Jan Frouman will exit Red Arrow Studios early next year and step down from the board of its parent company, the German media giant and broadcaster ProSiebenSat.1.
Frouman (pictured) will depart production and distribution group Red Arrow at end-Feb. 2019 when his current contract expires. At that point James Baker will move up from COO to take the helm. He will report directly to Max Conze, CEO of ProSiebenSat.1.
“My time with ProSiebenSat.1 was a defining life experience,” Frouman said. “I have worked with talented colleagues around the world. My decision to leave wasn’t made lightly. But I’m simply ready for a new chapter.”
Conze paid tribute to Frouman: “Red Arrow Studios is an important part of ProSiebenSat.1, and I would like to thank Jan for successfully building and leading the group from the start. I’m also very pleased that we’ve been able to promote James Baker to lead the company going forward,” he said.
Following the management rejig, Bo Stehmeier, president of Red Arrow Studios International as of January 2019, will report to Baker and oversee TV distributor Red Arrow Studios International and U.S. independent film distributor Gravitas Ventures. Reza Izad, CEO of Studio71, will continue to lead the global multi-platform company and report directly to Conze.
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The company will form a new committee to ensure cooperation across the group with Baker, Izard and other Red Arrow and ProSiebenSat.1 executives Wolfgang Link, Henrik Pabst, Michael Schmidt, Raimo Reese, and Martin Metzger.
Frouman’s next move is not yet known. He was instrumental in building the Red Arrow business over 15 years and oversaw the acquisition of numerous production businesses in the group including CPL and Endor and Fabrik and Left/Right in the U.S.
“He has built Red Arrow from scratch into a leading independent production group, and always advanced the company’s content production footprint with passion and dedication,” said Werner Brandt, supervisory board chairman of ProSiebenSat.1 Media SE. “We all wish him the best of luck in his new endeavors.”