Nordic mini-major SF Studios has tapped Michael Porseryd as CEO for the vertically-integrated centenary company starting in 2017.
Porseryd will replace Frida Westerberg, who stepped in as CEO in June following the polemical exit of Jonas Fors amid accusations of sexism and bullying.
Westerberg will remain at SF Studios in her previous role of deputy CEO and COO for the company.
A Scandinavian media industry vet, Porseryd previously worked as Nordic CEO for the global production company Endemol where he spearheaded Nordic operations between 2010 and 2015. He also held top management positions at Metronome Film & Television and MTG.
“I’m extremely pleased and very excited to be entrusted with this opportunity, says Michael Porseryd. SF Studios has a fantastic legacy of producing and distributing content,” said Porseryd. “I strongly believe in their well-defined strategy where content continues to be core as well as their focus on investing in new distribution channels and production of films and TV series for even wider audiences.”
Ulrika Saxon, the representative of SF Studios’s board of directors, said Porseryd had a long, solid and well-documented experience in the industry, including production and the acquisition of film and TV rights.
“I’m convinced that he, together with the SF Studios team and partners in the Swedish and Nordic film community, has what it takes to continue to build and develop SF Studios into Europe’s most exciting film studio,” added Saxon.
SF Studios is involved in local and international production of films and TV series, rights acquisitions, Nordic co-productions, distribution in the Nordic and international markets as well as digital consumer services.
Since rebranding into SF Studios in the run up to Cannes, the company has aimed to ramp up its global scope with a flurry of ambitious, internationally-driven projects, including “Borg vs. McEnroe” starring Sverrir Gudnason, Shia LaBeouf and Stellan Skarsgård. The film, which headlines SF Studios’s slate, is expected to premiere in Sweden the fall.
SF Studios’s past slate includes the box office megahit “A Man Called Ove,” which has been selected to represent Sweden in the upcoming foreign-language Oscar race.
