France TV’s Laas lands at Gaumont

Paris- and LA-based producer and distributor Gaumont has appointed a France Télévisions Distribution exec to works across its EMEA and North American sales activity.

Laura Laas

Laura Laas has been named VP of international TV sales for animation, reporting to the company’s president of worldwide TV distribution and coproduction, Vanessa Shapiro.

Laas will be responsible for selling Gaumont’s animated TV series within the EMEA territories and North America, as well as developing partnerships for worldwide coproductions.

She will also work closely with Gaumont’s animation team, led by division president Nicolas Atlan.

Laas was most recently international sales manager at France Télévisions Distribution, creating and overseeing global distribution strategies for animation content. Prior to that, she worked for Toei Animation Europe and Warner Bros Entertainment.

Gaumont’s slate includes animation trio Belle & Sebastian (52×11′), which is being coproduced with Canada’s Groupe PVP; Furry Wheels (52×11′), for France Télévisions and Disney XD; and Trulli Tales (52×11’), which will air on Disney Junior EMEA, RAI, Radio Canada and Globosat.

Shapiro said the slate of projects, plus additional shows set to be revealed later this year, meant Laas’s “extensive industry background and expertise” would be “of paramount importance as we roll out these completed series and finalise coproduction partnerships for our new development slate.”

Narcos producer Gaumont drafted in former MarVista Entertainment exec Shapiro earlier this year to bolster its sales activity. The company also appointed EO Distribution to oversee distribution of its scripted drama and animated programming in Latin America.