FilmHedge, a financial technology startup that finances movie and TV productions, is halfway through a $5 million raise and took on a $100 million credit line of debt, CEO and founder Jon Gosier said.
The combination of equity and debt funding will allow FilmHedge to build out its software development team as well as increase its capacity to finance more films.
New York-based early-stage investment firm WOCstar fund led the equity round with $1 million. The Savannah College of Art and Design invested $300,000. Other angel investors also participated in the round which the company plans to close before the end of the year. The credit line came from Coromandel Capital LLC and Fallbrook Capital Corp.
The latest venture round will bring the company’s total funding to at least $7 million. In March 2021, it raised $2 million also led by WOCstar Fund to triple its team and release its lending software.
Gosier plans to grow his six-person team to 20 by the end of this year with the new capital.
The raise comes as venture deals into Georgia startups have hit a near 30% decline quarter by quarter. Seeking capital has become more cumbersome as company valuations, which spiked in 2021, have been reset. Economic uncertainty from inflation and rising interest rates has led to more caution from investors.
The company was still able to secure funding, said Gosier, because it found its most substantial relationships before the downturn.
FilmHedge is a strategic funder for professional or semi-professional filmmakers. It provides fixed-interest loans to production companies for purposes such as hiring an actor, needing extra cash or reshooting or adding extra scenes. It was co-founded by Janelle Alexander and Mickey Vetter.
Since the company's platform went live, it has deployed approximately $100 million across 14 films and TV shows, Gosier said. Before the end of the year, it looks to fund another five while potentially funding as much as 40 in 2023. The average amount it has deployed per film is $2 million, but has been as high as $10 million.
One of the productions the company has funded is the Netflix crime drama series Skylines, said Gosier.
After a career in entertainment, including a job as a studio engineer at Tyler Perry Studios, Gosier made a pivot to tech in 2008 building several startups. He was the founder of data startup metaLayer Inc., patient care startup Wounds A.I., data management platform Audigent and others. After using the money he made to invest in film and TV, he decided to start FilmHedge.
FilmHedge has an office at No18 Buckhead, a co-working space at Buckhead Village. The company looks to have a standalone office someday, but likely won’t move until 2023, Gosier said.
