New appointment announced alongside additional sales executive promotions as Blue Ant International Expands Sales Team
(Toronto, ON – October, 11 2021) – Global distribution group, Blue Ant International, announced today the appointment of Maria Ibarra to the role of VP, International Sales. Ibarra will be responsible for overseeing pre-sales and content licensing across U.S. Hispanic, Latin America and Iberia. Based in Miami, Ibarra will report to Solange Attwood, EVP, Blue Ant International.
In addition to bringing Ibarra on board, Blue Ant International has also promoted Nick Solowski to Senior Director, International Sales and Acquisitions, overseeing pre-sales and licensing across Canada, Asia-Pacific and Ancillary Rights and Fleur Wheatley has been promoted to Director, International Sales and Acquisitions, overseeing Benelux, Scandinavia, the Middle East, Africa, Greece and Israel.
“Maria brings an impressive track record in international distribution, strategic partnerships and strong relationships which will be invaluable for growing our reach in those markets,” says Solange Attwood, EVP, Blue Ant International. “I’m also thrilled to announce promotions for both Nick Solowski and Fleur Wheatley as they continue to build robust relationships with key commissioners and buying executives in their respective regions”
“I’m thrilled to be joining such an accomplished, international team of peers,” says Maria Ibarra, VP, International Sales, Blue Ant International. “I’m looking forward to combining my knowledge and experience with the momentum and success Blue Ant has gained in our rapidly evolving media landscape.”
Ibarra brings two decades of experience in international television distribution, programming, production and business development in which she has become an expert in format licensing, co-productions and pre-buys in Latin America and Canada. During her tenure with Viacom International Media Networks, she held multiple roles within the company. Her last role at the company was Director of International Program Sales for Latin America and Canada, where she was responsible for multiplatform deals including SVOD, PayTV, FreeTV, co-productions, pre-buys and format sales throughout Latin America and Canada.
Ibarra started her career in production before becoming a distribution executive. She joined MTV Networks Latin America in 2006 as Unit Production Manager for production management and worked on live-to-tape shows such as Los Premios MTV, Ricky Martin Unplugged, as well as managing on air/off air promotional campaigns for MTV and Vh1, etc. Prior to that, she worked for multiple Production Companies in Mexico and USA.
Blue Ant International is a leading worldwide distributor of high-quality, creative content that engages audiences worldwide and across multiple platforms. The company offers a full-service approach to production partners with sales operations in London, Toronto and Los Angeles. Blue Ant International has a growing slate of over 4,000 hours of premium content, including distinctive series and formats in five key genres including factual entertainment, specialist factual, high-impact documentaries, kids and family, and scripted. Blue Ant International also has one of the world’s largest offerings of 4K natural history content. Blue Ant International is a division of Blue Ant Media.