Sky Vision has increased its stake in Welsh indie Avanti media to 51%.
Sky Vision bought a minority shareholding in the company in early 2017
Avanti Media will sit in the Sky Vision production portfolio alongside nine other companies including Love Productions, Blast Films, True North and Sugar Films in the UK and Jupiter Entertainment, Znak & Co and Talos Films in the US.
Avanti Media is the Cardiff and London based production company founded by Emyr Afan and Mair Davies in 1997. The company is a factual and entertainment specialist, producing both UK network and Welsh language programming.
In 2017, Avanti and co-production partner Nine Lives jointly won the BBC tender for the three-year contract to produce the BBC’s long-running worship series, Songs of Praise. They were also joined by Neil Grant, Bafta Award Winning Executive Producer and Creative Director based in London.
Sky Vision and AVANTI Media already have a distribution relationship via a two-year first look deal that was agreed in 2016.
Sky Vision managing director Jane Millichip said: “We have been working with Avanti for two years now, so the acquisition of a majority stake is a natural extension of our joint growth strategy. Emyr Afan and Mair Davies have built an exciting production business with a strong mix of event-based entertainment through to current affairs and documentary, testified by recent commissions; the Mobo Awards on Channel 5; the BBC’s Songs of Praise; and BBC Wales’ current affairs series The Hour. We believe Sky Vision will provide strong commercial partnership, and Avanti is a complementary fit in our growing production portfolio as a Network and Nations and Regions supplier.”
Emyr Afan, Co-Founder and CCO Avanti Media, said: “Avanti is delighted to join the Sky Vision family of stellar production companies. We applaud Sky’s vote of confidence in our potential, as well as its investment and commitment to Wales ensuring that talent in every part of the UK is seen and heard. This deal provides Avanti with the platform to fulfil our long term creative and commercial ambitions, both nationally and internationally. It’s a game changer for us.”
Jon Creamer
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