Postmedia Studios, a division of Canadian news media company Postmedia Network Inc., and Elevation Pictures’ Toronto-based production division on Tuesday announced a new strategic partnership to finance, develop and launch select Canadian feature projects.
The collaboration will see Postmedia leverage its national audience reach and data insights to help support the development, production and successful release of films, a Postmedia press release said.
The first project to be advanced through the partnership will be Fire Weather, a feature documentary commissioned by CBC and co-produced by Elevation Pictures and Toronto-based production company Mercury Films. Inspired by John Vaillant’s best-selling book and directed by Mercury Films co-founders Jennifer Baichwal and Nicholas de Pencier, Fire Weather explores the human, environmental and societal impacts of wildfires and the lives changed by these events.
Postmedia will launch coordinated, multiplatform promotions across its media brands in conjunction with the documentary’s theatrical release, Postmedia said.
“Postmedia Studios is focused on connecting Canadian stories with audiences at scale, and this collaboration represents a powerful new pathway for filmmakers,” Erika Tustin, vice president of content monetization at Postmedia, said in the company’s press release. “By leveraging Postmedia’s strengths, reach and data insights, along with investment in select projects, we can champion stories like Fire Weather and their success in markets across the country.”
“We’re thrilled to partner with Postmedia Studios on a model that helps create new opportunities for filmmakers,” Noah Segal, co-president of Elevation Pictures, said in a statement. “This is the first example of how strategic partnerships will strengthen and scale Elevation’s content creation efforts.”
Elevation’s production projects in recent years have included Golden Globe-nominated French Exit, starring Michelle Pfeiffer and Lucas Hedges; Alice, Darling, starring Anna Kendrick; Infinity Pool, starring Mia Goth and Alexander Skarsgård; A Good Person, starring Florence Pugh and Morgan Freeman; Bonjour Tristesse, starring Chloë Sevigny and Lily McInerny; documentary Lilith Fair: Building a Mystery, directed by Ally Pankiw and co-produced with Dan Levy; and upcoming title Rapture, directed by Jordan Tannahill.
Postmedia partnered with Contend to launch Postmedia Studios, announced in 2024.
