Eli Shibley has joined IM Global Television as President of International Distribution and Co-Productions, the company’s founders Stuart Ford and Mark Stern announced Monday.
Shibley will oversee acquisitions of third-party scripted and unscripted projects from the U.S. and the U.K., as well as encouraging strategic partnerships between content creators and key buyers.
Upcoming projects from IM Global Television include Kurt Vonnegut‘s “Cat’s Cradle,” an adaptation of Marion Zimmer Bradley’s book series “Darkover” and “Den of Thieves,” a noir-ish crime drama starring Carla Gugino (“Wayward Pines”), written by Sebastian Gutierrez (“Gothika”) and executive-produced by Trigger Street’s Dana Brunetti and Kevin Spacey. “Patrolman P,” which Antoine Fuqua (“The Equalizer,” “Olympus Has Fallen”) will executive-produce along with Tom Hanks’ Playtone Productions, is another project in the works.
“Eli is an outstanding distribution executive and his arrival is a major coup for our TV distribution business,” said Ford. “I envision scripted and unscripted TV sales becoming a substantial component of our already extensive global licensing platform in the next few years.”
Before IM Global Television, Shibley served as the Senior Vice President of International Media and Formats at Electus, and was in charge of sourcing international formats from the U.S. market, including CW’s “Jane The Virgin” with RCTV and Aquarius Television.
IM Global is an international film sales and distribution platform founded in 2007 by Stuart Ford. In 2010, Reliance Entertainment, part of Indian conglomerate Reliance ADA Group, acquired a major share in the company. IM Global Television was launched in 2014 to develop, produce, finance and distribute scripted content, led by former Syfy Channel President of Original Content Mark Stern.
Shibley’s deal was negotiated on behalf of IM Global by Chris Bosco, COO, and on behalf of Shibley by Chad Christopher of Stone, Meyer, Genow, Smelkinson & Binder, LLP.