BRAD WESTON LAUNCHES MAKEREADY, BACKED BY ENTERTAINMENT ONE
21/07/2017
ENTERTAINMENT ONE DISTRIBUTING IN ITS TERRITORIES
ENTERTAINMENT ONE TO ALSO HANDLE INTERNATIONAL DISTRIBUTION OF TELEVISION CONTENT
With Executive Team, Distribution and Financing in Place, New Independent Studio will Develop and Produce Original Content for all Platforms
LOS ANGELES, CA May 17, 2017 Industry veteran Brad Weston, with backing from global independent studio Entertainment One (eOne), has launched MAKEREADY, a new global content creation company. MAKEREADY will develop and produce original feature films and high-end television for premium cable, OTT and emerging platforms on a worldwide basis. Set to release two pictures annually beginning next year, Universal Pictures is committed to handling worldwide theatrical marketing and distribution for the company's feature films, with eOne handling theatrical distribution across its footprint including Canada, the UK, Australia/New Zealand, Benelux and Spain. eOne, the lead investor in MAKEREADY, will also handle international distribution of all television content from MAKEREADY. JPMorgan Chase will lead the production facility for the new enterprise, which is fully funded for the development and financing of premium content.
Said Weston: I am lucky to have Universal and eOne as partners. I have always admired everything my longtime friend Donna Langley has done. We share similar business philosophies and sensibilities. Combining our easy relationship with their brilliant marketing, Universal is a comfortable and natural fit. In eOne, I've found an ambitious global likeminded partner who shares my passion for great content. I believe that the confidence that Darren Throop and the eOne team have shown in me and MAKEREADY will prove to be the foundation for a long and successful future together.
Said Darren Throop, CEO, Entertainment One: We are thrilled to support Brad on the launch of his new company. We have always been impressed by his incredible track record of delivering compelling content that is as commercially successful as it is award-worthy, and we are excited to be able to deliver that content to audiences around the world.
Said Donna Langley, Chairman, Universal Pictures: Brad's filmmaker-driven approach and proven track record for delivering both prestigious and commercial films make him a perfect fit for the studio, and we look forward to a long and successful relationship.
Weston, who serves as MAKEREADY's Chief Executive Officer, formed the company to build an independent studio focused on deep partnerships with content creators, providing them with the support and resources to develop and produce creative-driven projects. Pam Abdy will head MAKEREADY's executive team, alongside the company's soon-to-be announced television and digital executives.
Headquartered in Culver City, MAKEREADY currently has several projects in various stages of development including Saigon, a television series from Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Davisson's Appian Way and writer David James Kelly. Saigon marks Appian Way's continued collaboration with Kelly as they are currently working together on Robin Hood which will wrap production this month in Paris, France. The series would also reunite Weston with Appian following the tremendous success they shared on The Revenant. Abdy landed the recent New York Times bestselling novel They Can't Kill Us All which chronicles the formation of the Black Lives Matter movement and is being developed as a limited series. The company is also developing a series based on the Boom! graphic comic Old City Blues with Hollywood Black List screenwriter Arash Amel attached and a genuine and experiential series about late teens and twenty-year-olds with Chlo Grace Moretz executive producing.
Having worked for over 30 years in the entertainment business, Weston has presided over both major and independent studios. He most recently served as president and chief executive officer of New Regency, where in just five years, he led the company to a remarkable 34 Academy Award nominations and 12 wins, including two Best Picture Oscars, for films including The Revenant, Birdman, Gone Girl, 12 Years a Slave and The Big Short. Prior to joining New Regency, Weston served as president of production for Paramount Pictures where he was responsible for films including Star Trek, Cloverfield, The Fighter, Shutter Island, GI Joe, and Rango.
I learned a long time ago in this business, that it's all about the talent, and that's never been more true than it is today, said Weston. Assembling the best filmmakers, show runners, writers and actors is crucial in order to break through the noise and grab people with something truly bold and original. The only way to make that impact is to collaborate with people with singular visions and that are strong enough to execute. At Regency, our mandate was to work with great directors whose films should be made independently but also warranted worldwide studio distribution. That proved to work out really well, and so with MAKEREADY it will be that same approach applied to film, television, and digital content.
Abdy most recently served as president of production for New Regency, working closely with Weston on The Revenant and The Big Short among others. Prior to New Regency, she served as president of Scott Stuber's Bluegrass Films where she produced films including Identity Thief and Endless Love. She previously served as executive vice president of Paramount Pictures. Abdy also produced the award-winning film Garden State.
I am incredibly excited to have Pam on board, she is a terrific executive, a great and trusted friend who I have enjo
LINK: | http://www.entertainmentone.com/press/brad-weston-launches-makeready-b... |
See more stories from entertainment1 |
Most recent headlines
04/08/2024
Dalet Appoints Santiago Solanas as CEO to Lead Next Era of Growth and Innovation
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, is excited to announce Santiago Solanas as its new Chief Executive Officer (CEO)....
03/06/2024
Dalet and Veritone Reach Agreement to Distribute, Transact and Monetize Media Archives
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, a...
28/04/2024
Mediahaus delivers the first SRT live-streaming sports production over 5G with URSA Broadcast G2
Mediahaus delivers the first SRT live-streaming sports production over 5G with U...
19/04/2024
Thank You for visiting us at NAB 2024!
Thank You for visiting us at NAB 2024! Thank you for joining us at the ToolsOnAir booth during NAB Show 2024! We were delighted to showcase our latest inno...
19/04/2024
Stress Positions Mines Health Anxieties for Comedy
PARK CITY, UTAH - JANUARY 18: (L-R) John Early and Theda Hammel attend the 2024 Sundance Film Festival Stress Positions premiere at Library Center Theatre on ...
19/04/2024
Give Me the Backstory: Get to Know Julian Brave NoiseCat and Emily Kassie, the Filmmakers Behind Sugarcane
By Lucy Spicer One of the most exciting things about the Sundance Film Festival...
19/04/2024
Mexico City Watchlist: 7 Documentaries About Working in CDMX
Pictured: Midnight Family By Stephanie Ornelas A great way to get to know a city as culturally unique and rich as Mexico City is to listen to the stories tol...
19/04/2024
SNS Dominates NAB Show 2024 With Triple Win For MOD
St. Louis, MO - April 18, 2024 - Studio Network Solutions (SNS) announced today that MOD won three prestigious industry awards at NAB Show 2024 held this week i...
19/04/2024
How Spotify Approaches Safety With Sarah Hoyle, Global Head of Trust and Safety
Spotify's mission is to unlock the potential of human creativity by giving a million artists the opportunity to live off their art and billions of fans the ...
19/04/2024
Spotify and Taylor Swift Create a One-of-a-Kind Library To Celebrate THE TORTURED POETS DEPARTMENT'
It's a beautiful day to be a Swiftie. Today, Taylor Swift dropped her 11th s...
19/04/2024
L3Harris Announces Quarterly Dividend
MELBOURNE, Fla., April 19, 2024 - The Board of Directors of L3Harris Technologies (NYSE:LHX) declared a quarterly cash dividend of $1.16 per common share, payab...
19/04/2024
Intel Lays Out 8K Production, AI Tech Plans for Paris Olympics
PARIS Intel has announced that its plans for the Olympic and Paralympic Games Paris 2024 will include using artificial intelligence technology powered by Intel ...
19/04/2024
Tech Advances Boost Adoption of 8K Production
LAS VEGAS Technologists working on all aspects of the 8K media production chain offered an optimistic update at the 2024 NAB Show on the state of 8K in video pr...
19/04/2024
OpenDrives New Software-Defined Platform Atlas Wins 2024 NAB Show Product of the Year Award
OpenDrives New Software-Defined Platform Atlas Wins 2024 NAB Show Product of the...
19/04/2024
Grass Valley Showcases Next-Generation T3 Series 4K/HD Digital Recording and Playback for Venues and Stadiums
Grass Valley Showcases Next-Generation T3 Series 4K/HD Digital Recording and Pla...
19/04/2024
NiTRo's M-CUBE Studio Levels Up Esports Productions with AJA Gear
NiTRo's M-CUBE Studio Levels Up Esports Productions with AJA Gear Brie Clayton April 19, 2024 0 Comments Esports' rapid rise to popularity can...
19/04/2024
Blackmagic Design Announces DaVinci Resolve 19
Blackmagic Design Announces DaVinci Resolve 19 Brie Clayton April 19, 2024 0 Comments Major update adds new DaVinci Neural Engine AI tools, new color ...
19/04/2024
Sony Considering Bid to Acquire Paramount
Sony Pictures Entertainment is reportedly in talks with Apollo Global Management to make a bid to acquire Paramount which itself is currently discussing a merge...
19/04/2024
How 1185 Films created the VFX on new horror, All You Need Is Death
Simon Wilkinson, head of VFX at 1185 films, talks about the technology behind the newly-released horror By Matthew Corrigan Published: April 19, 2024 Simo...
19/04/2024
Could Sony be preparing a bid for Channel 5's parent company?
The global electronics company is said to be considering joining forces with investment firm Apollo Management to bid for Paramount Global By Jenny Priestley ...
19/04/2024
EBU report highlights contribution of free-to-air sport broadcasting
The report broke the economic footprint of EBU member sports broadcasting into three main areas By Matthew Corrigan Published: April 19, 2024 The report b...
19/04/2024
CBS Stations Launches CBS News California Investigates' Segments
CBS Stations has launched CBS News California Investigates , with Julie Watts named regional CBS California correspondent. She will uncover and raise awarenes...
19/04/2024
MediaCo Acquires Estrella Media's Spanish-Language Network, Content Assets
MediaCo Holding, which owns radio stations WQHT (Hot 97) and WBLS in New York, said it acquired Estrella Media's Spanish-language video, audio and digital c...
19/04/2024
Season 5 of The Witcher' Will Be Final One
Netflix has ordered season five of fantasy drama The Witcher, which will be the final season. Production has recently begun on season four, and the two remainin...
19/04/2024
DirecTV Stream To Carry Eight More The CW Affiliates
DirecTV Stream said it added eight more The CW affiliates to its lineup on Thursday....
19/04/2024
CBS Orders More Elsbeth'
CBS has renewed Elsbeth for the 2024-2025 season. The drama, with Carrie Preston in the lead role, debuted February 29....
19/04/2024
With Bears on the Clock. NBCU Local Chicago Plans Extensive NFL Draft Coverage
With the Bears picking first, NBCUniversal Local's properties in Chicago plan extensive coverage of the NFL draft next week....
19/04/2024
Comcast Launches NOW
PHILADELPHIA As government subsidies for broadband services come to an end, Comcast has launched NOW, a new product portfolio of lower-cost Internet, mobile and...
19/04/2024
DirecTV Stream Adds CW Affiliates
DirecTV Stream has added more local CW stations for its streaming customers in Boston, Charlotte, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Hartford-New Haven Conn., Phoenix, San ...
19/04/2024
MediaCo Acquires Estrella Media's Content and Digital Operations
NEW YORK & LOS ANGELES MediaCo Holding Inc. has announced that it has acquired all of Estrella Media's network, content, digital, and commercial operations....
19/04/2024
Adobe Launches New Adobe Express Mobile App with Firefly AI
SAN JOSE, Calif. Adobe has announced that the all-new Adobe Express mobile app is available to all users, bringing features powered by Adobe Firefly generative ...
19/04/2024
Netflix Adds 9.3M Subs in Q1
LOS GATOS, Calif. Netflix reported another blockbuster quarter by adding 9.33 million new subscribers in Q1, 2024 as global paid memberships hit 269.6 million, ...
19/04/2024
The Current State of the Industry and the Future Impact of AI
The Current State of the Industry and the Future Impact of AI Hillary Lewis April 18, 2024 0 Comments The Entertainment Industry: How did we get here ...
19/04/2024
After Effects Tutorial Text Blur Reveal
After Effects Tutorial Text Blur Reveal Andy Ford April 18, 2024 0 Comments Here's a way to do a quick blur reveal for your text layer. Start by...
19/04/2024
Hollyland Mars M1 Enhanced Wireless Transmitter / Receiver
Hollyland Mars M1 Enhanced Wireless Transmitter / Receiver Colin Smith April 18, 2024 0 Comments This tutorial shows the new wireless transmitter rece...
19/04/2024
Resolve Fusion: Writing Expressions with Lua
Resolve Fusion: Writing Expressions with Lua Simon Ubsdell April 18, 2024 0 Comments The answer to the very frequently-asked question: what is the pro...
19/04/2024
B+C,' Next TV' Announce Winners of Best of Show Awards at NAB Show
B+C and Next TV have announced the winners of Best of Show Awards for the 2024 NAB Show. The awards were judged by a panel of industry experts at the convention...
19/04/2024
Cate Blanchett Narrates Nature Series on Netflix
Cate Blanchett narrates the Netflix series Our Living World, which premieres April 17. The four-part series looks at the extraordinary creatures around the glob...
19/04/2024
For All Mankind' Spinoff Is in the Works at Apple TV Plus
Apple TV Plus has a spinoff of For All Mankind in the works. It is called Star City and details the cosmonauts, engineers and intelligence officers working behi...
19/04/2024
Jacquie Walker, Longtime Buffalo Anchor, Stepping Down From Desk
Jacquie Walker, longtime anchor at WIVB Buffalo, will step down from the anchor desk. She has spent over 40 years at WIVB and her last day as an anchor is May 2...
19/04/2024
Bob Hearts Abishola' To Make Syndicated Debut This Fall
Bob Hearts Abishola will premiere in broadcast syndication this fall on such station groups as Nexstar Media Group, Sinclair, Hearst Television, Tegna, E.W. Scr...
19/04/2024
Live With Kelly and Mark' Celebrates One-Year Anniversary
Live With Kelly and Mark remains TV's top entertainment talk show as Kelly Ripa and her co-host and husband Mark Consuelo celebrate their one-year anniversa...
19/04/2024
Sean McLaughlin Named VP of News at Graham Media Group
Sean McLaughlin has been named VP of news for Graham Media Group. He had been senior VP of local news at E.W. Scripps. He will will be responsible for developi...
19/04/2024
Netflix Shares First Peek at Long-Awaited One Hundred Years of Solitude'
Netflix has shared the first trailer from One Hundred Years of Solitude, a series based on the esteemed novel by Gabriel Garc a M rquez. The streamer is on boar...
19/04/2024
NAB 2024 in Review: West Hall - SportsTech Buzz From AWS, Appear, Ateme, The Switch, TATA Communications, Telstra, TVU Networks, Verizon, and More
NAB 2024 in Review: West Hall - SportsTech Buzz From AWS, Appear, Ateme, The Swi...
19/04/2024
NAB 2024 Draws 61,000+ Attendees With More Than Half Attending the Show for the First Time
NAB 2024 Draws 61,000+ Attendees With More Than Half Attending the Show for the ...
19/04/2024
Rohde & Schwarz and VIAVI support European OTIC in Berlin for O-RAN conformance certification
Rohde & Schwarz and VIAVI support European OTIC in Berlin for O-RAN conformance ...
19/04/2024
Riedel launches Bolero Connect for seamless integration with PunQtum
Wuppertal April 19, 2024 Riedel launches Bolero Connect for seamless integration with PunQtum A pioneer in the field of digital intercom, Riedel has recently ...