ABC Names Keli Lee Managing Director, International Content & Talent

Keli Lee, Executive Vice President, Casting, ABC Entertainment Group has been named Managing Director, International Content and Talent, ABC Entertainment Group, effective immediately. Ms. Lee will relocate to the London office and continue reporting to ABC Entertainment Group President, Paul Lee.

Working in close partnership with Patrick Moran, Executive Vice President, ABC Studios, and his team at ABC Studios and Samie Falvey, Executive Vice President, Comedy & International Scripted Development, and the international formats team at the ABC Television Network, Ms. Lee will help both the network and studio find emerging formats, writers, directors, actors and shows, and look after ABC's strategic interests around the world. With this announcement, Ayo Davis becomes the interim head of casting for the ABC Entertainment Group.

"Keli will play a critical role helping ABC identify new opportunities for talent and content around the world," said Paul Lee in making this announcement. "She has a keen eye and a proven track record when it comes to emerging talent," he added.

Ms. Lee has led all casting and talent deal negotiations for the ABC Television Network and ABC Studios. Series under her oversight include the multi-award-winning hits "Modern Family," "Scandal," "Once Upon a Time," "Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.," "How to Get Away With Murder," "Lost," and "Grey's Anatomy."

Her passion for developing rising stars and casting diverse talent globally led her to create and produce ABC Discovers, a series of landmark initiatives, with a globally focused creative talent recruiting program. The program has served as a launching pad for talent, including 2014 Academy Award-nominee Lupita Nyong'o ("12 Years a Slave"), Chadwick Boseman ("Marvel's Black Panther"), Jesse Williams ("Grey's Anatomy"), Randall Park ("Fresh Off the Boat"), Cornelius Smith Jr. ("Scandal") and Dania Ramirez ("Devious Maids"). Ms. Lee also oversees the Latino and Asian Global Outreach Initiative, which identifies and develops notable diverse talent from around the world.

Ms. Lee is a former mentor to the Korean government's Ministry of Culture and Tourism for KOCCA, the business development agency that develops cultural content to connect to U.S. and worldwide markets. She is a national board member and the 2012 recipient of the Step Up Women's Network Inspiration Award, a nonprofit organization that helps empower teen girls from under-resourced communities to be confident and professional women through networking and continuous development.

Ms. Lee holds a BA in Philosophy from New York University. She is a member of the 2014 Class of Henry Crown Fellows at the Aspen Institute and one of Fast Company's "Most Creative People in Business" for 2015.

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