1091 Pictures was an American production company based in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

and

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. The company was founded as the film and television division

subsidiary A subsidiary, subsidiary company, or daughter company is a company (law), company completely or partially owned or controlled by another company, called the parent company or holding company, which has legal and financial control over the subsidia ...

of The Orchard in 2015. The company is best known for the Oscar-nominated films ''

Life, Animated ''Life, Animated'' is a 2016 American independent documentary film by director Roger Ross Williams. It is co-produced by Williams with Julie Goldman, Carolyn Hepburn and Christopher Clements. ''Life, Animated'' is based on journalist Ron Sus ...

'' and ''

Cartel Land ''Cartel Land'' is a 2015 American documentary film directed by Matthew Heineman about the Mexican Drug War, especially vigilante groups fighting Mexican drug cartels. The film focuses on Tim "Nailer" Foley, the leader of Arizona Border Recon ...

''. Sony divested the company and its catalogue of over 4,000 in 2019, with the company adopting the name 1091 Media. In 2020, the company rebranded as 1091 Pictures and announced that its parent company rebranded as Streamwise, the name of its new technology platform in development. December of 2023, multiple filmmakers took legal action against 1091 Pictures for failing to make payments of revenue sharing from distribution deals the company had contracted with. In July 2024, parent company Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment was placed in

Chapter 7 liquidation Chapter 7 of Title 11 U.S. Code is the bankruptcy code that governs the process of liquidation under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. This is in contrast to bankruptcy under Chapter 11 and Chapter 13, which govern the process of ''reor ...

, which would signal a liquidation of the company's assets, and the cessation of its subsidiaries, including 1091 Pictures.

History

The company was founded in 2015, as a

video on demand Video on demand (VOD) is a media distribution system that allows users to access videos, television shows and films Digital distribution, digitally on request. These multimedia are accessed without a traditional video playback device and a typica ...

division of the Orchard, a subsidiary of

Sony Entertainment Sony Entertainment, Inc. is the umbrella entertainment division of Japanese multinational conglomerate Sony Group Corporation and managed by its American subsidiary, established in 2012 to oversee the corporation's ventures in film, televisio ...

. By year end, the company expanded to theatrical releases, initially setting a seven-film release with

Mark Duplass Mark David Duplass (born December 7, 1976) is an American filmmaker, actor, writer, and musician. With his brother Jay Duplass, he started the film production company Duplass Brothers Productions in 1996, for which they wrote and directed ''The ...

, and

Jay Duplass Lawrence Jay Duplass Jr. (born March 7, 1973) is an American filmmaker, actor, and author widely known for his films ''The Puffy Chair'' (2005), ''Cyrus'' (2010), and '' Jeff, Who Lives at Home'' (2011), made in collaboration with his younger br ...

. The company also picked up

, which went on to get an Academy Award nomination for Best Documentary in 2016. In September 2016, the company announced a film transparency platform to help independent filmmakers get more data around rentals, streams and purchases as well as projections for when a film will break even and start generating profits. In January 2019, the film and television division was divested from The Orchard sold its film and television division. The company was acquired by the principals of Dimensional Associates, a private equity firm that launched The Orchard. The company's final films were ''Japanese Borscht'' and ''

Baristas A barista ( , ; ) is a person, usually a coffeehouse employee, who prepares and serves espresso-based coffee drinks and other beverages. Etymology and inflection The word comes from Italian language, Italian, where it means a "bartender" who ...

'', before being rebranded as 1091 Media on April 3, 2019. In April 2019, film studio

Fathom Events Fathom Events is an entertainment content provider that broadcasts entertainment events in movie theaters throughout the United States, including Metropolitan Opera Live in HD, the performing arts, major sporting events, and music concerts. The ...

signed a multi-year distribution deal with 1091 Media. In July 2020, the company announced a new CTO, Simon Zhu, rebranded its distribution business as 1091 Pictures, and rebranded its parent company as Streamwise. Streamwise is a new technology platform the company is developing to provide distributors, production companies and filmmakers with insights and consolidated financial information for their releases, along with consolidated access to top streaming channels and other services. A private beta of the Streamwise platform is expected to release in December 2020, beginning with more than 500 distributors already tied to 1091 Pictures. The launch of Streamwise marks the final step in the separation of 1091's systems from its previous owner, The Orchard. In August 2020, former

Roku Roku ( ) is a brand of consumer electronics that includes streaming players, smart TVs (and their operating systems), as well as a free TV streaming service. The brand is owned by Roku, Inc., an American company. As of 2024, Roku is the U ...

executive, Doug Shineman, joined 1091 Pictures and Streamwise as CRO, leading teams responsible for revenue generation, including all dealmaking, strategy and marketing for the business. In March 2022, Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment acquired 1091 Pictures. On April 23, 2024, Chicken Soup for the Soul announced a $636.6 million loss in 2023, and warned that without any options to generate additional financing, the company may be forced to liquidate or pause operations, and seek a potential

Chapter 11 bankruptcy Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code ( Title 11 of the United States Code) permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Such reorganization, known as Chapter 11 bankruptcy, is available to every business, w ...

protection filing. On June 29, 2024, the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection after missing a week of paying its employees and failing to secure financing. On July 11, the U.S. Bankruptcy Court approved a conversion of the bankruptcy to Chapter 7, which would signal a liquidation of the company's assets, and the cessation of its subsidiaries, including 1091 Pictures.

Filmography

As The Orchard

Under 1091 Pictures

References

{{Film Studio American companies established in 2015 American companies disestablished in 2024 Mass media companies established in 2015 Mass media companies disestablished in 2024 American film studios Television production companies of the United States Film distributors of the United States 2015 establishments in California 2024 disestablishments in California Mass media companies based in New York City Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment subsidiaries 2022 mergers and acquisitions Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2024 Companies that filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in 2024