Amazon Prime Video appoints Sahar Baghery as Head of Content in France

Sahar Baghery has been appointed Head of Content for Amazon Prime Video in France, succeeding Isabelle Bertrand.

The Paris-born manager joined Prime Video in 2018 as Head of Business Development for France and the MENA region. She was subsequently appointed Head of Global Business Development. Most recently, she led programming strategy for EMEA at Amazon Studios.

In her new role, she leads a team of local content experts to negotiate library deals with studios, acquire secondary rights to films and primary rights to scripted series, direct-to-platform films and exclusive documentaries.

The executive, who reports to Brigitte Ricou-Bellan, Country Director of Prime Video in France, aims to get series and films on board early, ideally before production begins, and to be involved in the co-production and financing of these titles. Baghery’s team is also actively involved in non-scripted, looking for stand-ups and other types of live shows.

The executive begins her new role at Prime Video in France at a crucial time. The streamer is now required to invest 20% of its annual revenue in France in local content – both series and films – as part of a French decree stemming from the implementation of the Audiovisual Media Services Directive (AVMSD).

The legislation was enacted by the European Commission to bring streaming giants on a level playing field with existing players across Europe. France was the first country in Europe to set its new rules and regulations.

In addition to acquiring and investing in local content, Baghery’s team also has ambitions to collaborate on future projects with international partners – including foreign producers, broadcasters and other TV actors.

While leading business development for France and the MENA region, Baghery played a key role in signing distribution deals with leading telecoms companies including Orange and SFR.