Sky Studios has appointed Preethi Mavahalli to the newly created role of creative director, drama, reporting into chief content officer Jane Millichip. She will join in Jan. 22.
Mavahalli will have a remit to develop and produce a slate of original drama from Sky Studios in the U.K. Her team will include executive producers Kara Manley, Victoria Wharton, Serena Thompson and Beverly Brooker, and she will work alongside director of commissioning for drama, Gabriel Silver.
Mavahalli will join from indie Mammoth Screen, where she is currently director of drama. At Mammoth, Mavahalli developed and executive produced several hit series including “The Serpent,” “Noughts + Crosses,” and “The War of the Worlds.” Prior to joining Mammoth in 2011, she worked at Film4 and Film London.
Mavahalli said: “I have been watching Sky Original drama go from strength to strength in recent years, constantly raising the bar with ambitious and ground-breaking series. With the launch of Sky Studios, and its unrivalled ambitions and ability to partner with talent, the bar has been set even higher and I could not pass up the opportunity to lead in-house drama. I can’t wait to get started.”
“Preethi is an exceptional talent. Her instincts for identifying great ideas and developing them into world-class television is second to none,” Millichip added. “We couldn’t be more excited to have her lead the next phase of Sky Studios’ push into in-house drama development and production.”
Sky Studios is Comcast-owned pay TV operator Sky’s Europe-wide development, production and commissioning arm for Sky original comedy and drama. The outfit is developing a range of in-house projects across Europe, with production already underway on “The Rising” for Sky U.K. and “Blocco 181” for Sky Italia. Both series are set to air next year.