Australian premium TV production company Lantern Pictures, which was founded just six months ago, has signed a first-run content supply deal with global distributor Fremantle.
Lantern Pictures was founded by multi-award winning writer and showrunner Sarah Lambert – the name behind the critically acclaimed and popular series ‘Lambs of God’, ‘Love Child’ and Amazon’s ‘The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart’ – director Jane Manning and TV executive Andreas Lambert. At the launch, the company said its mission is to be Australia’s first showrunner-focused, female-focused production company.
“We are launching a creative partnership between the two companies, which we are very excited about, which will give us access to the larger business entity Fremantle, an alliance of like-minded creatives and its distribution network,” says Andrew Lambert. told Variety.
“Fremantle and Lantern are creatively aligned, so this collaboration feels natural and right. I’m excited to see what we can create together,” said Carly Heaton, Head of Scripting at Fremantle.
No projects have been announced, but the companies expect to unveil their first joint efforts by the end of the year or early 2025.
“It’s been an interesting year, in terms of that global slowdown and trying to get that infamous green light. But we’ve definitely put some things in motion with the broadcasters and other entities,” Sarah Lambert said Variety. These projects predate the Fremantle Agreement, but Fremantle could still become involved.
“We’re really aiming to have a pretty strong slate. It would be ideal to have two or three projects per year. I see Lantern Pictures really operating in that premium drama space. We’re not particularly genre-dependent, but the things I’ve always liked to do so far have been fairly feminine. We want to make dramas that can’t only take place here [in Australia] but globally and what we’re looking at at the moment, it’s quite genre-driven,” she said.
The Lantern trio highlighted their previous working relationships with Heaton and see this as defining the caliber of content sought under the deal. “Carly and I worked together a long time ago on ‘Lambs of God.’ That was the first time I felt like it was the show where I could really explore my voice as a writer and create something that I was incredibly proud of. We worked on that together when Carly was back at Foxtel,” said Sarah Lambert. “We’re really trying to push the boundaries and make something that no one thought you could do from Australia. So we have a shared passion to make distinctive, courageous, daring, dynamic television.”
They are keen to develop the showrunner role in Australia, a process that currently lags behind that in the US
“What’s happening in our [Australian] system is that, basically, once you’ve written and delivered [your script]you just turn it over to your directors and producers. Then you might get a chance to see a few cuts. But [we are interested in] creating a system where we have that [involvement] all the way through [..] it’s starting to happen that the head writer will be on set, but it’s also about bringing in your whole team of writers so that you can do rewrites on the fly if necessary, and kind of keep an eye on things. until the end and hold on to it [original] vision,” said Sarah Lambert.
Christian Vesper, CEO Global Drama, Fremantle, said: “Fremantle welcomes this strategic new partnership with Sarah and the Lantern team as part of our ongoing commitment to discovering and producing award-winning drama content from around the world. We are working together at a crucial time for the new company.”
Other creative deals under the Fremantle banner include: Kristen Stewart’s Nevermind Pictures; BAFTA-winning Me+You Productions; Fabula by Pablo and Juan de Dios Larraín; Ash Atalla’s Roughcut Television, Luca Guadagnino, Paolo Sorrentino, Angelina Jolie, Rachel Weisz and Polly Stokes’ Astral Projection; Edward Berger and his label Nine Hours; Johan Renck and Michael Parets’ Sinestra; Patrick Daly’s Caledonia Productions; and a collaboration with British writer and director Michael Winterbottom.
Fremantle will soon begin filming series three of the globally successful Netflix series ‘Heartbreak High’ and recently completed a second season of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s top-rated series ‘Bay of Fires’, alongside Archipelago Productions, and a third series of ‘Rock Island’. Mysteries,” for Nickelodeon.