Management

Chris McGurk has had a long and successful career in the film and television industry. He joined the company in 2011, leads a team that is transforming the way people interact with great storytelling. McGurk was the founder and CEO of Overture Films from 2006 until 2010 and was also CEO of Anchor Bay Entertainment, which distributed Overture Films’ product to the home entertainment industry. From 1999 to 2005, McGurk was Vice Chairman of the Board and Chief Operating Officer of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. (“MGM”), acting as the company’s lead operating executive until MGM was sold for approximately $5 billion to a consortium of investors. McGurk joined MGM from Universal Pictures, where he served in various executive capacities from 1996 to 1999, including President and Chief Operating Officer. From 1988 to 1996, McGurk served in several senior executive roles at The Walt Disney Studios, including Studios CFO and President of The Walt Disney Motion Picture Group. McGurk worked at Pepsico Inc. from 1982 to 1988 in various sales, marketing and finance roles including CFO of Pepsi East. From 1978 to 1980 McGurk worked at Price Waterhouse & Co. in Hartford, CT. McGurk recently served on the board of directors of IDW Media Holdings Inc., where he was also Chairman of the Nominating and Governance Committee, and has previously served on the boards of BRE Properties, Inc., DivX Inc., DIC Entertainment, Pricegrabber.com, LLC and MGM Studios, Inc.

Erick Opeka brings 20 years of experience as an executive at the intersection of entertainment and technology. He leads the Company’s corporate strategy, strategic initiatives, and M&A efforts, and also oversees its portfolio of more than two dozen SVOD, AVOD and FAST linear networks available online, on mobile devices, desktop computers and connected TVs with a global reach of over 1 billion streaming devices. With eight acquisitions in the past two years, Opeka continues to pursue additional accretive M&A opportunities to support the company’s unique content strategy and needs of its enthusiast audiences. Opeka is on the Board of Directors and executive committee of OTT.X, the preeminent trade group representing the streaming industry, and serves as an advisor to numerous streaming and entertainment companies through his work with seed accelerator Techstars. He is also a member of the Producers Guild of America and the Television Academy of Arts & Sciences.

Tony Huidor is an accomplished executive, and the driving force behind Cineverse’s Matchpoint technology platform. His leadership and oversight of the Company’s engineering resources within Cineverse India are a critical part of expanding the company’s technology portfolio and ensuring that Cineverse remains at the forefront of the digital entertainment industry. Huidor oversees Cineverse’s technology roadmap and all software development efforts pertaining to the Matchpoint platform suite, in addition to overseeing the product strategy for all consumer-facing products within the Company’s portfolio of services focusing on leveraging the power of content processing at scale while utilizing AI and machine learning.
Huidor first joined Cinedigm in January 2015, and his role has evolved as his contributions to the Company’s OTT business has grown. Huidor previously served as Universal Music Group (UMG) Distribution’s VP of Technical Product Development, creating revenue opportunities within the digital and mobile sectors, and launching various music-based products. Previously Huidor was VP of Product Development and Operations for UMG, Director of Product Development for Walt Disney Internet Group. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from UCLA.

Yolanda Macias is responsible for acquiring global content rights for all distribution platforms, including digital outlets Amazon, NBC Peacock, Tubi, and Pluto, and sourcing content for Cineverse’s owned and operated digital Networks such as the Dove Channel, Bloody Disgusting and ConTV and retail outlets including Walmart. Additionally, she oversees all content marketing including release strategy, growth and management of content. 
During her tenure at Gaiam Vivendi Entertainment, Macias oversaw content acquisitions including securing home entertainment distribution rights for Crown Media’s Hallmark Channel and The Jim Henson Company. Macias helmed the launch and established the distribution strategy for Vivendi Entertainment’s digital distribution services along with acquiring rights for branded content such as National Geographic, WWE, NFL and Shout!Factory. Macias has also served on the board of C5LA for several years and was selected as the 2019 Honoree. C5LA is a non-profit organization with the mission of helping under-resourced, high potential youth enroll and persist in college. She was honored as one of the Top 50 Women in Business by the Los Angeles Business Journal. Macias was honored as one of the Elite Women in the home entertainment industry ten times, and was recognized as an industry digital driver nine times, by Home Media Magazine. Macias received her MBA from the J.L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University and her B.S. degree from California State University, Northridge.

John Canning is responsible for all financial functions and facilitating the Company’s rapid growth trajectory. Prior to Cineverse, Canning spent two years as the CFO of Firefly Systems Inc., an Ad-Tech startup in Silicon Valley, and was interim CFO of the mobile advertising company, Tapjoy Inc. He spent several years with Discovery Channel, working as the Group Vice President of Finance for the network portfolio. He held finance leadership roles at Clear Channel Outdoor and The Walt Disney Company for a combined total of nearly 10 years. Prior to Disney, Canning enjoyed a successful management consulting career, spending more than a dozen years at prominent firms including Deloitte and KPMG, after earning his MBA with honors from the Marshall School of Business at USC.

Gary Loffredo is a seasoned legal and business development executive with extensive experience in capital raising, corporate mergers and acquisitions, public company corporate governance, business development and legal strategy. Loffredo provides leadership and guidance in these areas to support Cineverse’s growth initiatives. Loffredo has been a key management figure with Cineverse since 2000, working in a variety of roles including Senior Vice President – Business Affairs, General Counsel, Secretary, and Interim Co-Chief Executive Officer, and serving on the Board of Directors. He is also Cineverse’s Corporate Secretary.

As Chief People Officer, Torres oversees human capital strategy, hiring, and all aspects of the lifecycle of Cineverse’s diverse workforce. Additionally, he oversees facilities and remote work strategy. Torres has served as a senior Human Resources executive with such notable companies as Sony Pictures Entertainment, Ticketmaster and Reed Elsevier/Variety, as well as several technology and media start-up companies. He served as SVP of People & Culture at AdTec/Rubicon Project building their first internal HR function in preparation of their IPO. In addition to consulting with several start-up media organizations, he served as the VP of HR and Administration at ideation/advertising leader, phenomenon. Torres is a graduate of California State University, Long Beach with a bachelor’s degree in Telecommunications.

David Chu oversees Cineverse’s owned & operated channels and is responsible for channel strategy with regard to all programming, distribution and marketing activities. Chu joined the Company upon its acquisition of Digital Media Rights (DMR) in 2022. Prior to DMR, Chu was a founding member and head of programming and production for ImaginAsian TV, America’s first Asian American cable television network, and operator of ImaginAsian Theaters in New York and Los Angeles. Chu also co-created and oversaw ImaginAsian Pictures and ImaginAsian Home Entertainment, which distributed pan-Asian feature films theatrically and on home video throughout North America. David has over 20 years of experience in media and entertainment, including positions at Showtime Networks and The Sundance Channel.

Lindsey oversees all facets of accounting including; reporting, financing, working capital management, treasury, tax compliance and planning, internal controls and policy development. Prior to joining Cineverse he most recently served as Chief Accounting Officer and acting Chief Financial Officer for Firefly Systems, Inc., a digital out-of-home (DOOH) and mobility advertising company. Lindsey was also CFO and CCO for Canapi Ventures, a financial technology-focused venture capital firm. Earlier in his career Lindsey served in related executive capacities with American Capital, LTD., XM Satellite Radio, Public Company Accounting.

Marc Rashba is responsible for driving innovative new revenue opportunities in the areas of business development, programming content, and strategic partnerships including but not limited to licensing the proprietary Matchpoint platform to third parties. Prior to joining Cineverse, Rashba served as President at MovieMethod LLC where he oversaw global digital content sales, marketing & distribution. He was responsible for driving strategy, licensing, channel growth and platform expansion, as well as developing go-to-market plans for FAST, OTT, SVOD, AVOD and apps for a variety of brands. Rashba also served as Vice President, Digital Partnerships & Development at Sony Pictures Entertainment as well as various global marketing roles for Sony for over 15 years.

Dan Coyle joined Cineverse after the acquisition of Gaiam, Inc.’s Entertainment Unit. In his role as SVP of Sales, Coyle is responsible for strategic planning and sales of physical media for the company’s catalog of over 5,000 titles. Dan previously held the same position at Gaiam since 2005. Prior to Gaiam he was Vice President of Retail Operations at Goodtimes Entertainment where he joined in 1991 and helped launch the first VMI program in the video industry.

As Senior Vice President of Marketing, Kim Staruk oversees the general partner relationships along with the overall business strategy for Cineverse’s films. She is also responsible for managing and executing marketing and media across multiple channels to elevate the profile of each release. This also includes developing strategic partnerships and programs across all of Cineverse’s distribution platforms including digital, streaming, physical media and Cineverse’s owned and operated digital Networks.
Prior to joining Cineverse, Staruk previously spent 6 years at Universal Music Group Distribution/Vivendi Entertainment and two years at Sony in SPT International Production.

Russell Schneider is Senior Vice President, Brand Partnerships and oversees key top-line revenue driver by developing and implementing innovative and effective brand partnerships for Cineverse’s growing portfolio of streaming channels, movies and podcasts. Schneider oversees all facets of brand partnerships including go-to-market sales strategy, pitching new clients, building a network of brand and agency contacts, and closing those deals. Prior to joining Cineverse he most recently served as VP, Head of Brand Partnerships at Malka Media/Showtime Sports where he oversaw the entire network division and enacted as the Head of Brand Partnerships creating custom branded content sponsorship programs for original content series across social, podcasts, YouTube and CTV.