Studiocanal Names Anna Marsh Its CEO

New Zealander Anna Marsh, the newly appointed CEO of leading European film and TV group Studiocanal, comes off as self-contained and mild-mannered, but her bullish track record at the company and relationships with big-name producers such as David Heyman (Once Upon a Time in Hollywood) and Andrew Rona (Non-Stop) suggests she has an iron fist in that velvet glove, according to Variety international correspondent, Elsa Keslassy.

A 12-year Studiocanal veteran, Marsh – who replaced Didier Lupfer as chief executive – knows the company inside out. She started managing international sales in her early 30s, then became executive VP of distribution and, later, managing director of the banner’s UK subsidiary. At 40, the sophisticated New Zealand-born, France-educated Marsh now ranks as one of Europe’s most powerful executives in the industry, and one of the continent’s few women in a top leadership position in entertainment, Keslassy writes.

Marsh has succeeded in “striking distribution deals and built relationships with creative talent and with every platform and every studio”, notes Maxime Saada, managing director of the Canal Plus Group, Studiocanal’s parent company. “She has a different background than the usual executives running studios in France, but it’s more appropriate for the future – she has a 360-degree perspective on everything we do.”

Marsh, an Otago University graduate, allows that a key asset has been her understanding of languages and the subtleties among different cultures. “My Anglo-Saxon background helps me understand people – notably, different negotiation styles – while my knowledge of French cinema and culture has been vital as well.”

Original article by Elsa Keslassy, Variety, February 13, 2020.

Photo by Philippe Mazzoni.