Bonnier acquires Scandi prodco

Bonnier Growth Media has acquired 90% of the shares in Tre Vänner, the Swedish producer behind The Fjällbacka Murders.

Bonnier’s Svensk Filmindustri has bought the company, in a deal that sees Tre Vanner CEO Jonas Fors take over as chief exec of Svensk to replace the long-serving Rasmus Ramstad.

Tre Vänner’s owners will remain in control of 10% of the shares following the deal. Mikael Lövgren, Tre Vanner’s lead shareholder and board chair will serve as executive chairman for Svensk Filmindustri, which is one of  Sweden’s oldest production companies and last year expanded into Norway. It also has offices in Denmark and Finland.

“Svensk Filmindustri is a well-known brand which is highly respected by the global film industry with a catalog of more than 1,200 films,” said Ulrika Saxon, board chair, Svensk Filmindustri and CEO at Bonnier Growth Media. “To that we’re now adding Tre Vänner, a successful and very exciting production company with a network of creative minds and management with an indisputable track record. The ambition now, under the leadership of Jonas Fors, is to take the next step to realize Svensk Filmindustri’s full potential as a leading European film company.”

She also paid tribute to Ramstad, who’s been with Svensk since 1999, saying he had laid a “solid foundation to further develop the company”.

“Tre Vänners’ strong performance is due to the success of combining creativity with a business focus,” said Fors. “With Svensk Filmindustri’s fantastic history and expertise in film production and distribution, we will be able to utilise our resources to further develop, produce and distribute unique stories.

“Together, we have a unique opportunity to meet the new challenges facing the film industry, to attract and keep the most talented creators as well as international investors.”

Svensk Filmindustri is part of the Bonnier Group, which counts channel TV4 among its assets. The expansive Bonnier Growth Media group earlier this year launched United Screens, a YouTube multichannel network with former Google Sweden CEO Stina Honkamaa, former TV4 programme director Malte Andreasson and TV production veterans Jan Zachrisson and Oscar Höglund.