Primitives has appointed Simone de Pruyssenaere de la Woestyne as its new managing director, taking over from Jan Huyse, who has headed the Belgium-headquartered specialist formats distributor since 2018.
Huyse will hand over the company he helped to found to de Pruyssenaere de la Woestyne on January 1, 2026. He passes on a thriving operation that is now ranked by TV trends-tracking agency The WIT in the top-10 global format distributors — the first time that an independent distributor has broken into the formats super-league.
As director of sales and acquisitions, de Pruyssenaere de la Woestyne has played a pivotal role in Primitives’ strong performance in recent years. She joined the distributor in 2022 from Belgium-based Be-Entertainment, where she was responsible for format sales. Her CV includes executive sales and acquisitions roles at Nordic World, Magnify Media and Absolutely Independent. For the past 10 years, she has also run her own consultancy, Cliffhanger Media, specialising in format discovery, marketing, pitching and dealmaking.
Primitives has enjoyed a stand-out year, driven in part by the success of original Belgian format 99 To Beat, which now ranks alongside global juggernaut The Traitors as one of the top-six most-sold formats in the world, according to The WIT. The fast-paced, family-friendly entertainment format, in which 100 contestants compete against each other in a series of brilliantly bonkers challenges, has now been acquired by 12 broadcasters, including FOX in the US and Atresmedia in Spain.
Jan Huyse said: “Primitives started as small vehicle to help three Belgian independent producers distribute their formats to the wider world. Seeing it develop into a solid player in the formats market is one of the great professional pleasures of my long career in the business. I want to thank our rights-holders and clients for their trust, our shareholders for giving us a free rein in terms of plans and ambitions — and, of course, the great staff that made it all happen. Special thanks go out to Siobhan Crawford for daring to be bold and opening up our limited Belgian point of view. Finally, I could not be happier that Simone is taking over the baton. Her excellent work as sales and acquisitions director has helped make this little Belgian company the number-one independent distributor in the world. And I’m convinced there’s a lot more to come.”
Simone de Pruyssenaere de la Woestyne added: “Primitives has achieved the rare feat of sustaining growth, revenue and relevance in a volatile global market. The past year has been one of our strongest yet, with formats including 99 To Beat, Zero Stars and The Ultimate Celebrity Car Park Showdown picking up real momentum internationally. We seem to have hit a sweet spot between scale, quality and originality — plus we can draw on Belgium’s well-deserved reputation for creative risk-taking and quirky storytelling. I’m looking forward to contuining to build on this success with our brilliant team, strong creative partners and formats that deserve the spotlight.”
• Primitives’ 99 To Beat ranked in top-six most-sold formats in global market
About Primitives:
Primitives is a leading Belgian format distributor known for bold, original television formats with international impact. With a strong focus on reality and entertainment, Primitives represents a dynamic slate of shows created by some of Europe’s most inventive production companies. Standout titles include the global phenomenon The Mole, the high-energy hit 99 To Beat, and the latest success The Ultimate Celebrity Car Park Showdown. For more information, visit primitives.tv.
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