Nelvana Bolsters Senior Management Team With New Appointment And Key Promotions

NELVANA BOLSTERS SENIOR MANAGEMENT TEAM WITH NEW APPOINTMENT AND KEY PROMOTIONS

TORONTO, Canada – Corus Entertainment’s Nelvana announced today management and structural changes to its core team, welcoming a new addition and promoting top talent to key positions under the leadership of Scott Dyer, President, Nelvana, and Pam Westman, Head of Nelvana Enterprises. The team is strongly positioned to continue to advance the company’s worldwide distribution, while adapting to the evolving kids market.

“Nelvana remains a global leader in children’s animation and this highly-qualified team is positioned to grow our business and remain a winning player in a competitive landscape,” said Scott Dyer, President, Nelvana. “The addition of Mellany Masterson as VP Sales, Consumer Products and International, along with other key internal promotions, enables Pam and me to focus on broader business development and future growth initiatives within Nelvana.”

Changes to the Nelvana team are as follows:

Mellany Masterson rejoins Nelvana as VP Sales, Consumer Products and International, reporting to Pam Westman. Masterson will manage Nelvana’s consumer products business globally, as well as content sales outside the Americas and Europe. She will manage these two verticals to ensure coordinated brand support across all assets. With more than 13 years of experience, Masterson was most recently Director, Business Development for Canadian toy company Imports Dragon. Prior to that, she was Director, Licensing for Broadband TV, having held that same role at Nelvana for five years prior.

Lily Yan becomes Head of Brands for Nelvana, also reporting to Pam Westman. With almost two decades of experience working at Nelvana, Yan will manage brands on a global basis, including content and distribution strategy and marketing. Yan will also manage brand partnerships with licensors and rights holders.

Madeline Ferguson is promoted to Senior International Sales Manager, reporting to Masterson. Ferguson will develop and execute strategies that will maximize content and consumer products sales in Asia, Australia, and the U.K. Combining Masterson’s and Ferguson’s experience in both licensing and distribution augments Nelvana’s presence in these important and emerging markets.

Jessica Brinder also steps up into the new role of Senior Content Distribution Manager, Domestic and Digital, managing sales of Nelvana’s content into the on-demand space (both AVOD and SVOD). Brinder’s strong relationships and knowledge of the market ensure best placement for Nelvana’s content in the global digital market. In this role, Brinder will report to Pam Westman, supporting her with North American content sales and Westman’s management of the U.S. broadcast relationships.

-30-

About Nelvana
Nelvana is Canada’s premier animation company and a world-leading producer and distributor of children’s content. Nelvana has delighted audiences around the globe for more than 40 years with a vast library of more than 4,000 episodes from original, award-winning series like Babar and Franklin. Nelvana’s content is distributed in more than 160 countries worldwide and broadcast across Corus Entertainment’s suite of leading kids networks. Nelvana Enterprises, the global licensing and merchandising arm of Nelvana, manages the organization’s portfolio of in-house and third party brands with offices in Toronto and Paris. Nelvana Studio, with offices in Toronto and Montreal, employs more than 300 Canadian artists working with local and international producers to create premium children’s content for a global stage.  For more information, visit www.nelvana.com.

For more information, please contact: 

Kelly French
ChizComm Ltd. on behalf of Nelvana
416.551.0822 x 346
kfrench@chizcomm.com

Laura Berkenblit
Nelvana
416.860.4225
laura.berkenblit@corusent.com