EXCLUSIVE: German production and sales company Augenschein, whose credits include Joseph Gordon-Levitt thriller 7500 (pictured) and Anna Kendrick sci-fi Stowaway, has sold a minority stake to Erfttal Film, the longtime shareholder in All Quiet On The Western Front producer Amusement Park.
Jonas Katzenstein and Maximilian Leo, who run Cologne-based Augenschein, closed the deal with Erfttal’s Klaus Dohle. The value of the investment was not disclosed but it is understood to be a multi-million dollar investment for a stake in the 20-30% range.
Dohle is a producer and businessman with a long-standing family history in real estate, manufacturing, agriculture and equity investments in Germany and abroad. His associate producer credits include Land of Mine, The Aftermath and A Most Wanted Man.
Under the pact, Augenschein will continue to operate independently but the investment gives the company greater ability to develop, package and produce movies with stronger commercial potential for the global market, not least due to an increased credit line.
With that in mind, the firm has recently expanded ranks to 13 staffers. Joining the company have been in-house producers Oana Iacu (Quo Vadis, Aida?) and finance line producer Lennart Wemcken.
Over the past two years, Augenschein has been ramping up its ambitions and partnering on bigger projects. The company is currently in post-production on anticipated A24-backed Mother Mary starring Anne Hathaway, Michaela Coel and Hunter Schafer, and action-film Berlin Nobody with Sadie Sink and Eric Bana. The former charts the story of a fictional musician (Hathaway) and her relationship with an iconic fashion designer (Coel).
Islands (aka The Tourist), the thriller starring Sam Riley, Stacy Martin and Jack Farthing, and under-the-radar sci-fi project The Assessment, starring Elizabeth Olsen and Alicia Vikander, are also in post.
Shooting this month is The Fisherwoman, the action-thriller from director Brian Kirk (21 Bridges), starring two-time Oscar winner Emma Thompson, and also on the slate is Benedict Cumberbatch starrer Morning. Augenschein produces the former with Stampede. Thompson plays a widowed fisherwoman who, while trapped in a Minnesota blizzard, interrupts the kidnapping of a teenager and soon finds she is the young victim’s only hope.
The Augenschein leadership said today: “This deal is a major next step in our company’s trajectory and enables us to keep growing and building on our strength as a truly global and filmmaker friendly company. It takes us to the next level, allowing us to be much more active and compete for projects with the very best production companies both in the U.S. and beyond. It’s the best of both worlds where we combine our resilience and strength to be even more bold and fearless backed by a wonderful partner, in an ever-changing market. We have a fantastic slate of high-profile films already shot and in development and Erfttal is the ideal partner to support us as our company continues its evolution,”
“The cooperation will help both companies to make the most of their strengths and produce a diverse range of captivating and inspiring films for viewers from Germany and around the world,” added Dohle.
Maximilian Leo and Jonas Katzenstein (credit: Juliane Guder)