James Townley is Banijay’s Global Head of Content Development, responsible for driving the development and creation of original non-scripted IP, format acquisition and documentaries across the 21-territory group and its production entities. Co-leading Creative Networks, he supports and champions a strong pipeline of new formats with international appeal. He also manages group level investment in non-scripted, including the Banijay Creative Fund, which to date has already supported the evolution of original travelling formats, Save the Date (Endemol Shine Finland/ Endemol Shine Israel), The Fifty (Banijay Productions France), Blow Up (Endemol Shine Nederland), Love Triangle (Endemol Shine Australia), and Starstruck (Remarkable). In 2022 alone, Banijay was behind the launch of 200+ non-scripted titles, and 90+ pilots, and with further creative incentivisation and reinvestment on the horizon, the organisation’s supercharged pipeline looks strong for this year, with The Summit (Endemol Shine Australia), Hot Wheels (Endemol Shine North America in association with Workerbee under license from Mattel Inc.), and Rush (Endemol Shine Australia) all launching successfully and garnering further interest globally.
Townley was Global Head of Creative Networks at Endemol Shine Group following his role as Endemol Shine UK’s Director of Operations. He has also held roles at Princess Productions and Sky.
James Townley
