David Kaminow, the marketing chief at the Annapurna-MGM joint venture recently rebranded as United Artists Releasing, has stepped down from his post.
The executive sent a memo notifying colleagues of his decision on Friday, staff including distribution chief Erik Lomis and communications head Adriene Bowles, individuals familiar with his exit told Variety. Kaminow was beloved in workplace, prompting tears in the office when he delivered the news. Kaminow said that as a single father to two young girls, the recent loss of his own mother prompted him to take time with his family.
UAR was unveiled in February, with added support from the distribution team of Orion Pictures (another MGM holding), led by Kevin Wilson under Annapurna’s Megan Ellison and MGM’s chief operating officer Chris Brearton. Former Screen Gems executive Pam Kunath serves as chief operating officer. The venture’s marquee property is the upcoming “Bond 25,” starring Daniel Craig and directed by Cary Fukunaga.
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Kaminow was named worldwide marketing head at Sony Pictures in 2009, and worked on titles including the Spider-Man franchise, “Skyfall,” “21 Jump Street” and its sequel, “The Da Vinci Code,” “American Hustle,” “Zero Dark Thirty” and “The Social Network.”
Read Kaminow’s full memo to UAR, obtained by Variety:
To my beloved UAR Colleagues,
As many of you know, these past couple of months have been very challenging for me on a personal level with the loss of my mother.
As a single dad to two extraordinary little girls, I have had to put on a brave face and charge forward. However, I have come to realize that I haven’t given myself the proper time to grieve and for that I am paying a personal price.
After much consideration, I have made one of the hardest decisions ever, and that is to step down from my post. Everyone always tells you that life is too short, and while the recent realization of this has been heartbreaking, I see the value more than ever in taking the time to be with my family.
Working with each and every one of you over these past four years has been one of the greatest privileges of my career. I cannot express my gratitude enough, especially to those who followed me here to start this adventure. You are all the brightest and the best this crazy business has to offer and you all carry yourselves with grace, dignity and class.
And while I wish I could stay on and see through some of the upcoming titles with you, I know in my heart that you will all thrive under new leadership and continue to show everyone just how awesome you can be.
This business has a funny way of bringing people together that are meant to be together so I know our paths will cross again.
With love and respect,
David
aka Mollie and Charlotte’s Dad