Red Planet expands with Scott Free, BBC hires

UK-based producer Red Planet Pictures has hired execs from Scott Free Productions and the BBC as part of a wider expansion of its ranks.

The hires see former BBC development exec Sarah Barton joining as head of development from Scott Free, BBC Wales development chief Michelle Frances becoming literary acquisitions executive, Rowan Greenaway named development executive and Harriet Creelman upped to the same post.

Barton has previously developed shows such as Stephen Butchard’s Good Cop and Sarah Phelps’s The Crimson Field, and was most recently development chief at the UK arm of The Good Wife and The Man in the High Castle producer Scott Free.

Red Planet is currently working on BBC murder mystery drama Death in Paradise, which is headed for a seventh season on the UK pubcaster’s flagship channel, BBC One.

Frances, a bestselling author, will source books for Red Planet to adapt. She has worked for prodcos including Wall to Wall and Company Pictures, but was more recently at the BBC.

Her hire comes after Red Planet executive producer Simon Winstone moved to BBC Studios to become head of drama for Wales over the summer.

Greenaway has worked in drama development for Channel 4, CNN and Discovery Networks International. He will look to identify factual stories that can be adapted as television dramas, while Creelman is another new development exec.

“It’s fantastic to be able to announce Harriet’s promotion and our new arrivals, each of whom are incredibly talented and passionate about working with exceptional writers and creating outstanding drama,” said Red Planet joint managing director and creative director Belinda Campbell.