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Kentucky-based Wrigley Media Group has added three experienced development executives to its expanding unscripted development team led by Ross Brietenbach, it was announced today by Wrigley Media Group CEO Joe Livecchi.
Joining Wrigley Media’s unscripted development team are Sara Auspitz (E!, GSN, FUSE), Don Sikorski (“Live PD,” “Police 24/7”) and Cyndi Harder Steele (“Cake Dynasty,” “Cake Toppers”). The three executives are based in Los Angeles and New York City and bring decades of unscripted development and production experience in true crime, social experiment and entertainment formats.
Earlier this year, Emmy Award-winner Breitenbach (Creator and EP of Netflix’s hit series “Hack My Home”) was named head of unscripted and brand development at Wrigley Media Group. Breitenbach is currently overseeing the company’s robust unscripted slate that includes multiple projects currently in development at numerous top networks and streamers. He is also leading the charge in acquiring private and brand funding to create premium content and position WMG as true innovators in an evolving media landscape.
Wrigley Media Group is an award-winning producer of original series, creative content, digital marketing and branding for clients worldwide. Led by award-winning businesswoman Misdee Wrigley Miller and CEO Livecchi, the company is headquartered in Lexington, Kentucky, where it develops and produces premium content such as Relative Justice, the first daytime syndicated series produced in the state. Wrigley Media has produced more than 500 episodes of original unscripted television.
“We are building something very special here in Kentucky, where we are the largest film and TV company in the state and growing exponentially,” says Wrigley’s Livecchi. “Our commitment to unscripted original development and production comes when many in our industry are unfortunately shrinking their teams. On top of that, Kentucky’s 30-35% tax rebate that we cash flow upfront to preferred partners along with our state-of-the-art facilities in Lexington are a complete production gamechanger.”
Brietenbach added, “We are thrilled to bring on such a talented and experienced trio of unscripted executives, who have collectively spent decades developing and producing a wide array of hit series: Sara, who has served as a senior network exec and brings years of true crime experience; Cyndi, who worked as both a buyer and seller, and has an eye for new social experiment and unscripted entertainment formats; and Don, who is one the most respected access-driven crime producers working today. They join our established team at Wrigley Media that’s already produced hundreds of hours of TV and will surely help us expand upon that success going forward.”
Sara Auspitz, Creative and Senior Network Executive
Auspitz is an accomplished creative executive with over two decades of experience in unscripted television. Throughout her career, she has held senior development and production roles at large cable networks and production companies including E!, Game Show Network, Fuse (formerly NuvoTV), TBS, and Endemol Shine. In 2022, Auspitz transitioned from the buying side of the business to focus on developing and selling original content. She has partnered with leading production companies including Texas Crew Productions, “Chopped” producer Good Egg Entertainment, Velvet Hammer Media, UNConventional, Wheelhouse’s Twist, Irwin Entertainment, Hot Snakes Media and Stage 3 Productions. Auspitz has successfully created, developed and sold projects to Hulu, A&E, Discovery and ABC News Studios.
During her tenure as Senior Vice President of Current Production at E!, Auspitz played a pivotal role in overseeing the network’s flagship series, including “Keeping Up With The Kardashians,” “Botched” and the highly successful reboot of “E! True Hollywood Story.” Prior to her role at E!, she served as Head of Current Series at Game Show Network, where she managed a diverse portfolio of series, including “The Chase,” “America Says,” “Skin Wars,” “Idiotest,” “Hellevator” and “Chain Reaction.”
Don Sikorski, Executive Producer and Series Creator
Sikorski joins Wrigley Media with over 20 years of experience in the television industry. An expert in current true crime programming, Sikorski brings a deep network of relationships and experience working with leading law enforcement and investigative agencies. He has served as executive producer of “LivePD” on A&E, “The Supreme Team” documentary series on Paramount+ and EP & Showrunner of The CW’s new law enforcement series “POLICE 24/7.”
Cyndi Harder Steele, Senior Director of Development, focusing on Social Experiments, Food Competitions, and Broad Entertainment Formats
Prior to joining Wrigley Media Group, Harder Steele served as Executive Producer and helped spearhead the development and production of A&E’s “Buddy Valastro’s Cake Dynasty” and “Legends of the Fork,” as well as Hulu’s “Cake Toppers.” She has created and contributed to the sales of large-format series to networks including Hulu, A&E, and WWE.
Before transitioning to development, Harder Steele worked as a senior-level producer on multiple large-format series, including Food Network’s Bobby’s “Triple Threat,” “Chopped,” “Beat Bobby Flay,” “Buddy vs. Duff,” “Worst Cooks in America” and Netflix’s “Snack vs. Chef,” among others.
About Wrigley Media Group
Wrigley Media Group is an industry-leading producer of original series, creative content, digital marketing and branding for clients worldwide. Led by award-winning businesswoman Misdee Wrigley Miller and CEO Livecchi, the company is headquartered in Lexington, Kentucky, where it develops and produces premium content such as Relative Justice, the first daytime syndicated series produced in the state. Wrigley Media has produced more than 500 episodes of original unscripted television. Along with James Miller, Ms. Wrigley Miller also owns the recently-opened LEX Studios, a 50,000 square foot, state-of-the-art production facility – the largest in Kentucky. For more information, please visit wrigleymediagroup.com or lexstudios.tv.
