Foresight Group (Foresight) portfolio company Cinelab London, a leading UK post-production company, has acquired On Set Tech, one of the UK’s most reputable digital imaging and dailies service providers.
This marks the 55th transaction made by Foresight’s private equity team in the last twelve months, making Foresight one of the most active UK SME investors in the market and a key provider of essential financial support throughout the Covid-19 pandemic.
The UK film and high entertainment television production industry is seeing a robust bounce-back from the Covid-19 lockdowns, with the last quarter in 2020 delivering the second highest quarterly spend. With fresh capital from Netflix, Disney and Amazon being invested to open and expand film production studios in and around London, the outlook for the UK’s film and TV production industry is very positive and Cinelab London is well positioned to meet this growing demand. In addition to its current services, providing a range of post-production services for media shot both on film and digital media, the Company will now also offer digital imaging services including digital dailies, colour and workflow support. The two businesses have collaborated closely for a number of years and have already completed multiple complex and rewarding projects. This includes the feature biopic on Sir Elton John – ‘Rocketman’, Edgar Wright’s highly anticipated psychological horror ‘Last Night in Soho’, Prano Bailey-Bond’s British horror film ‘Censor’ and Will Sharpe’s historical drama ‘The Electrical Life of Louis Wain’.
Adrian Bull, CEO of Cinelab London, says: “This is a real milestone for Cinelab London. I have known On Set Tech founders Joshua Callis-Smith and Simon Chubbock for many years and admired their approach to client service, the quality of and dedication to their work and the team culture they have created. I am delighted that we are moving forward together, sharing a vision and synergies leveraging each other’s strengths. Collectively, we will continue to add value to productions making great content, whether originating on film or digital formats. Combining our businesses enables us to provide the very best talent and expertise to support all filmmakers.”
Joshua Callis Smith, Managing Director of On Set Tech and CTO of Cinelab London, says: “On Set Tech was born out of a passion for pushing the boundaries of what could be achieved with on set dailies grading, file management and workflow implementation. We pride ourselves on technical proficiency, uninhibited creativity and a desire to be at the forefront of our industry. Joining Cinelab London allows us to continue to invest in our resources and, at the same time, innovate and become a full-service film laboratory and dailies company.”
Simon Chubbock, Managing Director of On Set Tech and COO of Cinelab London, adds: “Technology and production doesn’t stand still and neither do we. We are proud of what we’ve come to achieve thus far, and with the merger with Cinelab London, we can progress to the next level, expanding our skillsets, resources and offering. Through our collaborations to date with Cinelab London, it’s clear that we share the same level of commitment to our clients and employees.”
Lindsay Duebendorfer, Investment Manager at Foresight, says: “Since investing in Cinelab London in 2017, Foresight has been consistently impressed by the Company’s position in its core market of film processing and post-production, its growth to date and the strength of its customer relationships. Foresight is pleased to have supported Adrian and the Cinelab London team in this acquisition and is looking forward to working with Joshua and Simon as On Set Tech joins the portfolio. This is a strategic transaction and uniquely positions the combined group as the only UK company to offer both film and digital services, from pre-production to dailies, under one roof.”
Foresight is one of the most active investors in SMEs in the UK, with flexible capital to fund companies in any sector through a wide range of transactions and growth stages. With seven offices across the UK, the Foresight team works closely with entrepreneurs and management teams, an approach that has delivered strong returns to investors for over 35 years.
