Edge invests in UK indie Antidote

UK-based indie Antidote Productions has scored investment from specialist investment house Edge Investments.

The deal is understood to see Professor Green: Suicide and Me producer Antidote receiving around £1 million (US$1.3 million) from the Edge Creative Enterprise Fund.

Edge Investment manager Jo Smith (below left) joins Antidote co-founders Leila Monks and Laura Jones (pictured right, L-R) on the Antidote board, with her company taking a minority stake.

Jones is a BAFTA-winning filmmaker, while Monks worked at Zig Zag Productions and TVF International before Antidote launched in 2014.

“Partnering with Edge, a leading name in the creative industries, will enable us to capitalise on the momentum we’ve created thus far and realise the full potential of Antidote both here and internationally,” said Jones and Monks in a statement.

In November, Edge revealed it would plough £10 million into UK production companies with revenues of around £1 million, offering “clean equity capital” that would allow the prodcos to hang on to international distribution rights.

The company has been investing in television since 2006, having previously raised capital and owned stakes in kids TV firms Coolabi and Chapman Entertainment.

The deal with Antidote originated from the 2016 Indielab programme, which equips emerging UK indie producers with networks, skills and knowledge to scale their businesses.

“We are thrilled to partner with Laura and Leila: in a short space of time they’ve built a fantastic business and have a clear vision on how they want to grow,” said Edge’s Smith. “We believe Edge has the perfect breadth of experience to support Antidote as it enters the next stage of strategic growth.

“We were impressed by the team’s clear creative spark and ambition; Antidote is an exciting home for fostering and nurturing talent in one of our key sectors, which further fulfill our TV production investment ambitions.”

Besides hard-hitting BBC Three doc Professor Green: Suicide and Me, Antidote has produced YouTube Revolution for National Geographic’s international channels business, BBC iPlayer short-form series Breaking into Prison, and new doc Olly Alexander: Growing Up Gay.

The company is currently in production on projects for broadcasters in the UK and North America.