Sidley Duo Honored Amongst Variety’s “Hollywood’s New Leaders of 2023” List

Sidley’s Felipe Ruiz Ricagni and Ashleigh R. Stanley have been named to Variety’s “Hollywood’s New Leaders of 2023” list. The annual supplement spotlights the creatives and executives in film, TV, music, agencies, management, law, and talent “newly emergent at the forefront of the entertainment industry.”

Variety commended the duo on their “complementary skill sets, mutual trust, and a shared desire to find advantageous solutions for their clients and the parties they’re negotiating with.” The publication highlighted their representation of Ben Affleck and Matt Damon in launching Artists Equity. Ashleigh focused on the financing components of the complex deal, while Felipe identified ways to protect the clients’ need for creative freedom while respecting investors’ overall goals for the deal.

As a managing associate in Sidley’s Century City office, Felipe represents entertainment companies and sources of capital in M&A, private equity, and commercial transactions, and advises entertainment companies on general corporate matters.

Ashleigh is a managing associate who focuses her practice on complex commercial arrangements and financing-related issues for businesses in the entertainment, sports, media, and music industries. She frequently represents studios, production companies, distributors, and other media entities through all aspects of the film and television life cycle, including financing, production, distribution, licensing, and acquisition.