Film Industry Veterans Launch Ashland Hill Media Finance (EXCLUSIVE)
variety.comBrent Lang Executive Editor of Film and MediaA trio of veteran film financiers and producers are launching a new venture.Joe Simpson, Simon Williams and Jonathan Bross are teaming up on Ashland Hill Media Finance, a film and TV financing venture, backed by an alternative investment fund with assets under management of $1.85 billion.
From its offices in Santa Monica and London, Ashland Hill expects to close upwards of 25 deals in the next 12 months, with plans to further expand its operations beyond the U.S.
and U.K. later this year. The company will also acquire rights and package projects for its own production pipeline.“We are the new and much-needed source of reliable, flexible and speedy financing for the film and TV markets,” Simpson said. “We help the producers, filmmakers and storytellers of the world turn their visions into reality.” The initial slate of Ashland Hill-financed films includes: Philip Noyce’s action-thriller “Fast Charlie” starring Pierce Brosnan, Morena Baccarin and James Caan, which just wrapped principal photography in Louisiana and is represented at Cannes by Foresight Unlimited.
In addition, the company has also backed the tech thriller “57 Seconds,” directed by Rusty Cundieff, starring Josh Hutcherson and Morgan Freeman, which will be represented by Highland Film Group.
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