While living in Paris, Diene was a production coordinator at Partizan Midi-Minuit, working with award-winning directors such as Michel Gondry. Before moving to Los Angeles, Diene graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in International Relations. | |
 | Lauren Wilson Contracts Administrator |
| Lauren Wilson joined IM Global in June 2008 and is currently Contracts Administrator working directly under Alana Crow. Prior to joining IM Global, Wilson worked in the world of high fashion as Vice President of Design and Corporate Communications at Donna Loren Intimates in New York City. Her designs were worn by Britney Spears and Posh Beckham, and featured in Vogue, People and other national publications. Upon moving to Los Angeles, Wilson worked as a Production Specialist at Liz Claiborne, Inc., and in Business & Legal Affairs at Warner Premiere, the direct to DVD division of Warner Bros.
Wilson graduated with high honors from Marymount University in Arlington, VA with a degree in Communications. Currently, Wilson is in her last year of law school at Southwestern Law School. Wilson plans on taking the bar in the summer of 2009. | |
 | Angie Conners Assistant, International Sales and Marketing |
| Angie Conners joined IM Global in January 2009. Before joining IM Global, Angie assisted international distributors in the acquisition of films at OneWorld Films. Angie served as Head of Sales for House of Knowledge and House of Horror after spending time in production. She graduated with highest honors from Montana State University in 2005 with a B.A. in Media and Theatre Arts. | |
