FilmNation has launched production label Infrared led by Drew Simon and said the division will finance and produce three to four mid- to high-budget mainstream films a year with franchise potential.
Simon will act as president of production reporting to FilmNation CEO Glen Basner and has brought on Sam Speiser as vice-president of production.
Infrared will focus on projects with broad audience appeal in the action, thriller, comedy and sci-fi genres. FilmNation will be agnostic about distribution avenues and will handle sales on all Infrared titles.
Simon began his career at New Line Cinema before following Bob Shaye to his production company Unique Features. He worked for The Mark Gordon Company and moved up the ranks to vice-president before leaving the company for STX Entertainment where he was an EVP at the time of his departure. During his time at STX, he managed a slate including Bad Moms, Greenland and Den Of Thieves.
“I am thrilled to move forward with this exciting new strategic growth initiative as we continue to scale our storytelling platforms. Under Drew’s leadership, Infrared will perfectly complement our award-winning FilmNation slate while becoming a market-leading fully independent producer of fun and entertaining mainstream films,” said Basner.
“We look forward to offering filmmakers from a wide array of genres a collaborative and creative home for their films,” said Simon. “We are also tremendously excited to fill the mainstream film space with fresh stories and franchises that will lead us to our ultimate goal of offering moviegoers a truly entertaining experience.”
Speiser previously worked as vice-president of development and production at Solstice Studios where she worked on Hypnotic and Mind Fall. As an independent producer she has the upcoming sci-fi Calling Me Home. She previously was the sole development executive under veteran studio head Rob Friedman worked at EuropaCorp.
At TIFF FilmNation will be handling sales on Discovery selection Baby Ruby, which gets its world premiere on Friday.
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