Industry

Communication / Media

Company Type

Film Financing

 

Size

$30 million

Investment Type

Equity, Debt

For important risk and disclaimer information, Click Here.


Meet KATRINA WOLFE


President of Production

Launched BN Film (AG Studios)

$150 million high-end, low budget films platform

        • Nightingale (acquired by HBO)
        • Captive (acquired by Paramount)

SVP – Production/Casting Dimension Films (Miramax/TWC )

        • Bad Santa
        • Terry Gilliam’s Brothers Grimm
        • 1408
        • The Others
        • Scary Movie 1,2 and 3
        • Sin City
        • Tarantino’s Death Proof

Renowned Film Executive

Emmy and Critics Choice nominated producer



OVERVIEW


Morphic Media, a film content company, is seeking +/-$30 million to fund and produce a diverse portfolio of low-budget ($5 million or less) independent narrative and documentary feature films


Team led by industry veterans Katrina Wolfe and Vincenzo Carrano 

  • broad end-to-end experience
  • proven and successful track records 
  • produce/executive produce all film content

20+ films funded over 5+ years, with majority control and upside participation to maximize profit and spread risk 


Efficient deployment of capital by utilizing government rebates to offset significant portion of film production costs


Innovative approach to curating and financing a wide variety of elevated commercially viable film content


Sweet Spot: Independent low-budget films have matched or outperformed high budget Hollywood films, despite having disproportionately smaller production, marketing and advertising budgets


Financial Discipline: Lower production budgets inherently impose financial controls, enhance creativity, enable faster cost recovery while providing more flexible distribution options and are much more practical to execute amid COVID-19 restrictions


Ineffective Competitors: Most independent film funds mistakenly target the mid-range market ($15M-$35M) which has consistently underperformed 


Demand Explosion: There is unprecedented demand for new content fueled by the explosion of digital entertainment streaming platforms (aka the “streaming wars” – Netflix, Amazon, Disney+, HBO Max, Apple, etc.) and compounded by large studios producing fewer pictures


Industry Resilience: The film content industry has performed consistently, with many of the most profitable films of all-time produced or released during periods of major recessions and wars

 


OPPORTUNITY




SOLUTION / STRATEGY


Finance and produce a portfolio of low-budget films


Films expected to shoot in geographic areas offering robust government rebates for production 


Approximately 20+ low-budget feature films expected to be funded and produced 


Initial focus to be on material already controlled by the management team, with 4+ assets ready for production and another 8+ in the pipeline 


Company will likely provide majority equity financing required by each film project to secure ownership/control of asset and participate in upside profit success 


Average equity investment per-picture estimated to be in the $1-$1.5 million range 

 



MANAGEMENT


Katrina Wolfe

Emmy and Critic’s Choice nominated producer and executive. Senior Vice President of Production and Casting in the Dimension Films division of Miramax/TWC – worked on dozens of features including Bad Santa, 1408, The Others, Scary Movie 1,2 and 3, Sin City, Tarantino’s Death Proof, Terry Gilliam’s Brothers Grimm, et.al. VP at age 28 and SVP at age 31, becoming the highest-ranking female executive in Dimension history.


Helped launch a finance and production company BN Films, a subsidiary of AG Studios, as President of Production and partner – successfully managed a portfolio of high-end, low budget films via a $150 million platform.

Personally brought in and produced the critically acclaimed feature Nightingale, starring David Oyelowo. Brad Pitt’s Oscar winning production company, Plan B Films and his partners became co-executive producers on the picture. Film was acquired and distributed by HBO Films with a minimum guarantee of close to three times its total production budget – the first time in over a dozen years that HBO Films had purchased a completed film rather than developing and producing it in-house. Film and Oyelowo won or were nominated for several awards including Critic’s Choice, Emmy, and Golden Globe.

Produced true crime drama Captive starring Kate Mara that was acquired for worldwide theatrical distribution by Paramount Pictures in a lucrative deal that exceeded the film’s total production budget, with an 800-screen minimum commitment.

Launched her own division of AG Studios in 2015 that focused on development and production of high-quality films and television content.


Recent and upcoming projects include the Netflix original Spivak, fully financed by Netflix, and The Big Bend, which completed filming during the COVID-19 pandemic.


Graduated summa cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Columbia University where she won the Barnard English department’s highest honor – W. Cabell Green Prize for Excellence in English. 


 


 

Creative professional with extensive experience in the financial and artistic sides of media and entertainment. Worked with Fortune 100 companies, creative agencies, and startups to conceptualize, oversee, and deliver a diverse array of projects that include: marketing campaigns, brand rehauls, commercials, original short films, and long form narrative features.


Served as global marketing manager at Vodafone, managing $200 million portfolio of products and services. Developed and produced award-winning unconventional marketing campaigns that included a blend of branded storytelling with Microsoft, Nokia, Samsung, and others.


Partner and Head of Strategy and Production at PlusMinus, a creative studio that blended branding with photography as well as short and long-form original content. PlusMinus managed a roster of highly accomplished artists and film makers and provided creative services for clients that included Nike, Reebok, Matsuda, and Carnival Cruise Line.


Vincenzo is the Co-founder, CMO and creative Director of VAYA, a plant-based wellness company founded in 2020. The first product drop has been sold-out and the startup has built partnership with industry leading distribution platform such as EAZE, and already raised a new round of financing.


Masters in Business and Management from L. Bocconi University in Italy.


MANAGEMENT


Vincenzo Carrano


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Thanks, Ken

Ken Margolis | Managing Partner Castle Placement, LLC
1460 Broadway Street, Rte 400
New York, New York 10036
(212) 418-1188 | C: (516) 712-7784
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