Kids and youth indie Kindle Entertainment and film and TV drama producer Vertigo Films are both set for international expansion after each were snapped up by French firms this week.
Banijay has bought Kindle, which produces Sky's Little Darlings and Netflix teen drama The A List (originally a BBC co-pro), for its Kids & Family division.
It sits alongside another Banijay acquisition, Italian animator Movementi Production, plus its established roster of Zodiak Kids & Family Productions UK, Tiger Aspect Kids & Family, Zodiak Kids & Family France, Monello Productions and Zodiak Kids & Family Distribution.
London-based Kindle is run by Melanie Stokes and Anne Brogan, who set up the company 15 years ago.
The deal follows French studio Federation’s acquisition of a majority stake in Vertigo, which started out as a film company 20 years ago, producing movies including Bronson and Monsters, before pivoting to premium TV drama in 2014. Under chief executive Jane Moore, it has scored two hits for Sky: Britannia and Bulletproof.
Upcoming shows include Amazon series Mammals, from Britannia creator Jez Butterworth, an unnamed film for Sky Cinema and Sky Max’s 1980s-era gangster drama A Town Called Malice.
In a joint statement, Moore and Vertigo co-founders James Richardson and Allan Niblo, said Federation shares the company’s “independent, rebellious and ambitious spirit” and would help to “expand and drive our ambitious slate at full speed”.
Producer and distributor Federation set up a UK operation last year and operates a French joint venture with US studio Anonymous Content. It also has a presence in Italy, Germany, Spain and Belgium and has 20 subsidiaries in total.
Federation president said the two companies will “jointly offer even more ambitious series and films to the British and global market and international platforms,” adding: “These productions will be better funded by attracting top creators, producers and independent projects.”
