Ex-WB Chief Plans Production, Talent Management Venture

Former WB Chief Executive Jordan Levin plans to launch a new production and talent management company to supply entertainment for television, mobile phones and the Internet.

The Santa Monica company, named Generate, is a partnership between Levin, 38, and four other industry veterans: Pete Aronson, former president of Regency Television; producer Mike Karz; and talent managers Dave Rath and Kara Welker.

Rath and Welker represent such clients as Janeane Garofalo and Andy Milonakis.

Generate will target families and young adults. The production arm of the company already has a development deal with Viacom Inc.’s MTV Networks to supply its cable channels.

The changing media business should offer more opportunities for upstarts, Levin said.

He predicted that the proliferation of new delivery platforms, such as mobile phones and the Internet, would change Hollywood’s balance of power, shifting it more toward talent.

“It matters more what you have to say than how you say it,” Levin said.

Levin said his firm and others would look to the Internet to discover new stars. In an era of weblogs and community-based websites, “there will be more opportunities for the talent to create their own content and deliver it directly to their fans.”