Warren Clarke has been appointed head of scripted at BBC Studios ANZ as the company restructures the production arm of its business and plans a major push into premium scripted.
Clarke, formerly head of scripted development at Fremantle Australia, will be charged with delivering content with local and global appeal, including original series as well as Australian versions of BBC Studios scripted formats.
The restructure will also see Deb Spinocchia, previously head of development and content, become head of unscripted. Joining her in the team will will be new hire Arianna Gusi as head of production and unscripted, whose role will be to oversee the planning and execution of the unscripted slate.
BBC Studios ANZ general manager and creative director, production, Kylie Washington said it was an exciting time for the business, noting its big ambitions in scripted. The company also has a number of unscripted series in production, including a new season of The Great Australian Bake Off for Foxtel, game show The 1% Club for Seven and obs-doc The Matchmakers for SBS.
“There is a real appetite globally for Australian produced drama. Warren’s local creative expertise, coupled with BBC Studios’ brilliant drama catalogue, international contacts and proven ability to fund content, mean we are in a great position to capitalise on that,” she said in a statement.
“Our unscripted business continues to go from strength to strength and, with a bunch of shows currently in production and several others in late development stages, it is the right time to bolster our team in that area, with a new role for Deb and the appointment of Arianna to the new post of head of production unscripted. We have been growing rapidly since kicking off the production business four years ago.”
It is expected that BBC Studios ANZ will make several scripted announcements later this year.
During his time at Fremantle, Clarke was executive producer on projects such as Netflix’s Wellmania and Nickelodeon/10’s Rock Island Mysteries. Prior to, he was an a development executive at Matchbox Pictures, with credits including Secret City, Wanted and Safe Harbour. Clarke was also showrunner and co-creator of ABC serial The Heights.
Clarke said he was thrilled to join the company, noting its reputation in drama.
“From developing premium, original shows like Time, Luther and Silent Witness to those that draw on their rich catalogue of scripted formats, with titles like Ghosts, The Office and Doctor Foster reformatted around the world, BBC Studios is synonymous with quality,” he said.
“Australia has a vibrant creative community and I look forward to working with the best of Australia’s scripted talent in this new role.”
Gusi joins from Endemol Shine Australia where she was a production executive, overseeing the management of The Voice, Masterchef, The Bachelor and Lego Masters. She has also worked at Zapruders and Fredbird.