German children's production company EM.TV & Merchandising AG has named Rolf Rickmeyer chief financial officer. This move comes in light of deputy chairman Florian Haffa's stepping down from the position. EM.TV's stock has lost more than two-thirds of its value since an accounting error in the acquisition of the Jim Henson Co. and Formula One cut earnings for the first quarter. Previously, Rickmeyer served as CFO for Lahmeyer AG, a German utility and machinery company.

Toronto-based TOPIX/Mad Dog, a computer graphics and animation facility, has signed New York-based Richard Fink and The Richard Fink Agency to head East Coast sales. Specialists in character animation, special effects, film titling, type and broadcast design, TOPIX creates photo-realistic, computer-generated animation for the advertising, feature film, broadcast and music video industries. At the same time TOPIX's post-production arm, Mad Dog, is one of Canada's leaders in the high-end post industry, using inferno* and flame*.

ATTIK, an all-media creative solutions company, has named Ian J. Cohen director of client services. In his new post, Cohen will oversee the management and development of current and potential clients. Cohen comes to ATTIK from New York-based Artustry Partnership, which he helped launch with commercial director Bob Giraldi and managing partner David Sklaver.

As part of DIC Entertainment's plan to restructure is international arm, the company has appointed Patricia Ryan as executive vice president of international sales and Dan White as vice president of international sales. Ryan will handle Western Europe and Canadian broadcast and video sales, head up property acquisitions and help oversee international co-productions. Waite will handle sales for Latin America, Asia and Eastern Europe. Previously, Ryan headed DIC's international sales as vice president before the 1996 acquisition by Disney.

Editor Renny Maslow has joined New York-based Editing Concepts, following a two-year stint with New York City's Northern Lights Post. He has worked on a spot for Hellman's Mayonnaise, directed by Bob Giraldi, and spots for Knorr Forkfulls and Fat Cat Ale, which he directed. Maslow has also cut music videos for Lisa Loeb and Rufas Wainwright and two independent feature films, ENDSVILLE and THE COURT. "I wanted to be more involved with narrative work," said Maslow. "I really love the vibe here. Nelson (Leonard) and Owen (Plotkin) are great editors and strong mentors.

Spontaneous Combustion, a New York digital studio specializing in the creation of visual effects and design, has named Roe Bressan managing director. In her new role, Bressan will be part of the management team, which includes executive creative director Tony Robins and general manager Marc Schwartz. Bressan will be responsible for the company's continued growth, accessing new outside talent and further coordinating the internal workings of the firm.

Disney vice chairman Sanford "Sandy" Litvack has decided to leave the company at year’s end. The move has been long rumored since the very public fight in court between Disney and former Disney executive and now DreamWorks co-founder Jeffrey Katzenberg. Apparently, the feud weighed a great deal on Litvack. Disney chairman Michael Eisner said, "I regret Sandy’s decision, but I accept it and respect his desire to pursue new ventures." Litvack did not announce any specific new business plans.

Honkworm International has signed entertainment industry veteran Carah von Funk as senior vice president, corporate development. In her new post, von Funk will oversee the development of strategic business and creative alliances. She will be based out of Honkworm's New York office. Prior to joining Honkworm, von Funk served as vice president, business development for Razorfish Studios, an award-winning multimedia solutions company.

Curt Roth has been named CEO and chairman of ExtraTainment.com, a content creator focusing on short cartoons for the Internet, WAP and third generation mobile phones. Before joining ExtraTainment.com, Curt Roth was founder and president of GSM Information Network (GIN), a service provider supplying information services to over 14 digital mobile phone operators worldwide. Hubert Roth, founder and COO of ExtraTainment.com, said, "I am confident that this company will become a stunning success and has all the ingredients available to become a world player within a short time."

German children’s content producer EM.TV’s Florian Haffa has stepped down from his position as chief financial officer. Haffa will remain with the company as deputy chairman to help his brother and founder Thomas Haffa run the day-to-day operations. Currently, EM.TV is seeking out Haffa’s replacement. Even though the move was planned in advance, it comes after the company announced Monday that it was adjusting its figures for the first six months of the year to fix an accounting error in their acquisition of the Jim Henson Company and Formula 1 Racing.