ATLANTA (June 3, 2024) – Peachtree Group (Peachtree), a prominent private equity firm, debuted its financed film, "The Surfer,” starring Nicholas Cage, at the prestigious Cannes Film Festival.
This successful premiere at Cannes is just one highlight in a series of achievements by Peachtree and its film financing division, Peachtree Media Partners. The firm already has financed nearly a dozen films, cementing its reputation as a growing alternative to conventional television and movie financing.
Peachtree leverages its deep financial expertise and a proven track record of more than $10 billion in investments to excel in uncovering niche and non-traditional opportunities where risk is mispriced to its advantage, driving outsized returns on its investments. The firm applies this strategic insight to transform the financing landscape for television and film productions, generating significant value.
"Our increased activity in movie and television financing represents a natural progression of our capabilities and interests," said Greg Friedman, managing principal and CEO of Peachtree. "We recognize the unique challenges and opportunities within the entertainment industry, especially in an era where content creation is rapidly evolving. We aim to support producers and creators with tailored financial solutions that align with their vision and project needs."
This strategic expansion taps into the growing demand for alternative financing within the dynamic entertainment sector. It specifically addresses the needs of productions ranging from $5 million to $50 million, which are adapting to rapid changes and an increasing number of productions seeking flexible funding options.
As streaming giants like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+ and others continue to pour billions into original content to captivate and retain subscribers, they are reshaping the entire financing landscape.
"Peachtree's initiative is poised to capitalize on these industry shifts, offering innovative financial structures that align with the needs of modern content creators," Friedman said. "Having an industry veteran, Joshua Harris, leading Peachtree Media Partners provides the expertise to structure the financing appropriately while mitigating downside risks."
Peachtree's risk management strategy in entertainment financing includes detailed evaluations of each project's commercial potential, the presence of A-list talent, the production team's track record and collateral such as tax credits and pre-sale agreements. The firm also implements safeguards like completion bonds to ensure that projects are completed within budget and on schedule.
"We are excited to provide a platform that not only fuels the creative economy but also aligns with our investment strategies, providing our stakeholders with diverse opportunities in the burgeoning entertainment sector," added Joshua Harris, managing partner of Peachtree Media Partners. "Furthermore, Peachtree's vertical integration allows us to go beyond capital investments in debt and equity by developing the infrastructure needed to originate, underwrite, manage assets and operate as appropriate."
Peachtree has fully transitioned into film and television financing, actively collaborating with filmmakers and production companies on upcoming projects, with 20-plus opportunities currently in its pipeline. In 2024, additional Peachtree-financed movies slated to be released alongside “The Surfer,” include “The Fabulous Four,” starring Bette Midler and Susan Sarandon, “Not Without Hope,” featuring Zachary Levy and Josh Duhamel and “In the Grey,” directed by Guy Ritchie.
The ongoing digital transformation, the proliferation of high-quality content production and changes in consumer viewing habits suggest that the movie and film financing market will remain dynamic and potentially lucrative for the foreseeable future.
About Peachtree Group
Peachtree Group is a vertically integrated investment management firm specializing in identifying and capitalizing on opportunities in dislocated markets, anchored by commercial real estate. Today, the company manages billions in capital across acquisitions, development and lending, augmented by services designed to protect, support and grow its investments. For more information, visit www.peachtreegroup.com.
In a recent episode of the Peachtree Point of View podcast, CEO Greg Friedman sat down with Joshua Harris, managing partner and executive producer and Emily Crooke, director investment strategies for Peachtree Group to discuss an often misunderstood but highly profitable investment strategy: film finance.
While Peachtree Group is widely recognized for its commercial real estate investments, many aren't aware of the firm’s growing media finance division. As Greg explains, this expansion stems from the core philosophy of uncovering niche and non-traditional opportunities where risk is mispriced to its advantage, driving outsized returns on its investments.
What makes Peachtree's approach to film finance unique? Unlike traditional film investors who take substantial creative risk hoping for the next blockbuster, Peachtree operates strictly as a senior lender. Drawing on his 25+ years of experience in financial services and media finance, Josh has developed a conservative underwriting approach that mirrors Peachtree's private credit lending strategy.
"People don't understand the difference between investing in film and lending in film," he explains. "We're not making an investment of capital into something that's just based off a script."
Instead, Peachtree advances against three forms of collateral:
1. Distribution agreements from major players like Netflix, Sony, and Amazon
2. Tax incentives from film-friendly states and countries
3. Carefully selected unsold territories with significant intrinsic value
Emily frames it simply: "In film finance, it's really, in simplistic terms, accounts receivables-based lending." She compares it to pre-selling condo units to use as collateral for construction financing.
A critical risk mitigation factor is the requirement for completion guarantees. Every Peachtree-financed film is protected by an AAA-rated bond company that monitors production spending and guarantees [on-time, on-budget] delivery. This eliminates both creative risk (will the film be good?) and production risk (will the film be finished?).
The result? Debt investments with equity-like returns. By leveraging their expertise and banking relationships, Peachtree achieves "strong 20s and 30s percent" yields at the investment level.
With approximately a dozen completed films ranging from $5 million to $80 million budgets, Peachtree Group is scaling up to finance around 12 films annually. The portfolio already includes an $80 million Guy Ritchie film hitting theaters this summer.
For investors seeking diversification with similar risk-reward profiles to private credit lending commercial real estate, this emerging alternative presents an intriguing opportunity. The complete podcast offers deeper insights into how Peachtree's disciplined underwriting approach translates to this growing asset class.
Listen to the full episode of Peachtree Point of View to learn more about this innovative investment strategy that delivers "equity type outcomes" with carefully managed downside protection.
Variety: The highly anticipated biblical epic Mary, financed by Peachtree Group and featuring the legendary Anthony Hopkins, has recently been acquired by Netflix.
Through the perspective of Mary of Nazareth, the mother of Jesus Christ, this new biblical epic brings to life her story. Directed by D.J. Caruso (known for Disturbia) and Written by Timothy Michael Hayes, the film follows Mary, Joseph, and their newborn son, Jesus, as they escape the relentless chase of King Herod, played by Anthony Hopkins.
Mary will premiere on Netflix later this year. Stay tuned for more information.
Peachtree has financed the horror-survival-thriller "We Bury the Dead" starting Daisy Ridley of Star Wars Fame.
Learn more in this article from Variety.
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