Annapurna Animation

Annapurna Pictures is an American independent media company founded by Megan Ellison on April 2, 2011, and based in Los Angeles, California. It is active in film, television theatrical production and video game publishing.

History

Annapurna Pictures was founded in 2011 by Megan Ellison as a production and financing company focusing on high-end auteur-driven cinema. Ellison had attended University of Southern California’s film school for two semesters and then left in 2005 and traveled the world. Among her stops was Nepal, where she trekked on the Himalayan mountain Annapurna, for which her production company is named.

By 2014 Annapurna had produced and/or financed the films '' Lawless'', '' The Master'', ''Killing Them Softly'', ''Zero Dark Thirty'', ''Spring Breakers'', '' The Grandmaster'', ''Her'', ''Foxcatcher'', and ''American Hustle'', and was starting production on ''Joy'', ''Sausage Party'', '' Wiener-Dog'', ''20th Century Women'', and '' Everybody Wants Some!!''.

In December 2016, the company announced its new division, Annapurna Interactive, to produce, develop, and distribute video games. Annapurna Interactive has become a major publisher of independently made games.

In January 2017, the company announced they would begin distributing films, with their first being ''Detroit'' directed by Kathryn Bigelow, set for release on August 4, 2017. They later signed a multi-year distribution deal with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) on March 27, in which MGM will distribute all of Annapurna's films in select international territories. On April 6, the company also announced an exclusive, multi-year output licensing agreement with Hulu.

In May 2017, Plan B Entertainment and Annapurna announced a three-year production deal to partner on at least three films a year, with Annapurna handling distribution and marketing. As part of the deal, Annapurna received the rights to Adam McKay's film ''Vice'' starring Christian Bale as Dick Cheney. It was also announced Annapurna would co-distribute ''Brad's Status'' alongside Amazon Studios. In July, the company signed a multi-year U.S. home entertainment pact with 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment to oversee its home releases.

Since Sony Pictures' contract to co-produce the James Bond series with MGM and Eon Productions expired with the release of ''Spectre'', Annapurna, along with five major studios – Warner Bros., Universal Pictures, 20th Century Fox, Paramount Pictures and Sony itself – vied to win the rights to the next film as of April 2017. It was then announced that MGM had secured the domestic, digital and worldwide television rights to the film. Universal was announced as the international distributor of the film and holder of the rights for physical home entertainment distribution.

In October 2017, Annapurna and MGM announced the formation of a US distribution joint venture in which each studio would release their films individually. This marked a return to domestic theatrical distribution for MGM and an expansion of Annapurna's distribution division, with MGM releasing approximately six to eight films per year on a limited basis and Annapurna releasing four to six films per year, in a combined slate of fourteen films. While the two companies shared costs for the joint venture's operations, Annapurna's distribution and marketing teams supported the MGM titles, which were distributed under the MGM banner while Annapurna-produced films continued to be distributed under its own banner. The two studios also launched Mirror, a releasing entity that pursues theatrical opportunities for additional third-party films. However, this partnership was not exclusive to all MGM films, as several of them continued to be released through existing studio partners, such as Warner Bros. and Paramount. The newly relaunched Orion Pictures and future worldwide distributor plans for the ''James Bond'' franchise, were also not included, which MGM announced on "a later date", May 24, 2018, to have been won by Universal Pictures.

In October 2018, Annapurna signed a music publishing deal with Warner/Chappell Music, which administered the studio's film and TV compositions and scores.

In February 2019, Annapurna and MGM rebranded and expanded their US distribution joint venture to release both MGM and Annapurna films under United Artists Releasing, with the distribution teams of Annapurna and Orion Pictures (whose films are added as well) joining the venture and former Screen Gems executive Pam Kunath joining as COO in addition to the heads of MGM and Annapurna joining the board of directors. The decision was made to coincide with the United Artists brand's 100th anniversary, and planned to release 10–14 films a year through the new label, including the domestic release of ''No Time to Die'' (which marked a reunion between the UA brand and the James Bond franchise after two decades). After taking financial losses from distributing ''Vice'', ''Detroit'', and ''Destroyer'', Annapurna had to leave '' Bombshell'' just two weeks before it would start production, and also unattached itself from '' Hustlers''.

In December 2022, Annapurna launched its animation division led by former Blue Sky Studios Robert Baird and Andrew Millstein. ''Nimona'' was its first release.

On March 4, 2023, it was revealed by ''The Hollywood Reporter'' that Amazon had shut down the operations of United Artists Releasing and folded it into MGM.

In August 2024 Annapurna announced a "strategic cooperation agreement" with video game developer Remedy Entertainment during which Annapurna will co-produce and co-finance ''Control 2'', and will also develop film and television projects involving Remedy's ''Alan Wake'' and ''Control''.

On September 12, 2024 news broke that the entire Annapurna Interactive Team of 25 resigned following a dispute with its owner to spin off the video-game division as an independent entity.

Filmography

As production company

As distributor

The company expects to release "approximately four to six films per year".

Reception

Some of the films produced by the company have received widespread critical acclaim. In 2013 alone, ''Her'', ''American Hustle'' and '' The Grandmaster'' had a combined seventeen Academy Award nominations. Commercially, results have been mixed. Some films like '' The Master'', ''Foxcatcher'', ''Joy'', ''Detroit'' and ''Vice'', however, do not return their budget while ones such as ''Zero Dark Thirty'', ''Sausage Party'' and ''American Hustle'' have grossed more than $100 million, the latter grossing more than $250 million worldwide.

Annapurna Animation

Annapurna Animation is an American animation studio and division of Annapurna Pictures, founded by former Blue Sky Studios executives Robert L. Baird and Andrew Millstein on December 1, 2022 and based in North Stamford, Connecticut. The studio's first film, ''Nimona'', was released on June 30, 2023, on Netflix.

Filmography

Released

In development

Annapurna Television

Annapurna Television is the television production company of Annapurna Pictures, launched on September 27, 2016, and was formerly headed by HBO executive Sue Naegle (with her label, Naegle Ink, now part of the division). In January 2017, it was reported that Annapurna Television would produce the Coen brothers' first TV project, ''The Ballad of Buster Scruggs''.

Television

Video games

Annapurna Interactive published its first video game, ''What Remains of Edith Finch,'' on April 25, 2017. ''What Remains of Edith Finch'' received "universal acclaim" on PC and "generally positive" reviews on PS4, according to video game review aggregator Metacritic. Since 2017, Annapurna Interactive has also been responsible for publishing games including ''Twelve Minutes, Donut County'', '' Kentucky Route Zero'', ''Outer Wilds'', '' Sayonara Wild Hearts'', '' Wattam, Telling Lies'', '' Neon White'' and ''Stray''. The publisher has also provided funding and publication support for ''The Artful Escape'' by Beethoven & Dinosaur, '' Ashen'' by A44 and ''Gorogoa'' by Jason Roberts.

Theater

Annapurna Theatre produces plays and live shows on, and off-Broadway.

International distributors

See also

* Point Grey Pictures

References

External links

*

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Annapurna Pictures films
Film production companies of the United States
Film distributors of the United States
Companies based in Los Angeles
Mass media companies established in 2011
2011 establishments in California
American companies established in 2011
American independent film studios
International sales agents