The Team

Tim Sparke, Chief Executive

Tim founded MercuryMedia in 2000 and has been focusing the company solely on documentary since 2005. Prior to Mercury, Tim amassed 15 years experience working for Disney, Thames, BBC and the AP rising to senior executive roles. He contributes at a strategic level to Ofcom, the BBC Trust and EDN, (European Documentary Network). Tim founded joiningthedocs.tv in 2008 in order to increase the availability of documentary films, which he believes are under-served by traditional channels and deserve a wider audience.

“I’ve found MercuryMedia very friendly, helpful and supportive. They have a knowledgeable and well connected team that go the extra mile for the producers they represent”
- Steve Humphries, MD Testimony Films

Patricia Hickey, Head of Sales & Acquisitions

Patricia has worked for over 10 years in both theatrical and television sales in the UK and USA. She has been with Mercury for 3 years and handles world wide sales excluding UK and acquisitions. Prior to joining Mercury, Patricia worked in theatrical sales at Sony Pictures Classics in New York, and has held executive positions at Buena Vista International Television and Freemantle International in London.

Ben Wharton, Content Director

Ben has enjoyed moving between TV, post-production, feature writing, web producing and festival programming for over 10 years. Ben has produced TV/online shows covering independent filmmaking, the video game industry and written articles on the animation and visual effects community. A keen film enthusiast across all genres, Ben is passionate about the power of visual storytelling.

“Mercury Media took on a tough film and made some decent sales. Tim is always available for a chat – which is more than you can say of most sales agents! They really fight for their producers.”
- Chris Atkins, Director

Helena G. Martinez, Accounts/Sales Executive Iberia & Latin America

With more than five years of experience in film financing and funding in Barcelona, Madrid and NY, Helena has settled down in London, handling Mercury’s accounts and representing the company’s catalogue in Spanish and Portuguese speaking territories.

Calum Gray, Sales & Acquisitions Executive

Calum Gray joined Mercury as Sales & Acquisitions Executive in 2009. He joined the team from Celsius Entertainment where he worked as an international sales agent on a number of high profile independent film and documentary features; these included two Sundance Grand Jury Award winning docs.

Mark Navarrete, Marketing Executive

Mark has taken up the role of Marketing Executive and is responsible for the development and execution of Mercury’s marketing activity. Prior to Mercury, Mark honed his knowledge of distribution at Optimum Releasing, MTV Networks and The Works UK.