Founded 2013 Subsidiaries Hammer Films | Area served Worldwide | |
Founder Andrea Iervolino, Monika Bacardi Divisions AMBI Pictures
AMBI Distribution Website ambipictures.com ambidistribution.com | ||
AMBI Group is a vertically integrated American motion picture conglomerate, specializing production, finance, sales and distribution for films.
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Its division, AMBI Pictures provides financial backing for medium to high-budget international films. The company's distribution arm is called AMBI distribution, which is based in Beverly Hills.
History
AMBI Pictures was founded in 2013 by Andrea Iervolino and Monika Bacardi. They founded AMBI distribution, based in Beverly Hills, the next year for handling sales and distribution of movies produced by AMBI Pictures as well as third party movies. As of 2015, the company has offices in seven countries.
In September 2015, the company in collaboration with New York-based private equity firm Raven Capital Management, assumed control of the majority of Exclusive Media Group library and took on a number of development projects as well as all sequel and remake rights owned by EMG. The library contained almost 400 titles including Begin Again, Cruel Intentions, Ides Of March, Hit & Run, Memento, The Mexican, Parkland, Rush, The Skulls, Sliding Doors, Snitch, Undefeated, The Way Back, The Passion of the Christ, Apocalypto, What Women Want, Jane Got a Gun, End of Watch, Dark Places and Adore.
Work
In 2014, the company produced eight feature films including the 2047 Sights of Death, The Humbling and Hope Lost. AMBI also acquired the English-language remake rights to Arto Halonen’s 2010 Finnish movie Princess.
In collaboration with Paradox Studios, AMBI Pictures produced the romantic comedy All Roads Lead To Rome and also produced sci-fi thriller Andron - The Black Labyrinth, by Italian director Francesco Cinquemani.
In 2015, AMBI announced that they will venture into making animated movies. East End was announced as the first animated movie, which follows two very different 8-year-old best friends both growing up and getting into adventures in Rome's East End neighbourhood. The second animated movie announced by the company was Arctic Justice: Thunder Squad, which is slated to be released in 2018 with voiceovers by John Cleese, Alec Baldwin, James Franco, Anjelica Huston, Heidi Klum and Omar Sy. As of 2015, AMBI Pictures is working on Groove Tails, and has signed a deal with Jamie Foxx to provide the voice for the lead character.
In July, the company secured approval from the Fellini family and estate for a re-imagining of La Dolce Vita, which they will finance and produce with Italian producer Daniele Di Lorenzo. In September, Iervolino and Bacardi organized AMBI gala – Cinema to Help the World, a fundraising event in Toronto. The proceeds of the gala were given to the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation for investing in environmental causes. The funds raised by the AMBI Gala also aided Canada’s Students on Ice Foundation (SOI) and the Pew Charitable Trusts’ Oceans North Canada campaign. The gala was held just before the night of the TIFF in Toronto.
AMBI Group announced in November 2015 it had launched a $200 million film fund to finance about five feature films and about ten lower-budget films. Shortly thereafter, AMBI Pictures announced plans to remake Memento from this fund.
In April 2016, AMBI group started working on the production of Black Butterfly, a psychological thriller based on the French Movie Papillon Noir and directed by Brian Goodman. It will star Antonio Banderas and Jonathan Rhys Meyers. In May, it was announced that the company will finance and produce James Franco’s Future World.
AMBI Group began a partnership with Beijing-based film financing and licensing company SinoLicensing in 2016 to launch AMBI-Sino, a company based in Beijing. AMBI-Sino will finance, produce and distribute content in China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan. AMBI-Sino will produce and finance both Chinese and English language original content.
In September 2016, Iervolino and Bacardi organised the second AMBI charity gala, held at Ritz Carlton and hosted by Martin Short.
In September 2016, it was announced that Jeremy Renner has signed to provide voice over for the lead character in Arctic Justice. The same month, the company announced that it will produce Finding Steve McQueen starring Forest Whitaker and Kate Bosworth. In October both Bacardi and Iervolino were featured in Top Ten Emerging Producers in Hollywood by Variety.