SILVER SPRING, Md., July 24, 2014 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- RLJ Entertainment Inc. (Nasdaq:RLJE), has hired Stuart Shaw as its new Managing Director of RLJE International. CEO of RLJE Miguel Penella made the announcement today. Stuart will be overseeing the international licensing and distribution business for RLJ Entertainment, a premier independent owner, developer, licensee and distributor of entertainment content and programming. Stuart will join the company on September 1st. Additionally, after nearly 20 years with the company, Lesley Fromant, Managing Director of RLJE Australia is retiring on January 15, 2015. At that time, Stuart will manage RLJE Australia and oversee all RLJE's distribution business outside of North America.
Most recently, Stuart was the Director of International Sales & Marketing for Miramax's London office. He managed their international home entertainment business and the distribution of their content to linear channels and digital platforms. Prior to that, he spent five years at Paramount Pictures as a Commercial Director and Retail Marketing Manager. Stuart has also worked at Universal Pictures, BBC Worldwide and Procter & Gamble. He graduated from the University of Reading (U.K.).
Stuart is replacing Paul Holland, who has been managing the U.K. office since 2006. After working in the media industry for 30 years, Paul is looking forward to taking some time off before deciding on his next venture.
Lesley Fromant has been with the company since 1997 with the release of their first British drama, Cadfael, on VHS to the myriad multi media the company now offers. Lesley founded both the Acorn Media U.K. division and Acorn Media Australia, now RLJE Australia.
Miguel Penella, CEO, RLJ Entertainment said, "Lesley and Paul have been instrumental in growing RLJ Entertainment internationally, and we are excited to have Stuart continue to build on their work. Stuart's expertise and relationships in the digital and international areas will be key in growing the RLJE International business. Stuart has an outstanding reputation as an experienced, driven, and energetic senior executive and is an ideal fit with our corporate culture."
Stuart will report to CEO Miguel Penella and will be based in RLJE International's London office. RLJE International shares the London office with sister division Acorn Productions, headed up by Hilary Strong.
ABOUT RLJ ENTERTAINMENT
RLJ Entertainment, Inc. (Nasdaq:RLJE) is a premier independent owner, developer, licensee and distributor of entertainment content and programming in primarily North America, the United Kingdom and Australia with over 5,300 exclusive titles. RLJE is a leader in numerous genres via its owned and distributed brands such as Acorn (British TV), Image (feature films, stand-up comedy), One Village (urban), Acacia (fitness), Athena (documentaries) and Madacy (gift sets). These titles are distributed in multiple formats including broadcast television (including satellite and cable), theatrical and non-theatrical, DVD, Blu-Ray, digital download and digital streaming.
Via its relationship with Agatha Christie Limited, a company that RLJE owns 64% of, RLJE manages the intellectual property and publishing rights to some of the greatest works of mystery fiction, including stories of the iconic sleuths Miss Marple and Poirot. RLJE also owns all rights to the hit UK mystery series Foyle's War.
RLJE leverages its management experience to acquire, distribute and monetize existing and original content for its many distribution channels, including its branded digital subscription channels, Acorn TV and Acacia TV, and engages distinct audiences with programming that appeals directly to their unique viewing interests. Through its proprietary e-commerce web sites and print catalogs for the Acorn and Acacia brands, RLJE has direct contacts and billing relationships with millions of consumers.