Here’s a big production merger in Canada: Wayward producer Sphere Media is joining forces with Zone 3, the maker of the local Family Feud remake.
The deal will create a production entity that’s strong in both English- and French-language program making. Financial terms of the deal weren’t revealed.
Sphere is known for Canadian English-language shows such as Cardinal, 19-2, Small Achievable Goals and Wayward, which was made with several co-production partners and launched this year on Netflix, along with NBC and Bell Media co-production Transplant and CBC and HBO Max comedy Sort of. On the French-speaking Canadian side, it has made Aller Simple, L’indétectable, Mea Culpa, LA Question and Belle et Bum among others.
The producer is part of Bell Media, and along with its parent, has a shareholding in London distributor Sphere Abacus. It has offices in Montreal, Quebec City and Toronto.
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Quebec-based Zone 3, which was founded 25 years ago, claims to have made over 18,000 hours of TV, film and digital content across all genres.
“In a context where demand for content has never been stronger, joining forces is the best way to promote our creations and get closer to the global giants,” said Brigitte Lemonde, President of Zone 3. “This merger brings countless new creative and commercial opportunities.”
Bruno Dubé, CEO of Sphere Media, added: “Building on our sustained growth and expansion in recent years, we are pleased to continue creating innovative and bold content. Our merger with Zone 3 will inject a new creative energy, generating and stimulating collaboration and content. We will continue together to develop our relationships with creators and partners around the world, enabling us to promote our content and enter a new phase of opportunity and expansion.”