Warner Bros. International Television Production (WBITVP) has tapped All3Media’s Ben Pays to be its managing director in Belgium, Variety has learned.
Pays, who joins the company on Oct. 7, will work alongside Peter Bouckaert, MD of Eyeworks Belgium, WBITVP’s scripted label in the region and report to WBITVP president Ronald Goes.
In his new role, Pays will have responsibility for general management and commercial and operational leadership of the company’s non-scripted entertainment slate and authentic fiction business as well as working on new ideas and adapting existing IP from the WBITVP catalogue to cater to the Belgian market.
The respected European exec joins from All3Media Belgium where he was a key creative and showrunner. He previously worked at Lecter Media as creative director and head of development, earning a Rose d’Or nomination for celebrity reality format “Groeten uit…” (“Greetings from…”). The original concept went on to be produced in six territories.
He has also worked for TvBastards, creating multiple formats, and has also worked on adapting international formats from “Love Island” to “Big Brother” for the Belgian market,
“We are excited to welcome Ben to WBITVP Belgium and to the global WBITVP family,” said Goes. “His passion for creating great ideas and powerful storytelling, coupled with his impressive track record as a showrunner, team player and respected international industry executive, will make him a hugely valuable addition to the evolving WBITVP business.”
Pays said: “WBITVP Belgium is a creative powerhouse with an impressive and diverse slate of very good shows and a beautiful, long history. I look forward to joining its talented team and making it even stronger. I also believe in the power of WBITVP’s international catalogue and distribution network, which offer unique opportunities for creative exchange that can benefit both Belgium and the rest of the world.”
