Singapore – Global mass media and entertainment giant, WarnerMedia, has appointed three new senior content hires in Asia, in an aim to scale up its original productions teams in advance of the launch of HBO Max in the region.
For the Singapore team, Mark Francis, former head of content for OTT at TV and radio operator Astro, will be WarnerMedia’s new group lead of production and development, both scripted and unscripted. He will lead a regional team to develop Asian original productions under the ‘Max Originals’ banner.
Meanwhile, Shi Ming Wee, former assistant vice president of regional content and productions at streaming media platform Viu, has been named the new head of entertainment content acquisition for North Asia content. She will now be working alongside Katheryn Lim, who leads content acquisition for international and English-language entertainment titles. They will both report to Magdalene Ew, WarnerMedia’s head of content – entertainment for SEA, Taiwan, and Hong Kong.
For Mumbai, Saugata Mukherjee, former head of content for SONY LIV at Sony Pictures Networks India, will be joining WarnerMedia as the new head of content – entertainment for India. He will now be responsible for commissioning local originals, as well as acquiring and developing Indian content across all general entertainment genres. The newly-created role, like Ew, reports to Clement Schwebig, WarnerMedia’s managing director for India, SEA, and Korea.
Schwebig believes that these roles are vital as WarnerMedia looks to ramp up its original content and programming ambitions in the Asia region.
“Saugata, Mark and Shi Ming have a great eye for a winning project and have enviable connections within the industry. With them all now in place over the past few months, we’re looking in great shape to entertain local audiences with a well-rounded and premium slate,” said Schwebig.
