Beta Film acquires Swedish production company Unlimited Stories – The Hollywood Reporter
Beta Nordic Studios (BNS), a division of German production and business group Beta Film, has taken a 51% stake in Swedish production company Unlimited Stories.
Founded in 2016 by Poa Strömberg, Patrick Ryborn and Linus Stöhr Torell, Unlimted Stories has spawned a number of vernacular feature successes, including A Piece of My Heart, Sune and Knyckertz. The Stockholm-based team recently moved into the drama sector with a new series Missing person, authorized for the public broadcaster SVT.
Unlimited Story will be the fifth company under the umbrella of BNS, along with Finnish production company Fisher King (pupa, Bordertown), Icelandic Sagafilm (Minister, Stella Blomkvist), the Norwegian group Cinenord (Across the Atlantic, Winding) and Swedish Dramacorp (Cryptid, Agent Hamilton). Beta Film founded BNS in 2019, leveraging Beta’s global sales network to provide better financing and produce internationally appealing Nordic dramas.
“When Beta Nordic Studios presented the idea of a true partnership, we really felt that this aligns with our ambitions for the coming years,” said Unlimited Stories CEO Poa. Strömberg said. “The support from Beta Film and the partnership within Beta Nordic Studios with Saga Film, Fisher King and Cinenord will allow Unlimited Stories to take it to the next level.”
Tuesday’s deal for Stories Unlimited comes after a group of nine independent film and television production companies, including France’s Haut Et Court (Lobster, Land without people), German film Razor (Quo Vadis, Aida?, Waltz With Bashir) and the Norwegian group Maipo Film (Happy Status) formed a creative alliance and signed a three-year partnership with Fremantle to develop and finance the television series.
There is a push to consolidate and collaborate more in the independent market amid a production boom fueled by global streaming companies that have increased budgets and also concentrated financial strength and creativity into the hands of a handful of streaming and studio players.
