Black Bear Names Lionsgate Vet David Spitz Head of U.S. Distribution

Veteran Hollywood studio executive David Spitz has landed his next gig: serving as head of U.S. distribution at Teddy Schwarzman ‘s Black Bear Pictures as the leading production and financing company realizes its dream of becoming a full-fledged indie studio.

Spitz — who did a long stint running distribution at Lionsgate — will oversee theatrical Black Bear’s new distribution infrastructure in the U.S., which builds on its established businesses in the U.K., Ireland and Canada , where subsidiary Elevation Pictures is the territory’s top independent distributor. Spitz will manage the theatrical release of up to 12 films per year, curating a slate that boasts both filmmaker-driven fare with action and genre titles. He’ll report to Benjamin Kramer, president of Black Bear’s U.S. thea