Mediawan, the European parent company of Brad Pitt’s Plan B, is taking a majority stake in OUR Films, a new production and film financing company led by film and TV producers Mario Gianani and Lorenzo Mieli.
Launched in 2024 and based in Rome, Our Films is focused on working with established and emerging European, U.S. and international filmmakers and talent across features documentaries and series.
Mediawan, which is home to over 80 production companies, has produced projects like “Call My Agent,” “Three Body Problem,” “Bob Marley: One Love,” “Miraculous Ladybug,” “Rhythm and Flow France,” “The Agency,” “The Count of Montecristo,” “Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story,” “HIP/High Potential,” and “One Day.”
Its investment in OUR Films comes as part of the company’s strategy to create a truly pan-European studio with an increasingly growing presence, which now spans 13 countries including France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Scandinavia, Benelux, and the UK in Europe, alongside operations in Africa, Asia, and the US.
“We are delighted to welcome Lorenzo and Mario, two of the industry’s most accomplished producers of internationally acclaimed films and series, who inspire us with their taste and modern creative edge,” Mediawan Group co-founder and CEO Pierre-Antoine Capton and Mediawan Pictures CEO Elisabeth d’Arvieu said in a statement. “Through OUR Films, we are reinforcing our ambition to bring together the greatest talent behind the best content worldwide.”
Meli, the former CEO of Fremantle Italia who created The Apartment Pictures in 2020, has produced films including “The Hand of God,” Luca Guadagnino’s “Bones and All,” Sofia Coppola’s “Priscilla,” and Paolo Sorrentino’s “Parthenope.”
Meanwhile, Gianani has produced “La mafia uccide solo d’estate” directed by Pif, “The Eight Mountains” directed by Felix Von Groeningen and Charlotte Vandermeersch, Italian box office smash “There Is Still Tomorrow” directed by Paola Cortellesi and Kirill Serebrennikov’s “Limonov: The Ballad,” in co-production with Mediawan’s Chapter 2.
Together, the pair have teamed on numerous productions, including HBO’s “The Young Pope” and “The New Pope,” both created by Oscar-winning director Paolo Sorrentino; Luca Guadagnino’s “We Are Who We Are,” also for HBO; and HBO’s “My Brilliant Friend,” directed by Saverio Costanzo and adapted from the best-selling novels written by Elena Ferrante and translated worldwide.
“We could not be more excited to reunite under our new OUR Films banner and join forces with the brilliant and passionate Mediawan team,” the pair said in a statement. “Together, we are building a new creative hub to support the world’s best filmmakers in telling bold and courageous stories that elevate our lives and the artform through shared cinematic excellence.”
“’OUR’ symbolizes our partnership with artists, as we stand alongside them to champion their vision and projects from the very beginning to the distribution stage,” Mieli and Gianani continued. “Through our efforts and financial resources, we commit to protecting and sharing with our creatives the control, empowerment, and freedom necessary to uphold the integrity of their art. This is the mission of OUR Films.”
Looking ahead, Mieli will present three projects produced through The Apartment Pictures at this year’s Venice Film Festival: Luca Guadagnino’s “Queer,” based on the book by William Burroughs, starring Daniel Craig; Pablo Larrain’s “Maria,” starring Angelina Jolie; and Joe Wright’s eight-episode limited series “M,” about the life of Mussolini.
Following the presentation of eight feature films in selection for a European producer at the Cannes Film Festival, Mediawan will also play a prominent role at the 2024 Venice Film Festival by opening it with Tim Burton and Plan B’s “Beetlejuice Beetlejuice,” and presenting the world premiere of Jon Watts’ “Wolfs” starring Brad Pitt and George Clooney.
Mediawan will also present “And their children after them” directed by Zoran and Ludovic Boukherma and produced by Chi Fou Mi and Plan B’s documentaries “One to One: John & Yoko,” directed by Kevin Macdonald, and “Apocalypse in the Tropics” directed by Petra Costa.
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