Veteran Entertainment Executive to Join Fast-Growing Multi-Platform Content Company
LOS ANGELES, Nov. 13, 2013: Random Media, the multi-platform content company recently launched by media executive Eric Doctorow, announced the naming of highly regarded motion-picture executive Tom Skouras as Chairman.
As Chairman, Skouras will offer a three-decade background as a leading distributor of independent films, while helping nurture the fast-growing Random Media brand that’s quickly becoming known as a top label for bold, distinctive original filmmaking.
“Tom will bring a level of guidance and insight to Random Media that only can only be gained from a lifetime of extraordinary experience in our industry,” Doctorow said. “I have known Tom for 30 years and have always admired his experience, his judgment and his ability to think asymetrically. I cannot think of a better person to join our company to help us plan our future and manage our growth”
“Eric and I have been through the film industry wars together for many years and he has always emerged a winner,” Skouras said. “His unmatched experience combined with the incredibly talented team he is assembling will surely make Random Media a winner as well. I am thrilled to be able to play a role at this extraordinary time of change and opportunity in the media business.”
From 1983-1995, Skouras was founder and president of Skouras Pictures, Inc., an independent film distribution company responsible for releasing over 200 independent films in the United States and international markets.
During this period Skouras Pictures garnered many awards and prizes; these include Academy Award® nominations, Golden Globe awards, Sundance awards, New York Film Critics awards, Los Angeles Film Critics awards, and numerous mentions on annual top 10 film lists. Among the many films Skouras has released are Joel and Ethan Coen’s first film, Blood Simple, Paul Schrader’s The Comfort of Strangers, Martin Donovan’s Apartment Zero, Mike Newell’s The Good Father, starring Anthony Hopkins, and multiple Oscar nominee My Life as a Dog, directed by Lasse Hallstrom.
From 1981 to 1983, Mr. Skouras served as the president of Wescom Productions, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Chronicle Publishing Company (San Francisco Chronicle). From 1972 to 1994, he served as a member of the Board of Directors of De Anza Land Co., a Skouras family owned chain of drive-in theatres in California, Arizona, Utah and Nevada. From 1985 to 1992, he also served as a member of the Board of Directors of the Bank of San Francisco.
He is currently a voting member of the Executive Branch of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Skouras is the third generation of his family to be involved in the motion picture business; at various times members of his family have owned or controlled United Artists Theater Circuit, Skouras Theaters, Fox Westcoast Theaters, and Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation.