EXCLUSIVE: Growing British podcast studio Novel has made its next big play by signing Universal Studio Group Acquisitions exec Neil Krishnan to oversee a push into TV and film.
As Head of TV and Film, the studio said Krishnan will “bring the creative vision necessary to shepherd the company’s slate of audio projects into the Hollywood landscape.”
Novel, which calls itself “the largest independent podcast production company in Europe” and is behind the likes of The Superhero Complex, Bellingcat Podcast and Deliver Us From Ervil, has made a number of signature hires in recent months, broken by Deadline, including PRX and Radiotopia exec Julie Shapiro and The Daily Senior Audio Producer Austin Mitchell.
Krishnan joins from Universal Studio Group where he was Director of Creative Acquisitions out of LA, overseeing more than 200 talent deals during a two-year tenure. He was previously a Creative Executive at Erik Feig’s Picturestart, an independent multimedia studio that produces and finances stories rooted in self-discovery for all mediums, where he oversaw the likes of Jenny Jackson’s debut novel adaptation. Past employers include Netflix and Microsoft.
Novel CEO Sean Glynn said Krishnan will be “integral” to “the exploitation of our IP beyond podcasts, which is a key part of our future as we increasingly look to self-fund.”
Krishnan said he was “immediately blown away by Novel’s bold approach to story, incredible access to original journalism and unyielding ambitions.”
“I’m thrilled to utilize both my creative and business backgrounds as I help grow the already burgeoning Novel brand across the podcast, film and TV landscapes,” he added.
The 40-staff company recently signed a deal with UTA and launched around six years ago.
