African Entertainment Heavyweight Jan Du Plessis To Launch Primedia Studios
13.04.2023 - 08:25
/ deadline.com
EXCLUSIVE: African entertainment heavyweight Jan du Plessis is back in business.
The high-profile exec has been named President of Primedia Studios soon after leaving South African pay-TV network M-Net to retire after nearly 30 years.
Primedia Studios will be part of African content giant Primedia and is positioning itself as a leading South African production and distribution operator and “the preferred partner to both the local and international audiovisual industry.”
Du Plessis will oversee strategy around licensing, creation, development, localisation and distribution of entertainment shows and content. He’ll also lead a “robust succession strategy” to ensure a generation of Black executives rise to management positions at Primedia.
Joining him at the venture are Lindile Xoko, Chief Revenue Officer and CEO of Primedia Broadcasting, and Victoria Ramabulana, showrunner and project manager. Du Plessis will report directly to Jonathan Procter, Primedia Group CEO.
The move comes as something of a surprise as Du Plessis had retired from M-Net, where he oversaw both the creative and commercial aspects of the business, running networks and services across Sub-Saharan Africa. He is also known for commissioning and developing local versions of formats such as Big Brother, Deal or No Deal, My Kitchen Rules, The Voice and Idols, and established M-Net’s sales division.
He has also produced around 70 films for M-Net, many of which took top ratings on networks such as Mzansi Magic, KykNET and M-Net Movie. Elsewhere, he established the AfricanFilmLibrary (AFL), which is now one of the world’s largest repositories of African movie with more than 1,000 in its vault.
“Jan is an exceptionally talented professional who will inspire