Sanford Panitch is an American film industry executive. Appointed president of Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group in October 2019, he served previously as president of

Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc., Trade name, doing business as Columbia Pictures, is an American film Production company, production and Film distributor, distribution company that is the flagship unit of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group ...

. Earlier in his career, he founded Fox International Productions, a division of

21st Century Fox Twenty-First Century Fox, Inc., which did business as 21st Century Fox, was an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate based in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It was formed on June 28, 2013, as the legal successor ...

Early life and education

Panitch was born in Los Angeles, to Hersh Panitch, an entertainment business manager, and Elaine Panitch, a teacher and author. He attended

Tulane University The Tulane University of Louisiana (commonly referred to as Tulane University) is a private research university in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. Founded as the Medical College of Louisiana in 1834 by a cohort of medical doctors, it b ...

in New Orleans. During school breaks Panitch interned for

New Line Cinema New Line Productions, Inc., Trade name, doing business as New Line Cinema, is an American film production, film and television production company that is a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Motion Picture Group, a division of the Major film studios, ...

, and as a student he founded Revive Screening to distribute New Line Films at various venues in New Orleans. After graduating from Tulane with a degree in Political Science, Panitch sold the company and returned to Los Angeles.

Career

In 1995, Panitch was named executive vice president of Production at

20th Century Studios 20th Century Studios, Inc., formerly 20th Century Fox, is an American film studio, film production and Film distributor, distribution company owned by the Walt Disney Studios (division), Walt Disney Studios, the film studios division of the ...

. In 2008, recognizing the growth of international

box office A box office or ticket office is a place where ticket (admission), tickets are sold to the public for admission to an event. Patrons may perform the transaction at a countertop, through a hole in a wall or window, or at a Wicket gate, wicket. ...

and seeing the large percentage of market share for locally produced films, Panitch founded Fox International Productions. He served as its president until April 2015, when he joined Sony Pictures as president of international film and television. In June 2016, he was named President of Columbia Pictures. He was promoted to president of Sony Motion Picture Group in October 2019.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Panitch, Sanford Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Tulane University alumni Film people from Los Angeles Sony Pictures Entertainment people Presidents of Columbia Pictures