FremantleMedia has appointed German film producer Nico Hofmann (pictured above left, with “Physician” director Philipp Stolzl) as co-CEO of UFA Group, the company’s German production arm. Hofmann will form a new joint leadership team for UFA with current CEO Wolf Bauer, with Hofmann set to take over as sole CEO in September 2017. The pair will both serve on the FremantleMedia Operating Board.
Hofmann and Bauer will share overall management responsibilities with dedicated responsibilities for certain operations and units. They will have joint responsibility for the holding company and will both play a key role within the FremantleMedia global network, working closely with the global production, licensing and sales operations.
“After 25 years of leading UFA to its outstanding market position, Wolf proposed to me a succession plan which made sense for both Wolf and the business and I happily accepted,” said FremantleMedia CEO, Cecile Frot-Coutaz. “Nico is one of Europe’s most successful and respected drama producers with fantastic leadership skills and strong relationships in the German market. He is perfectly placed to take up this position, working with Wolf, to lead UFA into a new era.”
Hofmann’s recent productions include “The Physician,” starring Ben Kingsley, Tom Payne and Stellan Skarsgard, which grossed $42.9 million (€31.4 million) in Germany, and television series “Deutschland 83,” the the first German-language drama to air on a major U.S. Network.
