Discovery Studios Names Varo Jarrell SVP Of Creative

Discovery Studios Thursday said it has named Sandy Varo Jarrell as its senior vice president of creative.

In the newly created role, Varo Jarrell will oversee the creative aspects of development and production of all content for Discovery Studios, She will also be responsible for originating and developing projects for clients as well as all Discovery Studio projects, according to studio officials.

Varo Jarrell most recently served as senior vice president of production and development for TLC and prior to that served as Head of Unscripted Programming and Development for ABC Family.

“Sandy brings a wealth of experience to Discovery Studios, having worked both inside the Discovery Networks group as well as at other networks and production companies,” said said Marc Graboff, President of Global Business and Legal Affairs, Production Management and Studios. "We are confident that her leadership skills, knowledge and deep expertise, combined with our talented crew of creative executives, will generate compelling content across our entire portfolio.”

R. Thomas Umstead

R. Thomas Umstead serves as senior content producer, programming for Multichannel News, Broadcasting + Cable and Next TV. During his more than 30-year career as a print and online journalist, Umstead has written articles on a variety of subjects ranging from TV technology, marketing and sports production to content distribution and development. He has provided expert commentary on television issues and trends for such TV, print, radio and streaming outlets as Fox News, CNBC, the Today show, USA Today, The New York Times and National Public Radio. Umstead has also filmed, produced and edited more than 100 original video interviews, profiles and news reports featuring key cable television executives as well as entertainers and celebrity personalities.