2024 EGA Top 100 Influential Professionals in M&E Localisation

28 November 2024

2024 EGA Top 100 Influential Professionals in M&E Localisation

We’re incredibly proud to celebrate key members of the VSI Group who earned well-deserved spots on the Entertainment Globalisation Association’s Top 100 Professionals in Content Localisation. This honors the most influential figures in media and entertainment localisation, and our global team was recognised across categories such as Leadership, Business Development, Operations and Technology.

Congratulations to all the recipients, with a special thank you to our employees for their unwavering dedication and invaluable contributions to both VSI and the localisation industry as a whole.

Check out the honourees below:

Leadership

Norman Dawood, CEO

Norman founded VSI 35 years ago and has made the company a leading player in the localisation industry, with facilities on five continents. He has done this without any external investment nor significant debt financing, proving that growth is possible through consistently delivering excellent work and building strong relationships. He focuses on VSI’s high-level strategy, particularly expanding its footprint and service offering. As CEO, he remains closely involved, maintaining the personal touch with employees, customers and suppliers in almost 30 countries.

Operations

Cornelia Al-Khaled, COO

In 2024, Cornelia successfully enhanced the centralisation of operational processes across VSI's service offerings. She diligently aligned the company's resources with client and market demands, utilising KPIs and synergies across the business to increase operational efficiency and optimise studio utilisation – resulting in VSI ramping up capacity in several key dubbing territories. She has supported the exploration of AI applications to assess how best to leverage them and offer clients accelerated deliverables without sacrificing quality. Her unwavering commitment to creative and operational excellence ensures that VSI remains a leader in localisation and continues to provide its clients with high-quality and reliable service.

Ulrike Schubert, MD

Ulrike has dedicated her career to localisation, working at VSI for over two decades. This year, she has driven the significant expansion of VSI Berlin. With the support of her team, they are doubling the facility's dubbing studio capacity to support the German market's growing demands. This ambitious project is set to be finalised by spring 2025, with the scaling up of internal staff and overall infrastructure to support this studio buildout. Ulrike remains committed to maintaining creative excellence across all services. She ensures her team continuously adapts workflows to meet increasingly accelerated timelines, positioning VSI's Berlin-based facility for continued success and innovation as its studio evolves.

William Russell, MD

William has focused on growing the marketing localisation team in VSI London, increasing awareness of its expertise in transcreation and establishing comprehensive global project management coverage to meet the demands of its client base. He has strengthened the department with dedicated business development and account management resources in LA, which will continue supporting VSI's established long-form client base by providing short-form localisation solutions.

Alex Weiser, General Manager North America

Alex Weiser has established himself as a key figure in the US English dubbing industry, successfully building VSI's operation in Los Angeles. With over 25 years of experience in dubbing and digital cinema, his strong technical and sales background has enabled him to contribute to the industry's growth across various markets. In 2024, Alex and his team have continued to focus on enhancing workflows and developing new talent, maintaining a high-quality standard and ensuring VSI's continued leadership in the ongoing evolution of English dubbing.

Technology

Scott Rose, CTO

Scott, plays a crucial role in navigating the evolving technology landscape in localisation, most notably AI, carefully balancing creative and business considerations in its day-to-day application. He is deeply involved in assessing and mitigating the security risks of managing pre-released content, ensuring that all client content is protected throughout the workflow. His work ensures the company remains agile and innovative in a rapidly shifting industry and adaptable to the fluctuations of content demands whilst maintaining the high standards VSI is known for.

Pete Lewis, Group Studio and Systems Support Director

Pete has 34 years of experience in the media and entertainment industry, with the last 23 years dedicated to the localisation sector. He has played a key role in designing, overseeing and advising on the construction and renovation of multiple facilities within the VSI Group, including the recent Atmos studios in Madrid and Barcelona. With a focus on automation, Pete has spent the past two years developing secure workflows and processing systems to enhance operational efficiency, implementing a new media orchestration solution.

Business Development

Léa Paradon, Senior Account Manager

Léa has been instrumental in growing one of VSI's largest VOD clients, overseeing their complex multilingual projects and global localisation strategy. She has over ten years of experience in localisation, specialising in account management and client relations, managing voiceover, dubbing and subtitling projects for various clients. In 2024, Lea has focused on strengthening relationships with key global clients, particularly in Asia, while promoting centralised models to enhance quality and efficiency. Her efforts align with the "One VSI" strategy, driving collaboration among teams worldwide to achieve creative, operational and technical excellence.

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