Kahli Small hasjoined Universal's specialty film unit Focus Features as vice presidentof production, co-presidents David Linde and James Schamus announced today (Jan8). Small, who most recently worked as an independent producer, will be basedat the company's West Coast offices and will report directly to Focuspresident of production Glenn Williamson.

In a jointstatement issued today Linde and Schamus said: 'With Focus expanding itsglobal reach and worldwide distribution, we're making comparable stridesin our original productions. Kahli's appointment rounds out a strongcadre of production executives. Her background includes films of all sizes; welook forward to tapping her expertise on a variety of projects.'

Prior to workingas an independent producer, Small was head of production at co-financing andproduction company Key Entertainment, where she was involved in such projectsas Michael Petroni's Till Human Voices Wake Us which is being handled in the US byParamount Classics. Before that she was a production executive at MGM, whereher credits included Legally Blonde and Heartbreakers.

FocusFeaturesí current and upcoming slate includes Far from Heaven, which has been nominated for four GoldenGlobe Awards: Roman Polanski's The Pianist, which has been nominated for two; GaryHardwick's Deliver Us From Eva, starring LL Cool J and Gabrielle Union; Jim Simpson'sThe Guys, starringSigourney Weaver and Anthony LaPaglia; Neil LaBute's The Shape ofThings, starringGretchen Mol, Paul Rudd, Rachel Weisz, and Frederick Weller; and Francois Ozon'sfirst English-language feature, Swimming Pool, starring Charlotte Rampling, CharlesDance, and Ludivine Sagnier.

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