Miramax Films Taps Keri Putnam As Head of Production

Miramax Films Taps Keri Putnam As Head of Production

NEW YORK, March 8 /PRNewswire/ -- Keri Putnam has been named president of production for Miramax Films, by company president Daniel Battsek. Putnam will oversee the day-to-day development and production of the studio's annual slate of films. She is based in Los Angeles and will report directly to Battsek.

Putnam comes to Miramax Films from Home Box Office, where she was executive vice president responsible for overseeing the development and production of HBO Films for the cable network and for theatrical release. She is credited for some of HBO's most acclaimed projects. In 2005, the slate she oversaw was nominated for a record 51 Emmy(R) Awards. Among the winners are the Best Made for Television Movie Warm Springs, directed by Joseph Sargent and featuring Kenneth Branagh; The Life and Death of Peter Sellers, directed by Stephen Hopkins and starring Geoffrey Rush; Lackawanna Blues, featuring the directorial debut of acclaimed stage director George Wolfe; and the miniseries Empire Falls, directed by Fred Schepisi and produced by and co-starring Paul Newman. Her first entry into the theatrical marketplace was Gus Van Sant's Elephant, winner of the 2003 Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival.

"Keri's extraordinary wealth of experience, as well as her strong talent relationships and reputation in the entertainment industry make her the perfect person to lead the talented production and acquisition teams for Miramax," said Daniel Battsek. "I am absolutely delighted that she is joining us at such an exciting time at the company."

"I am thrilled to be joining Daniel and his team," said Keri Putnam. "It's such a vibrant time for the specialty film business, and for Miramax in particular, and I look forward to the challenge and excitement of putting together a diverse slate of films."

Originally based in New York, Putnam moved to Los Angeles in 2000 to oversee HBO Films productions, where the slate of films has garnered nominations for 197 Emmys(R) and 37 Golden Globes. Among the films are the 2004 Emmy(R)-winner for best film Something the Lord Made, directed by Joe Sargent and starring Alan Rickman and Mos Def; The Girl in the Cafe, written by Richard Curtis and directed by David Yates; Hysterical Blindness, directed by Mira Nair and starring Uma Thurman; Jane Anderson's Normal, starring Jessica Lange and Tom Wilkinson; Moises Kaufman's film debut The Laramie Project, produced with Good Machine; Billy Crystal's 61*; Cheaters, written and directed by John Stockwell; Sometimes in April, written and directed by Raoul Peck; And Starring Pancho Villa as Himself, written by Larry Gelbart and directed by Bruce Beresford; and Iron Jawed Angels, written by Sally Robinson and directed by Katja von Garnier.

Putnam began her career as an assistant at HBO, but left the company for two years to live in Washington, D.C., where she worked in the literary department of the Arena Stage and as director of development for Devillier Donegan Enterprises. She returned to HBO in 1992 as director of development for HBO Showcase, the New York drama division of HBO programming that later became HBO NYC. Putnam was promoted to vice president, HBO NYC Productions in 1995, at the inception of the newly-named film division. Under the HBO NYC banner, she was responsible for some of the division's most successful projects, including HBO's highest-rated original movie If These Walls Could Talk, Christopher Reeve's directorial debut In the Gloaming and Subway Stories, executive produced by Jonathan Demme and Rosie Perez. In 1999, Putnam was named senior vice president, HBO Films, and shortly thereafter moved to Los Angeles.

She is a graduate of Harvard University and lives in Los Angeles with her husband and two children. Putnam is the recipient of the 2005 Excellence in Media Award from Women in Film for her work at HBO.

Source: Miramax Films

CONTACT: Emily Bear of Miramax Films, +1-212-219-4100

Web site: http://www.miramax.com/

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