Anton, the European production, financing and sales group behind “Greenland,” is set to ramp up its output following a significant injection of funds.
The company — which was the first to bring institutional slate funding to European production — has secured more than Euros100 million ($109 million) in new financing through a group of institutional investors, led by funds and accounts managed by BlackRock. The new financing will allow Anton to expand its feature film and television series development and production slate as it embarks on a significant phase of growth.
Led by founder and CEO Sébastien Raybaud, Anton now plans to produce 10 features per year, focussing on large-scale commercial European English-language projects in the genre space for a global audience. The company is currently in production on “Greenland 2,” starring Gerard Butler and Morena Baccarin and the sequel to 2020 survival thriller hit.
“We have an amazing development and production team in place focused on creating high quality, premium entertainment. Partnering and working with the very best A list cast and top-tier filmmakers, our goal is to produce films and series across all commercial genres on a global scale,” Raybaud told Variety. “This exciting investment from BlackRock allows us to greenlight more ambitious projects, and expand these partnerships with exceptional film and TV producers.”
Added Paul Braude, chief investment officer and Head of BlackRock’s Direct Private Opportunities Group: “Our investment approach seeks out unique, compelling opportunities outside of core private markets, and we see significant potential in television and film. We have been impressed by Anton’s success to date and are pleased to contribute to its ongoing growth.”
Anton was established in 2011 by Raybaud with an $180 million slate funding deal with StudioCanal – the first of its kind in Europe. Headquartered in London, with offices in Los Angeles and Berlin, it now has nearly 500 film and TV titles in its library, including “Paddington,” “Shaun the Sheep,” “His Dark Materials,” “Greenland,” and “Mothers’ Instinct.”
Anton’s current film slate includes Claude Barras’ animated feature “Savages” which premiered in Cannes’ Official Selection. Other titles include stop-motion animation “Memoir of a Snail,” the newly announced “The Bookie & The Bruiser” starring Vince Vaughn and Adrien Brody, heist thriller “Fuze” from the director David Mackenzie starring Aaron Taylor Johnson, and Martin Campbell’s “Cleaner,” starring Daisy Ridley, Clive Owen and Taz Skylar.
Magnetar, who has been an investor in and funder of Anton since 2015, remains one of the largest shareholders in the company. Anton, which remains a business controlled by its management, was advised on the transaction by Access Media Advisory Ltd and Latham & Watkins and Nauta. BlackRock was advised by FTI Consulting and Clifford Chance.
Source Agencies
