Artists Equity, the studio launched in 2022 by Ben Affleck and Matt Damon, is shuffling key roles in its executive suite.
Dillon West has been elevated to Chief Operating Officer, with current COO Michael Joe transitioning to a strategic advisory role but staying on the company’s board of directors. Andrew Gumpert, an industry veteran known for tenures at Paramount, Sony and Dimension Films, has been tapped for the newly created role of President, Business Affairs & Strategy.
West had been Artists Equity’s Chief Strategy Officer, overseeing the startup’s growth plan and new business initiatives. He also serves on the company’s Board of Directors. West had previously worked at RedBird Capital Partners, whose CEO, Gerry Cardinale, co-founded Artists Equity with Damon and Affleck. During his run at RedBird, West focused on media & entertainment investments, in a role similar to a past one in investment banking at at Evercore Partners.
Gumpert has spent more than three decades in the entertainment industry, most recently as COO of Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon Studios. In that post, he oversaw business affairs, strategic planning, home entertainment distribution and television licensing. Previously, he was President of Worldwide Business Affairs & Operations for the Sony Pictures Entertainment Motion Picture Group. He led negotiations for a number of high-profile productions and term deals, along with managing partnerships with MGM, Lonestar Capital, Village Roadshow, and Dalian Wanda Group.
Prior to Sony, Gumpert led business and legal affairs for Miramax’s Dimension Films and worked as an exec at Interscope Film Productions. He began his career as a business litigator at Hill, Wynne, Troop and Meisinger in L.A.
Artists Equity’s new take on Kiss of the Spider Woman, starring Jennifer Lopez and Diego Luna and directed by Bill Condon, just premiered at Sundance, drawing an enthusiastic response. Lopez also stars in the company’s Unstoppable, released earlier this month by Amazon MGM Studios. Artists Equity’s robust slate of upcoming projects includes The Accountant 2, also for Amazon MGM studios, a sequel to the 2016 hit that will see the return of director Gavin O’Connor, writer Bill Dubuque, and stars Affleck, Jon Bernthal, and J.K. Simmons.
