Jamie Kershaw has been named vp of business and legal affairs at The Jim Henson Co. He will be responsible for the business and legal affairs of all U.S. film, TV and ancillary activities, and will report to Peter Schube, president and coo.
"Jamie's breadth of experience and ability to manage a wide range of complex matters at any given time make him a perfect addition to The Jim Henson Co.," said Schube. "I personally will rely heavily on his expertise as we continue growing our existing businesses and building new ones."
Kershaw most recently served as a business affairs and production attorney at DreamWorks SKG. While there, he worked on several movie projects, including THE TERMINAL, FATHER OF THE PRIDE and HOUSE OF SAND AND FOG, as well as working as corporate counsel on special projects. Earlier in his career, he served as vp of business and legal affairs at Fine Line Features and as an associate at the law firm of Lichter, Grossman, Nichols, Adler & Goodman Inc.
Kershaw is a former board member and co-president of the board for Outfest, the Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Film Festival. He received his Bachelor of Arts from Dartmouth College before studying at the University of Jordan under a Fulbright Scholarship, and then attending Stanford Law School.
The Jim Henson Co. (www.henson.com) an established leader in family entertainment for half a century, is recognized worldwide as a leader in puppetry, animatronics and computer graphics. Best known as creators of the world famous Muppets (the rights to which are now owned by The Walt Disney Co.), Henson is the recipient of nearly 50 Emmy Awards and nine Grammy Awards. Additionally, Jim Henson's Creature Shop has received two Academy Awards for the visual effects and animatronic builds for the 1996 smash BABE, and the invention of the Henson Performance Control System --a powerful, custom-built puppeteering mechanism. The company is currently in post-production on the preschool series FRANCES and the television feature MUPPETS' WIZARD OF OZ.
Bill Desowitz, former editor of VFXWorld, is currently the Crafts Editor of IndieWire.
