Cutting Edge Media Music (CEMM), a division of Cutting Edge Group led by Philip Moross, has agreed to form a new strategic music venture with Village Roadshow Entertainment Group (VREG).
According to a press statement, the deal covers all of the latter company’s past and future music publishing assets, soundtrack album releases and music supervision services.
The deal also spans VREG’s music assets for film, scripted and unscripted television, according to CEMM.
VREG’s current film and TV titles include CINNAMON and MURDER CITY, part of its Black Noir Cinema initiative with Kevin Garnett’s Content Cartel and Fox’s free streaming platform, Tubi.
The assets also include the Capital One College Bowl hosted by Peyton and Cooper Manning, that recently aired its second season on NBC.
VREG claims to build “premier, content-rich businesses in the entertainment industry”. The company, which says that it “produces, acquires and delivers” IP, is the holding company of Village Roadshow Pictures and Village Roadshow Television.
Private equity firms Vine Alternative Investmentsand Falcon Investment Advisors acquired a controlling interest in Village Roadshow in 2017.
One of those firms, Vine, announced in 2020 that it had acquired the song catalog of Grammy award-winning and multi-platinum selling producer, songwriter and DJ, Calvin Harris, for an undisclosed fee.
Brian McNelis, head of Cutting Edge’s TV & video game soundtracks division Lakeshore Records, said the deal with Village Roadshow “is a privilege which allows us to utilize our expertise to build more robust, music-based opportunities that are mutually beneficial to both companies.”
McNelis will oversee the new venture alongside Lakeshore’s Eric Craig, who will provide music supervision and music department support.
VREG Chief Operating Officer Louis Santor will lead in implementing all aspects of the deal between both companies.
“Music plays an important role in building a story that connects with audiences across all mediums. We couldn’t think of better partners than the team at CEMM to oversee the implementation of such an important aspect to our film and TV slate and look forward to what’s to come.”
Louis Santor, Village Roadshow Entertainment Group
Santor said, “Music plays an important role in building a story that connects with audiences across all mediums. We couldn’t think of better partners than the team at CEMM to oversee the implementation of such an important aspect to our film and TV slate and look forward to what’s to come.”
UK-born CEMM serves as a financier, publisher and record label. It has so far provided a range of music services to more than 1,000 feature films, tv shows, musical theatre productions and video games and films and television shows like Stranger Things, Bridgerton, The King’s Speech, Drive, Star Trek: Discovery,” Fury, John Wick, Sicario, Whiplash, Hacksaw Moonlight Ridge, and The Walking Dead.
“We are thrilled to work with the company behind some of the most iconic films of the last twenty-five years and we look forward to scaling this new venture, focused on the music intersection of the Village Roadshow Entertainment Group conglomerate, together.”
Tara Finegan, Cutting Edge Group
It has also provided music to Broadway shows such as Matilda, The Color Purple, Anastasia, and My Fair Lady; and triple AAA games like Sunset Overdrive, Assassins Creed Valhalla, Red Dead Redemption and Cyberpunk 2077.
Tara Finegan, COO of Cutting Edge Group, commented on the partnership with VREG, saying: “We are thrilled to work with the company behind some of the most iconic films of the last twenty-five years and we look forward to scaling this new venture, focused on the music intersection of the Village Roadshow Entertainment Group conglomerate, together.”
The partnership with VREG comes just two weeks after CEMM secured $100 million in financing from a group of banks led by Pinnacle Financial Partners.
The funding came over a year after Cutting Edge Music teamed up with affiliates of London-based investment firm Blantyre Capital to acquire music publishing rights owned by composers who write music for film and TV. CEMM and Blantyre affiliates had committed an initial $125 million to the plan.
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