Paolo Ferrari Promoted to President and Managing Director, Warner Bros. Entertainment Italy

Paolo Ferrari, who has worked for Warner Bros. Entertainment for 17 years, has been promoted to President and Managing Director, Warner Bros. Entertainment Italy, it was announced today by Barry Meyer, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer; Alan Horn, President & Chief Operating Officer; and Richard Fox, Executive Vice President, International, Warner Bros.

In his new position, Ferrari’s responsibilities will be expanded to include general oversight of all of Warner Bros.’ businesses in Italy, including theatrical and home video production, marketing and distribution (both Studio and local-language films), television distribution, international cinemas, consumer products, online and emerging distribution technologies, with in-country divisional management now jointly reporting to him and respective regional and divisional presidents or designates. Ferrari will work closely with regional and local management teams to achieve company-specific and enterprise-wide business objectives. Ferrari’s overall reporting is through Fox to Meyer and Horn; he will also report to divisional presidents regarding their specific businesses. He will continue to be based in Rome, Italy. “Our international businesses are an important contributor of our overall bottom line and represent real growth opportunities for our company,” said Meyer. “We’ve found the company manager structure allows us to best harness and maximize our resources in key overseas territories, and we’re looking to Paolo help us fully realize our efforts in Italy.”

“In Paolo we have a great executive and a great choice to be our country manager in Italy,” said Horn. “Throughout his 17 years with the company, he has demonstrated a great combination and balance of creative and business skills, and we look forward to him utilizing these skills across all of our Italian business interests.”

“With almost five decades in the film business, Paolo has an excellent reputation, amazing resources and an incredible knowledge and understanding of our businesses in Italy,” said Fox. “I look forward to working with him and our in-country management teams to become an even more important part of the thriving, vibrant Italian entertainment industry, where we’re already an established player in the local film production arena.”

Prior to this promotion, Ferrari served as Managing Director, Italy, Warner Bros. Pictures International, having joined that company’s predecessor, Warner Bros. Italia in 1989 as Managing Director.

Ferrari has a career that spans almost five decades. Prior to joining Warner Bros. Italia, he worked at Columbia Tri-Star Films Italia for 11 years, lastly serving there as General Manager. Before that, he spent 17 years at MGM holding various titles, including Director of Sales and General Manager.

Ferrari is currently the president of ANICA (National Association of the Audiovisual and Multimedia Movie Industry) and president of the organizing committee of Turin International Sport Film Festival (CONI-AGIS). From 2003-2006, he served as president of Cinetel, a trade group responsible for reporting Italian box office results, and also served for several years as the president of Italy’s anti-piracy association FAPAV (Federazione Antipirateria Audiovisiva). In November 2006 he was appointed Grande Ufficiale by the President of the Italian Republic.