SISTER Group, the independent studio founded by Elisabeth Murdoch and Jane Featherstone, has made a majority investment in digital-first creative production company After Party Studios. The deal is a powerful indication of how the traditional production sector is embracing the shift towards the new creator economy.
Founded in 2016 and operating at the intersection between digital and mainstream, After Party Studios was set up by YouTuber Callum McGinley (Callux), film director Ben Doyle (RVBBERDUCK), CEO Joshua Barnett (ex YMU, ITV), and Base79 founder Richard Mansell. The company said that the deal with SISTER will “fuel the company’s ambitions to supercharge its original IP, branded entertainment and digital-first slate”.
After Party Studios has been a pioneer in the digital-first content business, creating series and formats such as Sky Sports docuseries SCENES (150 million+ views), Channel 4.0 hits Don’t Get Catfished (pictured), Find The… and Hear Me Out, the sell-out annual Sidemen Charity Match at Wembley Stadium; and digital content supporting Netflix’s House of Guinness, Stranger Things and Being Gordon Ramsay. This sits alongside campaigns for the likes of Red Bull, Just Eat and the League of 72 platform for Sky Bet.
Upcoming projects include In Search of Peace with Jordan Stephens for MTV UK; Race To The Top, the docuseries following KSI’s takeover of Dagenham & Redbridge FC; and the ongoing social rollout of SNL UK’s digital series Five To Live for Sky One.
Lucinda Hicks, CEO, SISTER Group said “The After Party Studios team occupy a unique space – a digital-native creative company driven by creator instincts and built on deep relationships with talent, brands and platforms and first-class execution. Our partnership enables them to continue to do what they do so brilliantly, originating groundbreaking IP, deepening direct relationships with audiences and shaping the next era of digital storytelling.”
Callum McGinley and Ben Doyle, co-founders of After Party Studios, added: “Over the last decade, we’ve built After Party Studios alongside some of the best talent in front of and behind the camera, making work that is creatively ambitious and always striving to push internet culture forward. We’ve always cared deeply about storytelling, craft and originality in a space that has historically rewarded the opposite, because we believe the future of entertainment is online. Joining the SISTER family feels like a natural next step for us. Their track record of backing bold, distinctive storytelling makes them an ideal partner as we take the company into its next chapter.”
Joshua Barnett, co-founder and CEO of After Party Studios said: “This partnership with SISTER combines our complementary strengths and shared creative ambition, opening up genuinely limitless possibilities. Together, we can continue pushing boundaries and pioneering where the industry goes next. I can’t wait to get this absolute game-changing next chapter underway.”
“SISTER Group has always stood for excellence in storytelling in all its forms, enabling exceptional creative entrepreneurs to do their best work and where every company is additive to the whole.” said Elisabeth Murdoch, co-founder and executive chairman, and Jane Featherstone, co-founder and chief creative officer. “Callum, Ben, Josh and their ridiculously talented team are exactly that…relevant, engaging storytellers committed to excellence and to connecting with audiences wherever they are.”
