Board of
Directors
Our Board of Directors is representative of the true global breadth of IFTA’s Membership and the diverse film and television programming they finance, produce, sell, and distribute.
The Chairperson and Board are nominated and elected by the voting members of the organization and serve two (2) year terms.
Chairperson
Paul Bales
COO & Partner, The Asylum
Since 2006, Paul Bales has been the Chief Operating Officer and Partner at The Asylum, a production and distribution company based in Burbank, California.
The Asylum finances, produces and releases 25 films per year through its direct pipeline to the nation’s top streamers and its network of international partners. Since its founding in 1997, The Asylum has released more than 500 films and built a library of over 300 original productions, including top-rated series’ for Syfy and Netflix, and the Sharknado franchise.
Prior to joining The Asylum, Paul served as National Director of SAGIndie, the Screen Actors Guild outreach program for independent producers.
Paul has been active with IFTA, having played a key role as an elected member of the Board of Directors throughout his career, most recently during the 2023–2025 term.
He is also a long-time member of the Producers Guild of America and the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.
Board of Directors
Myriad Pictures
Scott Bedno is Senior Vice President at Myriad Pictures. He has spent his entire 20+ year professional career in the domestic and international film and television space — from buyers’ rep, acquisitions executive, sales executive, producer, to all areas in-between. Scott’s wide range of experience will be needed as we navigate our challenges ahead.
Top priorities from Scott’s previous tenure on the IFTA board–the future of AFM and, relatedly, expanding IFTA’s revenue base beyond AFM. Scott looks forward to addressing these issues head-on to keep IFTA on a financially sound path where we can add services for our current membership and welcome new members to strengthen our alliance.
Arclight Films
Brian Beckmann serves as CFO/COO at Arclight Films, the leading international sales and production company for theatrical, television, and home entertainment media. Beckman’s prolific career includes over 30 years of experience as a CFO/COO, including 18 years at Arclight. He has worked in a variety of industries from film/entertainment, media/advertising, to advanced technology.
He is well versed in all aspects of film finance, distribution, tax incentives, and production operations. Beckmann has financed and produced over 25 successful and critically acclaimed films, with financing exceeding $300M. The films he has financed include First Reformed, Hotel Mumbai, Portable Door, Poker Face and Oh’ Canada.
Entertainment Squad / Studio Dome
Shaked Berenson is the CEO of Entertainment Squad, a distribution company and foreign sales agency. He also oversees Studio Dome, a streaming technology and content operations company, and serves on the Board of Advisors of INCANTOR AI—an AI platform built by creatives to combat copyright abuse and ensure transparent royalty tracking.
Over the past 15 years, Shaked has financed, produced, and distributed hundreds of films, including cult favorites like Slaxx, Turbo Kid and Big Ass Spider!. A former IFTA Board member and UCLA Anderson MBA, he brings deep expertise in global sales, digital rights management, and innovation across the entertainment supply chain.
Film Seekers Limited
After working in feature film production in Hollywood on movies starring Rob Schneider, David Carradine, Jennifer Morrison, Winona Ryder, Wes Bentley, Steve Buscemi, to name but only a few, Caroline chose to come back to Europe and relocate to London in 2008 as Director of Development & Marketing at Seven Arts Pictures. In 2011, she joined AV Pictures where she gained invaluable knowledge in deal structuring from the company’s founder, Vic Bateman.
In May 2014, she launched Metrodome International, the international sales arm of the Metrodome Group handling a wide range of feature films from third party producers to in-house productions. She then left Metrodome to launch her own company, Truffle Pictures, a London based international sales agency and production house, in 2016, and subsequently Film Seekers Ltd since February 2018. In 2021, she launched its European branch, Film Seekers France, a member of the European Film Promotion and Europa International, which handles European productions exclusively.
Caroline is a French native based in London who speaks fluent French, English and Spanish. She holds two post-graduate master degrees one in Chemistry from the University of Versailles and the second one in Business Management from the University of Bordeaux. She is a member of BAFTA , sits on the board of Film Export UK, and has served on IFTA’s Board of Directors.
Resurgence Media Group
Michael Dwyer, EVP of Worldwide Sales & Distribution at Resurgence Media Group, has over 20 years of specialized experience in packaging and monetizing film libraries. Prior to working at Resurgence Media Group, Michael launched the film library sales division at IM Global overseeing 300+ films across multiple film libraries.
Odin’s Eye Entertainment
With over 25 years of Film and Television experience, Michael Favelle is the founder and CEO of Sydney based Odin’s Eye Entertainment and sister company Odin’s Eye Animation which has been operating since 2006. With stints at Southern Star, Beyond International and Arclight films, Michael has amassed a depth and variety of skills in both live action and animation from development, through to financing, post/production, marketing, legal and international sales, and distribution giving him a unique insight into the industry.
Michael has Executive Produced over twenty five live-action and animated feature films, including Netflix’s Animal Crackers starring Emily Blunt and Ian McKellen; and the recent The Infernal Machine starring Guy Pearce and Alice Eve for Paramount Pictures.
Odin’s Eye Entertainment (OEE) is an integrated Production, Distribution and International Sales Agency that specializes in working with emerging and established filmmakers across a wide variety of genres. As a Sales Agency, OEE represents Feature Length Motion Pictures and Television content worldwide. Commencing in 2012, sister company Odin’s Eye Animation (OEA) creates and sources original and existing IP for developing and producing theatrical quality animation content for international sale. With strategic initiatives with a network of international content development and animation studios, OEA is uniquely placed to work with some of the best independent studios and talent worldwide including Academy Award Winning Producer Aron Warner; and Director Barry Cook: Mulan.
Odin’s Eye Entertainment and Animation are actively seeking original stories with unique, diverse, and compelling characters, and universal themes.
AGC (Accelerated Global Content)
French-born Diane Ferrandez is the Senior Vice President of Worldwide Sales & Distribution of AGC Studios. She most recently held a senior position at London-based sales and financing outfit Rocket Science where she participated in the company’s fast expansion from its inception in 2016. In addition to doing deals with studios, independent distributors, platforms, and broadcasters worldwide, she was instrumental in building the company’s broad slate.
The scripted and non-scripted feature films she handled international sales on include Aaron Sorkin’s Oscar nominated The Trial of the Chicago 7, Todd Haynes’ May December, Cronenberg’s Crimes of the Future, Michael Gracey’s Better Man, Eva Husson’s Mothering Sunday, Edward Berger’s modern take Erich Maria Remarque’s iconic anti-war bestseller All Quiet on the Western Front, and Netflix documentary Schumacher. Ferrandez started her career working for Paris-based sales company Wide Management, which followed stints at production and distribution companies Cohen Media, Playtime and SND.
Protagonist
George joined Protagonist in 2013, rising first to the role of Head of Sales before becoming Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) in 2021 as part of a wider company restructure. George oversees the Sales, Marketing & Publicity departments and is an integral part of the company’s work as an executive producer, structuring and securing finance for both in house and third party projects, as well as building key strategic partnerships within the industry.
George began his career producing and directing for a wide range of brands, as well as a number of narrative short films through his own boutique production outfit.
Artist View Entertainment
Established in 1991 by its President Scott J. Jones, Artist View Entertainment, Inc. is a distributor of feature films and TV programming, licensing its content through theatrical, home video, pay-per-view (PPV), Free TV, Cable TV and Pay TV and all forms of video-on-demand (VOD). Through the years Artist View has entered into license agreements across all forms of media with some of the largest independent distributors and studios in the world.
Now in its 34th year of operations, Artist View is a well-established, globally recognized independent distribution company known for the 250+ projects its represents in all genres and budget ranges. The company represents projects at all stages of the filmmaking process, at times as an Executive Producer, with the aim of helping Film and TV producers achieve the highest profitability for their projects.
Each year Artist View attends and exhibits their projects at Film Festivals, Film markets and Television conferences which include Berlin (EFM), MIP-TV, The Cannes Film Festival, Toronto (TIFF), MIPCOM and the American Film Market (AFM).
It has always been Artist View’s number one mission to find and build long-term relationships with its buyers and the producers they represent.
FilmNation Entertainment
Alice Laffillé is the Vice President, International Sales at FilmNation Entertainment, a leading independent entertainment company that produces, finances, and distributes award-winning films, television series, podcasts and theater productions. As part of the FilmNation Sales team, Laffillé focuses on curating the company’s sales slate and managing the sales process for a myriad of projects that expand across the company’s finance, production, and sales capabilities. Recent FilmNation productions include Sean Baker’s 2024 Cannes Film Festival Palme d’Or winner Anora and Edward Berger’s Conclave, starring Ralph Fiennes, Stanley Tucci, John Lithgow and Isabella Rossellini, both of which are Golden Globe Award-Nominated. Also in release at FilmNation is Pablo Larrain’s Golden Globe Award-Nominated Maria starring Angelina Jolie. Previous to joining FilmNation, Laffillé served as an international marketing assistant at Wildbunch.
STUDIOCANAL
Chloé Marquet is Head of International Sales for Films and TV Series at STUDIOCANAL, one of Europe’s leading studios, where she oversees global sales strategy across a slate of more than 80 titles annually, including projects under the company’s new genre label, SIXTH DIMENSION, as well as its prestigious catalogue of more than 9,400 titles. Chloé Marquet has been Head of International Film Sales since 2020. She joined STUDIOCANAL in 2013 as VP International Sales. She is a graduate of Sciences Po Paris (2012).
Chloé has served on IFTA’s Board of Directors since 2023.
Highland Film Froup
Delphine Perrier is the COO of Highland Film Group (HFG), an award-winning global studio with end-to-end capabilities, driving films from development to release. HFG operates as a producer, financier, distributor and sales agent, with an in-house team that oversees global productions and acquisitions. Launched in 2010 alongside Arianne Fraser, HFG delivers standout films across a wide range of genres and platforms, building a reputation for producing high-octane films in the action, thriller and horror space.
Perrier brings with her a significant amount of legal and international sales experience within the entertainment industry. Graduating with a law degree from the Sorbonne University Law School in Paris, she began her career in the entertainment industry as a contract administrator at Kushner & Locke where she managed an extensive library of over 200 films. Perrier was also one of the key players in the debut of Mandate Pictures, where she led the International Legal Affairs department and was responsible for collecting outstanding receivables for box office hits including The Grudge 1 and 2, Harold & Kumar Go To White Castle, Juno, Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium, Stranger Than Fiction, The Messengers, Boogeyman 1 & 2, and 30 Days of Night. Ambitious to complement her legal expertise in the industry, Perrier joined Odd Lot International as the Vice President of International Sales where she developed her relationships with Hollywood producers and promoted Odd Lot International’s Sales Agent Service. Her next move was to one of Hollywood’s major studios, Paramount, where she became the second in command of International Sales for the Studio’s specialty branch, Paramount Vantage. Her slate included films such as The Crazies, Shutter Island, Capitalism: A Love Story, Traitor, Last Chance Harvey, and Ondine.
In early 2010, Perrier partnered with Arianne Fraser to form Highland Film Group – their diversified production and sales slate includes William Eubank’s action thriller Land of Bad starring Russell Crowe, Liam Hemsworth and Luke Hemsworth released on 1,300 screens in February 2024 and surged to the #1 spot on Netflix in the US; Benjamin Brewer’s survival action-thriller Arcadian starring Nicolas Cage, official selection at SXSW; Adam Cooper’s crime thriller Sleeping Dogs starring Russell Crowe and Karen Gillan; and Adrian Grünberg’s shark actioner The Black Demon starring Josh Lucas which claimed the #1 spot on Amazon’s streaming rankings for seven consecutive days following its theatrical release in 2023. Upcoming releases include Joe Carnahan’s survival thriller Not Without Hope starring Zachary Levi and Josh Duhamel; the sci-fi thriller The Astronaut produced by Brad Fuller and starring Kate Mara and Laurence Fishburne, world premiere at SXSW; Chuck Russell’s horror thriller Witchboard starring Jamie Campbell Bower; and Allan Ungar’s action comedy London Calling starring Josh Duhamel and Jeremy Ray Taylor.
Delphine has a law degree from the Sorbonne University Law School in Paris.
Vision Films, Inc.
Lise Romanoff has been in the distribution business for nearly 30 years. Under Lise’s leadership, today, Vision Films is a worldwide Distribution company and a direct VOD Aggregator with a library of over 800 independent feature films and documentaries. The company has deep relationships across all of the premium Cable VOD services and Digital Streaming Platforms around the world and releases 2-4 New Release titles each month, for which it manages all windows.
Lise is a long-time IFTA member who has served on its Executive Committee. She is currently active on the Legal Committee and is especially helpful on the definitions of TVOD, SVOD, AVOD/FAST, Content ID, etc. in this fast-pasted changing landscape.
Gleneagles Films
Michael Ryan started his career working in the TV industry for Sir Lew Grade’s UK company, ITC. In 1978 he formed J&M Entertainment with a colleague, a distribution sales agent for independent films. As J&M grew, it developed its business model to also take responsibility for financing new films & providing production finance.
In 1980 Ryan and J&M were founder members of the American Film Marketing Association (AFMA) – later to be renamed Independent Film & Television Alliance (IFTA) – which was formed to provide an annual film market based in Los Angeles. Michael served two terms as Chairman of IFTA (2004-2008) and another three terms from 2015-2021.
In 2000, Ryan partnered with Guy Collins. Between them they have financed, sold and produced over 200 films, including The Wild Geese, The English Patient, The General, Whats Eating Gilbert Grape, The Osterman Weekend, the Highlander series, Planet 51 and more recently, at GFM Films with Fred Hedman, Toei Animations Harlock, Absolutely Anything starring Simon Pegg and Simon West-directed action thriller Stratton starring Dominic Cooper. In 2022, GFM’s Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank, an independently financed and produced animated feature is based on Mel Brooks iconic Blazing Saddles that launched as a project at AFM in 2014, was released across 4,500 U.S. screens by Paramount.
Today, Ryan serves as Director of his newly launched company, Gleneagles Films.