Astronauts Wanted, the digital-studio joint venture between Judy McGrath and Sony Music Entertainment, has hired film and digital development exec Kim Rosen and creative brand strategist Christine Murphy.
Rosen (above right) joins as VP of development overseeing development of original series and films, reporting to chief creative strategist Nick Shore. Murphy (above left) has been named senior VP of branded entertainment, and will dual-report to Shore and Amina Canter, Astronauts Wanted’s COO. Rosen and Murphy will be based in the company’s L.A. office.
“Both Kim and Christine bring expertise, savvy and passion to the culture of Astronauts Wanted,” said McGrath, former CEO of MTV Networks. “I look forward to the stories they will help us tell, across all the platforms young adults love.”
Rosen was previously VP of feature film and digital development for Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci’s Secret Hideout Productions (formerly K/O Paper Products), where she helped develop such titles as “Star Trek,” “Star Trek Into Darkness,” “Now You See Me,” “Transformers 2,” “Enders Game” and the “Monster Universe” franchise. Rosen is also credited with starting the production company’s digital division during her tenure at Secret Hideout.
Murphy was most recently senior VP of the Creative Lab at Studio 71 (formerly Collective Digital Studio), where she led the creation of integrated content campaigns and social strategies for major brands.
Astronauts Wanted’s productions include feature-length film “A Trip to Unicorn Island” with Lilly Singh, which debuted on YouTube Red; talk show “Tawk” with Awkwafina and extreme sports series “Hey USAx” with Marcus and Cody Johns for Verizon’s Go90; travel series “Hey USA” starring Grace Helbig and Mamrie Hart for Conde Nast’s The Scene; and the social-media reality series “@Summerbreak,” created with the Chernin Group and sponsored by AT&T. Earlier this month, Astronauts Wanted unveiled a slate of eight new series, including shows from YouTube creators Kian Lawley and Jc Caylen, Timothy DeLaGhetto and Kingsley.
