All3Media’s Aurora appoints Sarah Stevenson as director of development

All3Media-owned Aurora Media Worldwide has hired experienced development lead Sarah Stevenson, former head of development and exec producer at Yeti Television, as director of development.

Sarah Stevenson

With more than 15 years’ experience in unscripted television, Stevenson will lead the development team at Aurora, reporting to chief content officer Dominique Cutts.

The move is part of a drive to expand the All3Media-backed production house beyond the live sports slate for which it is known.

Stevenson most recently won more than 100 hours of premium unscripted programming for Yeti Television, including two returning series and the company’s first streamer commission.

Before this, she was head of development at Emporium Productions, working on returning series including Inside the World’s Toughest Prisons for Netflix, Rich Holiday, Poor Holiday for Channel 5 and Donal MacIntyre’s Murder Files for CBS, as well as working in development teams for Raw TV, Betty, Mentorn Media and RDF Television.

Cutts said: “I am really pleased to welcome Sarah to the expanding non-live team at Aurora. In the current commissioning landscape, where the ability to source financing is becoming as significant as the ability to come up with incredible ideas, Sarah’s expertise really stands out.

“One of the most tenacious and ingenious development leads in the industry, her breadth of broadcaster and streamer relationships, extraordinary creative mind and a wealth of experience in brand and distributor financing make her the perfect person to drive forward Aurora’s unscripted slate.”

Stevenson will be attending next week’s Edinburgh TV Festival in her new role, introducing the company and its unscripted slate to the wider industry.