Marina Grasic has left herpost as chief operating officer of Sidney Kimmel Entertainment (SKE) in a busyweek for the company following the hiring of William Horberg and Jim Tauber.

Grasic had been with thecompany ever since Kimmel launched operations with the opening of the LosAngeles office last October.

While it remained unclearwhat Grasic planned to do next, the departure of the attorney and executiveproducer of Paul Haggis' recent hit Crash are clearly related to the arrival of the two senior executives.

Horberg was named presidentof production and Tauber will head up all other divisions as SKE president.Both will report directly to Kimmel and develop operations at the Los Angelesand New York-based production company.

SKE senior vice president ofproduction Scott Nicolaides and chief financial officer Richard Lewis, bothheadquartered in Los Angeles, as well as SKE head of international sales MarkLindsay, based in New York, complete the senior management team.

In a statement Kimmel saidthe new arrivals were key elements of his company's expansion plans.

"Jim brings with him yearsof experience and, most importantly, exceptional relationships," Kimmel said."His past production experiences, coupled with his years as both an independentand studio production head, make him a perfect match for the company at thisvery important point in our growth.

"Bill has an enormouscreative background and the deep respect of this entire community. He will be aspecial asset to our company. I am confident that with the leadership,knowledge and tastes of Bill and Jim, they will be instrumental in helping usbecome a meaningful global supplier of filmed entertainment."

Tauber most recently servedas executive vice president of acquisitions and co-productions at TwentiethCentury Fox, and prior to that worked as president and chief operating officerat Anonymous Content and Propaganda Films.

Horberg arrives from his owncompany Wonderland Films, where he served as a producer on American Gothic. Before that he produced Cold Mountain at Mirage Enterprises and served as senior vicepresident of production at Paramount.

Career credits include TheTalented Mr Ripley, The Quiet American,and Sliding Doors.

SKE recently completedproduction on Joshua Michael Stern's Neverwas starring Aaron Eckhart, Ian McKellan, William Hurt,Brittany Murphy and Nick Nolte, and Bart Freundlich's romantic comedy TrustThe Man, with Julianne Moore, MaggieGyllenhaal, David Duchovny and Billy Crudup.

The Ed Harris drama CopyingBeethoven is in production inBudapest and SKE is in post-production on Nick Cassavetes' Alpha Dog, starring Justin Timberlake, Emile Hirsch, BenFoster, Sharon Stone and Bruce Willis.