EXCLUSIVE: The North Road Company’s funding drive continues.
Peter Chernin’s firm has acquired Little Room Films, the manufacturing firm established by Jason Hehir, the director behind the hit basketball docuseries The Last Dance.
It marks Chernin’s newest funding within the non-fiction area, having invested in Words+Pictures, the corporate began by former ESPN content material chief Connor Schell.
Hehir has labored intently with Words+Pictures; along with producing and directing The Last Dance, which due to unimaginable footage and Michael Jordan’s participation turned ESPN’s most-watched documentary ever, which was exec produced by Schell and Libby Geist, Hehir additionally directed and exec produced Countdown: Inspiration4 Mission to Space, the Netflix docuseries that was produced by Words+Pictures. He additionally labored intently with 30 for 30 co-creator Schell throughout his time at ESPN.
Jason Hehir (Little Room Films)
Little Room Films was based by Hehir in 2021, within the wake of the success of The Last Dance. Hehir can also be the director of HBO’s Andre The Giant documentary and his slate contains Murder in Boston: Roots, Rampage & Reckoning, a documentary collection for HBO produced in affiliation with The Boston Globe that’s popping out in December. He additionally has tasks within the works with Netflix.
Hehir has gained a variety of Emmys through the years together with Outstanding Directing For A Documentary/Nonfiction Program and Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Series for The Last Dance. He will stay President of Little Room Films.
It is The North Road Company’s newest funding in a busy interval. The firm not too long ago invested a “significant” stake in Two One Five Entertainment, based by Questlove and Black Thought of The Roots, earlier this month.
On the non-fiction aspect, it continues to increase the businesses working beneath Words + Pictures. Last 12 months, it acquired Jonathan Hock’s Hock Films and, in May, acquired an possession stake in Peyton Manning’s Omaha Productions.
The North Road Company nonetheless has plenty of funding at its fingertips; it acquired $800 million final 12 months together with $500M from Providence Equity Partners and $300M in debt financing from Apollo Advisors, by means of its managed associates, in addition to an additional $150 million earlier this 12 months from the Qatar Investment Authority.
Words+Pictures’ slate features a docuseries for Netflix in regards to the U.S. Women’s National Soccer staff’s 2023 World Cup run, The Yankees Win for ESPN, HBO’s The Lionheart in regards to the late champion motorsports driver Dan Wheldon and an upcoming documentary in regards to the late Christopher Reeve. The firm additionally produces stay reveals by way of its Full Day Productions banner together with The Netflix Cup.
“All of us at Little Room Films are thrilled to join forces with The North Road Company. Peter [Chernin] and David [Nevins] are building a creative powerhouse, and we are excited to be a part of it going forward. I’m also looking forward to continuing a long and successful partnership with Connor Schell, Libby Geist, and the incredible team they’ve built at Words + Pictures. Connor is a visionary leader and a trusted collaborator. I’m excited for the possibilities ahead and grateful for the opportunity to work alongside such talented partners,” stated Hehir.
Schell stated, “Having worked with Jason so many times, we have seen firsthand his ability to consistently tell the most compelling, high-end, and broadly resonant stories. Little Room is a perfect fit in the North Road portfolio, and we are so excited to offer the resources to help support its continued growth.”