Sony Pictures Television & Matt Smith’s Circle Circle Films strike production & distribution deal

Matt Smith (Source: SPT)

Sony Pictures Television (SPT) has struck a far-reaching partnership with Circle Circle Films, the UK prodco launched by the director of Rio Ferdinand: Being Mum And Dad.

SPT’s International Production division will co-develop, co-produce and distribute titles on from Matt Smith’s Circle Circle Films, with the deal aimed at enabiling the prodco to build out its core creative team and produce content for global audiences.

Circle Circle Films produces TV and docs, with the investment enabling it “to capitalise on its market position in the sport genre, whilst expanding its factual slate in true crime, music and entertainment documentary and formats.”

Smith founded the company in 2018 and has been behind ITVX’s true crime show The Other Mrs Jordan, Channel 4’s feature documentary Rooney and Rio Ferdinand’s Tipping Point for Amazon.

The acclaimed Rio Ferdinand: Being Mum And Dad, which explored the life of the former football star, won a BAFTA and was produced for the BBC.

Matthew Justice, EVP of UK & Europe at SPT, said: “As a specialist in ground-breaking documentaries and factual series, we’re tremendously excited to be working with him and his team and complementing our existing non-scripted output with his slate. We’re thrilled that he sees SPT as the best partner to take Circle Circle to the next stage of its journey.”

Smith added: “I’m thrilled to be partnering with Sony Pictures Television, tapping into their extensive global reach and industry expertise to further turbo-charge our output and build a thriving, inclusive production company.”