Original hires Stepp from Karga Seven

Fremantle-owned US prodco Original Productions has hired an experienced exec from Karga Seven Pictures as VP of development and expanded the role of company veteran Jeff Bumgarner.

Jeff Stepp

Jeff Stepp is joining the Deadliest Catch producer to develop original IP from inception to series launch. He will be charged with identifying characters, environments and narratives that lend themselves to furthering the company’s non-fiction programming, as well as partnerships that can expand its production slate.

Stepp will report to executive VP of programming and development Brian Lovett, who joined the company in August.

At Karga Seven, Stepp was director of development, overseeing series development with partners such as Animal Planet, Travel, Discovery and A&E. He also spent time as a network producer at Science Channel, where he oversaw shows such as Outrageous Acts of Science, Survivorman, How the Universe Works and NASA’s Unexplained Files.

Prior to that, Stepp served as an independent producer and writer and worked on shows such as Through the Wormhole with Morgan Freeman.

Jeff Bumgarner

In addition, Original Productions president Jeff Hasler, who took over the company earlier this year, has also expanded the role of Bumgarner, who will now serve as senior VP of programming and development.

Bumgarner has produced TV across numerous genres including gameshows, sketch comedy, reality and crime. He joined in Original in 2010 as a producer on 1000 Ways to Die for Spike TV.

Bumgarner has most recently been shepherding hit series such as Jay Leno’s Garage, which airs on CNBC and examines the late-night comedian’s passion for exotic vehicles.

He has also overseen long-running A&E series Storage Wars, which follows professional buyers on the hunt for hidden treasures.