Chris Abitbol, a long time London-based expat production executive, has found a new home at creative studio Los York as head of Los York Films, a new position. Abitbol is working closely with the division’s executive producer Leticia Gurjao, managing the unit’s work and its diverse, global collective of commercial directors. He will report directly to Los York founder Seth Epstein.
“Chris is here to shake things up,” said Epstein. “He is building the next gen commercial production company – really a home for multidisciplinary directors. We’ve been looking for the absolute right person for the role for a long while and we are excited to have him dive right into our crew of Global Nomads of the Arts.”
Born in Cannes and raised in New York City, Abitbol grew up in the music scene. His father was an agent for rock bands including Skid Row and Kidd Rock, and Abitbol himself became the frontman for Cutting Pink With Knives, a London based synth-pop-grind band. While gigging in the U.K., Abitbol heeded his mother’s advice and went to school, graduating from London’s Kingston University with a BA in film and business. He followed that up with an MA in film and television production from the University of London, and then bounced around jobs as a chef, music producer and filmmaker in London and Paris before founding Bruce, a multiple Grammy-winning creative shop that focused on fashion and music content. He later worked as an executive producer at the boutique London production company Friend before returning to the states to work as an EP at Magnetic Field in Los Angeles.
“I’m all about talent, all about creative,” said Abitbol. “I’m not a follower, I like to drive great projects with great people. Seth and the team at Los York are OGs. They have all the things that I prioritize. They don’t just wait around for scripts to come in, they go out and create them. They make creative and execute it. That is the future. That is the big picture. I’ll be helping drive the Los York brand forward, helping shake things up and challenge convention. They are underdogs in the industry and we are going to be swinging big. Going bold, raw and strong. Being different. Being unique. Being disruptive. We are going to crush it.”
