Mike Lang Named New CEO of MIRAMAX Films

Mike Lang has been officially named CEO of Miramax, the new company formed by the Filmyard Holdings group, it was announced by Richard Nanula, who is now officially chairman of Miramax while remaining a principal at Colony Capital. Colony Capital and its founder Thomas Barrack were investors in the $663 million acquisition of Miramax from Disney which closed earlier this week, along with construction exec Ronald Tutor, the Qatar Holdings fund, actor Rob Lowe and others. “I have known and worked closely with Mike for almost 20 years and have always respected his talents,” said Nanula in a statement. “We are confident that he is the right person to lead Miramax in its next phase of growth.”

“I have always admired the Miramax library, which includes many respected titles and award-winning films,” said Lang, who will be based at headquarters in Santa Monica, California. “Based on the quality of these assets, I believe bringing new life to this library–by working with traditional and new partners–will be an exciting and unprecedented story of growth and innovation. I am honored by this opportunity, and I look forward to working with my partners as we build a new kind of media company.”

The new Miramax is not going to be making any movies, at least initially. However it is expected to staff up with sixty to eighty employees in the coming months to pursue deals to distribute the film library on multiple digital and online platforms, as well as through traditional home video and international sales opportunities.

Lang, who is 45 years old, consulted on the sale of Miramax to Filmyard after leaving his position as EVP, Business Development and Strategy at Fox Entertainment earlier this year. At Fox he oversaw strategic initiatives for the film studio, broadcast network, sports and cable channels and more. He is credited as playing a role in the acquisition of MySpace and creation of Hulu, as well as Fox’s mobile, digital and video game initiatives. Before joining Fox in 2004, Lang worked on various investments and was involved in strategic planning at Disney. He has an MBA from Harvard and a B.A. from Claremont McKenna College. In an interview with the Wall Street Journal's All Things Digital website Wednesday, Lang said, “Our goal really want to send a signal that we are a different company, not only about digital, but in being an innovative company.”