“Music is a key part of the DNA here at Catalyst, and we are thrilled to be partnering with Warner Music.” (Hardiman)
Catalyst Global Media and Warner Music Group Corp., the world’s third-largest record label with a stable of artists that includes Led Zeppelin, Neil Young and Prince, have reached an exclusive partnership whereby the companies will jointly produce a slate of feature biopics and documentaries based on Warner Music artists.
The multi-year, multi-picture agreement is expected to cover some of the most iconic artists on the label’s roster. Catalyst will develop and finance the projects and oversee worldwide distribution.
As Bloomberg Business has reported, “Films can boost album sales. Records by Amy Winehouse, Nirvana lead singer Kurt Cobain and the Beach Boys’ Brian Wilson all recently resurfaced on the Billboard charts around the same time as movies about those artists opened in theatres.” The timing of this deal coincides with increasing interest from video services like Netflix, who just released a documentary about Nina Simone and will offer one about Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards in September. Likewise AMY, the documentary about the singer Amy Winehouse’s sudden rise and fall, was produced and financed by Universal Music Group as part of their bigger push into movies. Speaking to Bloomberg Business about this earlier in the month Catalyst CEO Charlotte Walls said “There is an awful lot of energy and money put into building these brands in the past. Film documentaries allow music labels and estates to be rewarded for that investment beyond the artist’s life.”
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Al Hardiman 