Nicely does it for NENT alum Kirkpatrick

Nicely Entertainment’s romantic movie 10 Steps to Love

Nicely Entertainment, the LA-based producer and distributor launched by Vanessa Shapiro last year, has brought in former NENT Studios UK exec Scott Kirkpatrick.

Kirkpatrick has been appointed executive VP of distribution and coproductions at the firm, set up by former Gaumont exec Shapiro in May 2020.

Kirkpatrick joins Nicely following his departure from NENT Studios UK (formerly DRG), the London-based development and distribution company whose slate includes BBC/ABC drama The Cry, Channel 4’s Shameless and ITV’s Doc Martin.

Scott Kirkpatrick

At NENT he was senior VP for North American sales, coproduction and global digital strategy. His appointment at Nicely Entertainment is a reunion for Shapiro and Kirkpatrick, after the pair worked together at MarVista Entertainment where Kirkpatrick was exec director of distribution.

Prior to that Kirkpatrick worked at ICAP Media as VP, sales and media brokerage and Bennet Media Worldwide as director of international sales.

The news comes ahead of the digital version of MipTV where the company is presenting four original titles, comprising two holiday movies and two romances.

Christmas in Crumbs, starring Rekha Sharma and Dion Johnstone (Sweet Magnolias), sees a baker match wits with a marketing executive sent to save her family’s struggling fruitcake company. In Wedding Cake Dreams, with Donna Benedicto (Supergirl, Almost Human) and Markian Tarasiuk (Supernatural), a cake designer goes to her sister’s wedding and discovers that the man of her dreams is the best man. Both movies are coproduced with BRB Studios.

Also being launched are A Christmas Wish in Hudson, starring Alex Rinehart (Art of the Dead), in which an unlucky-in-love designer finds her love match in a widowed firefighter; and the romance movie 10 Steps to Love, starring Ella Cannon (Legends, iZombie) and Britton Web (NCIS: New Orleans, Queen Sugar). Both films are coproduced with Sappy Films.

Shapiro said: “We’re very proud that amidst this Covid pandemic we will be releasing a total of 12 new movies this year, with four of them showcased to buyers at MipTV. We applaud all of our talent and content creators for all of their hard work in adapting to this new normal.”

Kirkpatrick added: “Vanessa is an extraordinary businesswoman and has an incredible pulse on the industry. I’m very much looking forward to seeing Nicely continue its strong growth curve and cannot wait to dive into brokering deals on her new slate of films and television coproductions.”