Former Overture chief Chris McGurk has been named chief executive officer and chairman of the board of directors of the Cinedigm Digital Cinema Corp, the company announced Monday.
He will take over his new position immediately.
The company, which does about $80 million in annual revenue, has contracts to convert some 6,000 screens to digital distribution. Its main competition is DCIP, the digital initiative owned by exhibitors Regal, AMC and Cinemark.
Cinedigm is owned by a private equity company, Sageview Capital, among others. Former AMC chief Peter Brown joined the board last fall, and became an investor.
In an exclusive interview with TheWrap, McGurk (pictured right with Gerald Butler) said that he felt Cinedigm was paving the way for much more versatile distribution in theaters.
"They’re turning multiplexes into networked programming venues. It’s a great thing for exhibitors, now there are fewer and fewer films being distributed by major and others," he said. "This is a way to fill up a lot of that space that is going to exist with fewer movies."
The digital hardware and software installed by Cinedigm permits theaters to program events like 3D concerts, or small independent films.
"The neat thing for me is that even though it’s a service business, I’ll also keep my hand in the content business," said McGurk, whose hopes for running an indie film company were dashed when Overture failed to take off. "I hope it’s a platform for independent cinema," he added.
McGurk left Overture abruptly last summer over rising tensions about parent company Starz's lack of financial support to release its slate of movies.
Following his exit from Overture, McGurk joined Carl Icahn's efforts to take over Lionsgate. In return for joining the billionaire investor's rebel slate of directors, McGurk was angling to take over the top slot at Blockbuster. Icahn is one of the bankrupt video rental chain's leading debt-holders.
McGurk also previously served as vice chairman of Metro Goldwyn Mayer.
Here's the full release:
The Board of Directors of Cinedigm Digital Cinema Corp. (NASDAQ: CIDM), the leader in the digital cinema industry, today announced that Chris McGurk has been named Chief Executive Officer, effectively immediately. Mr. McGurk was also elected Chairman of the Company's Board of Directors.
Mr. McGurk, 53, has had a long and successful career in the film and television industry. Mr. McGurk was the founder and CEO of Overture Films from 2006 until 2010 and was also CEO of Anchor Bay Entertainment, which distributed Overture Films' product to the home entertainment industry. From 1999 to 2005, McGurk was Vice Chairman of the Board and Chief Operating Officer of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. ("MGM"), acting as the company's lead operating executive until MGM was sold for approximately $5 billion to a consortium of investors. McGurk joined MGM from Universal Pictures, where he served in various executive capacities, including President and Chief Operating Officer, from 1996 to 1999.
