Karen Bailey

Karen Bailey is a Los Angeles based Entertainment Professional. She has worked as a film and television producer as well as a studio and network executive, and currently serves as Senior Vice President of Original Programming for Starz Entertainment. Her first indie feature, BACHELORMAN was released in 2003 and won dozens of audience and critic awards in the independent film circuit. Her second film, SANDS OF OBLIVION, was picked up by IDT Entertainment and sold to NBC/Universal. This lead to a multi-picture development deal with the SyFy channel and Anchor Bay Entertainment. It was during this period that IDT launched a studio division and Bailey was asked to join the company as an in-house Executive Producer, overseeing a slate of small budget films for its domestic and international distribution arm. In 2007, Starz Media acquired IDT Entertainment and asked Bailey to join the company as Vice President of Production. Over the next few years, she oversaw a number of the studio's MOWs and television series for outside networks including Lifetime and IFC, while working to grow Starz's newly launched Original Programming division. Karen oversaw production of the company's first one-hour drama CRASH, (co-produced with Lionsgate) and first international production, SPARTACUS, filmed in New Zealand. Later that year the studio extended into the half-hour space with PARTY DOWN and HEADCASE. In 2010 the company restructured, ending contracts with outside networks and choosing to focus efforts on growing it's own branded content. Under the new banner of Starz Entertainment, Bailey was named Head of Production and began working on expanding the company's international presence by setting up productions in Canada and the UK. She also explored filming opportunities in China, Eastern Europe and South Africa. Operating in this capacity, she began working more closely with the show's creative teams, and was asked to transition to the Development as VP of Original Programming, overseeing creative development on a number of both domestic and international productions, including MAGIC CITY and THE WHITE QUEEN. She was promoted to SVP in 2012, and is currently overseeing OUTLANDER, THE MISSING co-pro with BBC) and Starz's first docu-series, THE CHAIR.