Discovery Studios Names Sean Atkins Vice President of West Coast Production and Development

(Silver Spring, Md.) Sean Atkins has been named Vice President, West Coast Production and Development, for Discovery Studios. Effective February 17, he will oversee West Coast operations for Discovery Studios from its Los Angeles office. Atkins will report to Carole Tomko, President of Discovery Studios.

In addition to managing day-to-day activities in Los Angeles, Atkins will supervise West Coast development and production of series, specials and content for Discovery Studios clients. He also will maintain relationships with the general Southern California production community and serve as a key liaison with Discovery Communications’ Los Angeles-based networks TLC, Planet Green and OWN: The Oprah Winfrey Network.

“Sean’s combination of creative skills and business experience make him the perfect West Coast lead for Discovery Studios. He will be a tremendous asset as we continue to grow our Los Angeles office and Discovery Studios’ overall West Coast footprint,” said Carole Tomko.

Atkins comes to Discovery from HBO, where he was Senior Vice President of Digital Media. While there, he served as the company’s senior digital media executive, developing a multi-platform digital programming strategy to boost various HBO platforms. Prior to HBO, Atkins was Head of Development and Programming for Yahoo!, Inc. In this role, he led programming and cross-functional operations for all the Yahoo! Entertainment properties. Earlier in his career, Atkins gained valuable industry experience at organizations including A. Smith and Co., Warner Bros., Vulcan Programming and Disney Channel.

Atkins received his MBA from the Marshall School at the University of Southern California. Prior to that, he received a BA in TV/Film Production and Marketing from California Lutheran University. Atkins resides in Los Angeles with his wife and two children.