Genuine Studios and Baz Luhrmann are having a little bit extra dialog about Elvis Presley. Luhrmann is directing and producing a brand new documentary in regards to the King of Rock & Roll, centered on never-before-seen footage and recordings of Presley that he unearthed whereas creating his movie “Elvis.”
That’s considered one of a number of initiatives within the works at Genuine Studios, a part of the leisure division of mental property model administration agency Genuine Model Group. Almost two years after launching a studio division to supply movies and TV collection tied to its varied mental properties, Genuine has already offered 14 initiatives to numerous retailers.
The output comes after the workforce at Genuine realized that they needed to do extra than simply license their IP — which incorporates icons like Marilyn Monroe, Elvis Presley and Muhammad Ali; residing legends like Shaquille O’Neal and David Beckham; and tons of of manufacturers together with Sports activities Illustrated, Reebok, Juicy Couture and Brooks Brothers.
Because the Genuine execs grew to become concerned in main Hollywood productions based mostly on these names, manufacturers and titles (together with the Warner Bros. movie “Elvis”) they determined they need to produce them too. Genuine Studios was launched in 2023, and is made up of 4 manufacturing models: David Beckham’s Studio 99 (run by president Nicola Howsen), Shaquille O’Neal’s Jersey Legends, Genuine Productions and SI Movies.
“What we found is that individuals actually needed our mental property, our manufacturers for varied documentaries, characteristic movie initiatives, you title it,” mentioned Genuine president of leisure Marc Rosen. “The conclusion for us was that we should always create and take this all in home, as a substitute of licensing our IP to anyone else for them to manage the product and make the lion’s share of the economics.”
Amongst different initiatives within the works: Jersey Legends is producing a documentary collection following O’Neal and fellow NBA vet Allen Iverson as they take over as president and vice chairman of Reebok’s basketball division, which has simply been relaunched below Genuine model possession.
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“It’s not a industrial,” Genuine Studios president Colin Smeeton mentioned. “It’s actually going to be about Shaquille’s journey and his evolution as a businessman. Reebok’s the car, and it’s about his curiosity degree, his ardour of desirous to deliver Reebok again to, in his thoughts, its rightful place… That’s an instance of the best way we view the world right here. We’re not simply manufacturing firms. We don’t must exit and simply make any present. Is it one thing that Shaquille or David needs to be on digital camera about? Or is it story they need to inform that they care about?”
Additionally, Genuine Productions is creating a fictional scripted collection surrounding one other Genuine retail model, Barneys New York, in addition to a documentary characteristic about this historical past of its Quiksilver surf attire model. SI Studios is working with Gary Barber’s Spyglass Leisure on a characteristic documentary and scripted collection round adorned feminine horse racing jockey Julie Krone.
As beforehand introduced, Genuine’s SI studio has been working with Smokehouse Photos and 101 studios on a documentary characteristic in regards to the sexual abuse scandal at Ohio State College, as chronicled by a 2020 Sports activities Illustrated story.
“We really feel like we’re sitting on only a mountain of IP, from an archive standpoint,” Smeeton mentioned of SI Studios. “Perhaps 70 years of tales. However a few of the greatest stuff we’ve got developed proper now’s popping out within the final 12 months.”
Moreover Spyglass, Genuine is working with manufacturing firms together with Skydance, Mandalay, Accomplished+Dusted, Propagate Content material and 101 Studios for initiatives arrange at retailers like NBC, Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video and HBO.
“We are actually wanting via all of our manufacturers and saying, ‘What is a few nice, entertaining, compelling storytelling that we are able to inform about these manufacturers that’s going to maintain them related, preserve the patron engaged, inform the unknown tales?” Smeeton says. “After which as well as, you’ve got the icons like Elvis Presley. We’re now the second largest IP licensee, coming behind Disney. However we weren’t producing or creating our personal content material. Now we’re. There was a gap there that we would have liked to fill.”
Past manufacturing, below Rosen the leisure division can also be varied occasions and experiences tied to the Genuine IP, like an “Elvis Evolution” set up subsequent 12 months in London. “It’s not simply TV or movies, however we’re additionally engaged on immersive experiences, stage experiences, in several elements of the world,” Rosen mentioned. “We had been type of lean again, again within the day, however we’re now very a lot leaning into alternatives wherever, wherever and they are often throughout any platform that exists.”
