Now Lionsgate Adds More Marketing Help

Lionsgate Hiring Help On Distribution Side Lionsgate is now taking the second stepof Hollywood rehab: not just recognizing it has a problem but hiring even moreexecutivesto fix it.The studio has brought in marketing guru Terry Press just a day afteradding former Disney exec Chris LeRoy as an in-house consultant on the distribution side.Press is reporting to Lionsgate President of Marketing exec Tim Palen. I said it before but it’s worth repeating: 2011 has been a disaster for Lionsgate which must get ready for 2012 when potential blockbusters like The Hunger Games debut. But as good as Press and LeRoy are, they cant make miracles if the product stinks. I truly hope the good buzz surrounding Hunger Games from the bestselling book trilogy bears fruit for itsplanned film franchise. Press, of course, worked forWalt Disney Studios and then DreamWorksbefore going out on her own. She’s a consultant to down-but-not-out CBS Films which is changing its business model. And she was working closelywith Scott Rudin as an adviser.Emphasis on the word ‘was’. Rudin has a long and unfortunate history of bad behavior to those close to him:he wassomiserableto Press during the tail-end of the Oscar marketing campaign for The Social Network and the beginning of the one for this year’sThe Girl With The Dragon Tattoo that they’verecently andquietly parted company, according to my Sony sources. So, from my view, evenworking for Lionsgate right now is better than working for Rudin.