Lord of the Rings Deal
Lord of the Rings Deal
LOTR

CREDIT: THE SAUL ZAENTZ COMPANY

EXCELLENCE
"One Deal to rule them all"
Thomas Dey

INTEGRITY

EXCELLENCE

INSIGHT

Syco
EXCELLENCE
"ACF's certainly got talent"
Ian Rosenblatt OBE

CREDIT: SYCO ENTERTAINMENT

INTEGRITY

EXCELLENCE

INSIGHT

Bear Grylls
INTEGRITY
“You only get one chance
at life and you have to
grab it boldly”
Bear Grylls

CREDIT: BEAR GRYLLS VENTURES

INTEGRITY

EXCELLENCE

INSIGHT

Paddington
INSIGHT
“Success doesn't come
to you, you go to it.”
Marva Collins

CREDIT: PADDINGTON AND COMPANY

INTEGRITY

EXCELLENCE

INSIGHT

Pilgrim

CREDIT: PILGRIM STUDIOS

INSIGHT
“Success comes to
those who act!”
Henry David Thoreau

INTEGRITY

EXCELLENCE

INSIGHT

Leftfield
INSIGHT
“The key to success is to
focus on goals not obstacles”
Unknown

CREDIT: LEFTFIELD ENTERTAINMENT

INTEGRITY

EXCELLENCE

INSIGHT

Plimsoll Productions

CREDIT: PLIMSOLL PRODUCTIONS

INSIGHT
“Success is not final,
failure is not fatal:
it is the courage to
continue that counts.”
Winston Churchill

INTEGRITY

EXCELLENCE

INSIGHT

Love Productions

CREDIT: LOVE PRODUCTIONS

INTEGRITY
“ When something
is important enough,
you do it even if the odds
are not in your favour”
Elon Musk

INTEGRITY

EXCELLENCE

INSIGHT

Top Gear
EXCELLENCE
“Success comes to
those who act”
Henry David Thoreau

CREDIT: TOP GEAR

INTEGRITY

EXCELLENCE

INSIGHT

previous arrow
next arrow

ACF sell Windfall to Argonon


ACF Investment Bank is pleased to announce the  sale of Windfall Films to Argonon, the biggest acquisition for the super-indie group since its formation in 2011.   

ACF Investment Bank, acted as Investment Banker to Windfall films.

ACF is a leading international specialist investment bank with offices in London and Los Angeles, assisting individuals and businesses wishing to maximise the value of people and intellectual property-based businesses.

ACF’s global track record in TV production and distribution is unrivalled, having advised on 60 deals in the sector, including 23 TV production deals in the last 3 years with a total value of circa $2 billion.

ACF was honored by Variety in its 2013 Dealmakers Impact Report.

If you are considering selling your company, buying a company or raising finance, we have the expertise and track record to help you find the right solution.

For further information or to arrange a meeting please contact: Melissa Castelyn on + 44 (0) 207 467 9600 or Katherine Robbins on + 1 424 332 0450.


Windfall films is a multi-award winning, independent TV production company based in London, renowned for their innovative multi-platform programming across the key markets of the UK, USA and Canada.

It was founded in 1987 and has produced more than 350 hours of programming for television channels internationally: Discovery, National Geographic, PBS, BBC TV, Channel 4 and Channel 5.

The company has grown over the last 25 years to become one of the UK’s leading specialist factual production companies, led by David Dugan, CEO; Ian Duncan and  Carlo Massarella, Creative Directors and Kristina Obradovic, Managing Director .

Windfall has won a BAFTA, 3 Emmys, 3 Griersons, 2 Banff Rockies and 7 Royal Television Society Awards, in addition to numerous other trophies and nominations.

Their award-winning programmes include: The Murder Trial (Channel 4); Inside Nature’s Giants (Channel 4); Big, Bigger, Biggest (National Geographic); Strip the City (Discovery Channel); Monster Moves (Channel 5); Animal Superpowers (National Geographic); and Dambusters: Building the Bouncing Bomb (Channel 4).

As part of the deal, David, Carlo, Kristina and Ian all take a stake in Argonon and David will join the Argonon board.


Argonon is a leading international independent production group wholly owned by the management and employees that are headquartered in London, New York and Vancover.

It was established in May 2011  by CEO James Burstall when Leopard Films, Leopardrama, Leopard USA and Remedy Productions joined forces, and has since expanded with the acquisition of Transparent Television and a series of joint venture deals including Remedy Canada, Britespark Films and Blacklisted Films.

The company produces a wide range of content including award-winning factual, factual entertainment, entertainment, drama, arts, comedy and children’s programming.  Highlights include the award-winning, An Englishman in New York, which saw John Hurt reprise his iconic role as Quentin Crisp with the film premiering at the Berlin Film Festival and Tribeca Film Festival in 2009 and 2010, respectively.

Argonon is also known for Leopard Films’ globally successful brand, Cash in the Attic, which is syndicated in 167 territories and launched as global portal www.cashintheattic.com;  a raft of award-winning arts programming including Darcey’s Ballerina Heroines and Bach: A Passionate Life, also from Leopard Films; long running formats Man Caves and House Hunters International from Leopard USA; and as a key supplier to MTV in the UK through Remedy Productions.


Windfall Films Multi-Award Winning Shows

Murder Trial
Murder Trial
Big Bigger Biggest
Big Bigger Biggest

‘Windfall is a company with a unique culture and a reputation for taking risks, so finding a buyer happy to embrace our way of working was always going to be a very important factor for Windfall’s directors. ACF nursed us through the process of finding a suitable buyer and have been excellent brokers throughout this deal.  The Argonon group is committed to helping us build on our recent successes and we want to play an active role in the group. I look forward to joining James and the other directors on the board.”

David Dugan, CEO, Windfall films

“The success of Windfall in both the US and the UK and its retention of international rights make it an excellent fit with the transatlantic Argonon group and will help supply its in-house distribution business. We are very pleased to have advised David and the Windfall team on the transaction and will follow the growth of the group with interest. This is Argonon’s second and largest acquisition, confirming its status as one of the UK’s largest wholly owner-managed TV production groups and its position as a recognised consolidator in the sector.”

ACF Investment Bank


5/5

What People Are Saying

“Since this was our first time working with an investment bank and raising capital for any of our businesses, I wasn’t sure what to expect. ACF has a great reputation and came highly recommended from several people that I hold in high regard. Overall, the experience working with Richard, Milos and Thomas was pure joy. They were the perfect partner for us, as they educated us as we were working through the process, they challenged us to think bigger about the scope and scale of our business, and they aggressively represented our business in the marketplace bringing multiple opportunities to us in a very challenging economic time. The partnership and guidance they provided was essential and they were extremely easy to work with. I only hope this is the first of many deals that we are able to execute together.”

Shawn Gee
Two One Five Entertainment

"ACF’s certainly got talent. Their team, led by the ever-tenacious Thomas Dey, delivered on their promises and introduced the perfect partners to achieve our goals."

Ian Rosenblatt OBE, Director
Syco Entertainment

"Given the complexities and importance of the rights at stake in our transaction, we interviewed several investment bank candidates at length before retaining ACF to guide our process.  We could not have chosen better!  ACF personnel were dedicated, creative, practical, responsive and deeply knowledgeable about the intricacies of the sales process. Over the months involved, Thomas, Richard, Tatiana and the rest of the ACF staff met with and worked skillfully and credibly with scores of potential buyers and with our own employees leading ultimately to a high value and very fair outcome benefitting both our company and the buyer. They have our deep respect and gratitude for a job so well accomplished"

Marty Glick, COO
The Saul Zaentz Company

“At this stage of 72’s development, there are great advantages and opportunities of joining forces with Fremantle. Their extensive international infrastructure and expertise will provide 72 Films with the platform to have our work seen across the world. We know and like their excellent team. And they offer us not only fantastic support but complete creative freedom so we can continue to work in the same way.

It’s been a real pleasure working with Thomas Dey and the whole team at ACF. They are brilliant at what they do. And alongside Matisse it’s been an incredible team behind this deal.”

Mark Raphael, David Glover, Founders and Chief Executive Officers
72 Films

“This exciting new deal between Broke and Bones and Netflix marks an exciting period of content creation, demonstrating the strong relationship between market leading creatives and the streaming platforms. ACF brokered the deal using our strong track record, experience and access in the UK and USA scripted markets. Premium content continues to lead the market with strong deals that ACF have closed including advising Mammoth Screen on sale to ITV, Neal Street to All3Media, Left Bank Pictures to Sony, Thinkfactory to ITV, Paddington Bear to Studio Canal, New Pictures to All3Media, and Carnival Pictures to NBC Universal.”

Thomas Dey, CEO
ACF Investment Bank

"It has been an incredible journey for Delbert and I to get to the stage where we can build out our adventure shows under our own Studio. We stand on the shoulders of many giants, the ACF team have been incredible guides through the process - at its heart this is about building the ultimate home of adventure programming worldwide."

Bear Grylls & Delbert Shoopman
The Natural Studios

"Critical Content has been a leading player in the unscripted space for the last decade, led by a first class team. Media continues to dominate the deal landscape, with content leading the pack. What a great start to 2022! Congratulations to the whole team."

Thomas Dey, CEO
ACF Investment Bank

"Boardwalk Pictures are one of the preeminent producers of premium content and this partnership with Shamrock secures Boardwalks positioning as a leading player in this market. Shamrock’s deep understanding and experience in the content space makes them great partners for Andrew and the team at Boardwalk. I look forward to seeing the growth and future success of this partnership."

RIchard Gray, Managing Director
ACF Investment Bank