Hot Shots 2025: Musanna Ahmed

When Tom Winchester set up Pure Fiction TV in 2022, Musanna Ahmed was the first person he brought on board.

“I’ve worked with very few executives, regardless of seniority, who can rival Musanna’s passion for our industry,” says Winchester.

“Joining as my assistant, he made himself invaluable at launch, contributing to drafting our mission statement and creative brief.”

Musanna had only been in the industry a year but quickly rose to development co-ordinator and is now development executive at the company. “He clearly has great aptitude for spotting a good idea, regularly flagging books or writers he feels worthy of discussion,” adds Winchester.

Hailing from a working-class Pakistani family in Lancashire, Musanna took a film & television studies degree at the University of Nottingham, later writing for Total Film and becoming a film programmer for the Barbican. But it took a move to Barcelona and a traineeship with documentary production firm Otoxo for things to open up, and his first full-time role was as a runner at Big Talk.

At Pure Fiction, Ahmed coined the term “gourmet popcorn” for the indie’s development slate, and is working on several original dramas.

“Musanna’s ability to juggle various projects, alongside his aptitude for spotting a new idea or an exciting book for adaptation, makes him a well-rounded executive,” says Winchester.