There’s a method to our madness … it’s called hard work.

There’s a method to our madness … it’s called hard work.

Imagination Connoisseurs Unlimited, LLC (ICU) serves as a holding company, providing oversight and general management services (including financial management, accounting, IP acquisition, legal, sales, and marketing) to its subsidiary businesses (all set up as single-purpose LLCs).

Rob and Mike work at this level to set the long-term vision for the studio and identify the IP they’re interested in producing.

We’re always looking for a new idea that’s a “good fit” for what we do best – engage fans and tell great stories.

Good ideas can come from anywhere. We all know that.

But so often, the difference between a good idea and a great one is how deeply that idea is understood by the people responsible for bringing it to life and how well their effort resonates with the people paying money to experience it.

We refer to that as the “fit.”

And if the fit is a good one, great things can happen. It’s easier to recruit talent to join the team. The ideas flow. The money comes in. The production runs smoothly. And when it comes time for fans to enjoy what you’ve made – it’s magical.

For us, an idea is considered to be a good fit if it checks most (if not all) of these boxes:

• • The idea is clear and easy to understand. It has a distinct and unique proposition that makes it interesting.
  • The idea breaks some new ground in some unexpected way.
  • The idea is not a re-tread, remake, or “re-imagining” of some already established pop culture franchise.
  • The stories that fall out of the idea feature strong, interesting, and complex characters – and not clichéd stereotypes. (No “Mary Sues”)
  • The idea presents a consistent perspective/approach on its subject matter.
  • The idea and its stories clearly fit one or more established genres.
  • There is an identifiable fan base (a clearly-defined market) for the idea and stories/products related to it.
  • The idea has “legs,” meaning there are many possible ways to continue developing and marketing the idea beyond its first iteration.
  • The settings for stories coming out of the ideas are clear, realistic, and believable (no matter how unrealistic the settings may be in real life).
  • There is an engaged creator who is interested in participating in the growth and development of the idea.

Where it all starts: IP creation, acquisition, and development

Once we identify a good idea with the potential of becoming great, we get to work. In some cases, writers are engaged to work with us to develop new ideas, characters, and stories from scratch. In other cases, we see someone’s work and reach out to them, or we meet a creator with an idea they want to pitch to us for consideration.

A word of caution about “pitching” ideas to ICU. We’re not interested in receiving unsolicited scripts or story pitches for consideration. To be honest, we won’t even read them. We also won’t read and provide notes on scripts, pitches, or outlines for aspiring writers and producers.

It’s just too risky.

If you want to pitch Rob and Mike, you need to send a reel (either physical media or a link to an online portfolio) of work you’ve created and produced.  After we’ve had a chance to review your work (and assuming we like what we see), we’ll contact you to discuss the possibility of a pitch meeting.

Once the rights to a specific intellectual property (IP) have been acquired from its creator, ICU establishes one (or more) single-purpose LLCs as subsidiary operations for the development and distribution of content related to that IP. We also develop comprehensive financial, production, and marketing plans for the IP that will take us from “cradle to grave” on one or more projects.

Contracts with talent, crew, and production companies/suppliers are made with each single-purpose LLC. The performance of talent, crew, and production companies/suppliers is monitored and managed by the executive producers of the single-purpose LLC. Contracts are negotiated, reviewed, and executed by the holding company (ICU) on behalf of its subsidiary operations.

Project funding, bookkeeping, and budget oversight.

Each single-purpose LLC has its own, independent balance sheet and financial statements. These financial statements are assembled and reviewed at the holding company level with the assistance of the executive producers of the single-purpose LLC.

In exchange for the administrative support rendered by the holding company to its operating subsidiaries, each single-purpose LLC pays an administrative fee out of its production funds to the holding company according to its financial proforma.

As the holding company responsible for the production and distribution of projects created by its operating subsidiaries, ICU has the responsibility of providing adequate financing for each project. ICU’s investment in the acquisition and development of licensed IP is recouped as part of the production budget created for each single-purpose LLC held under the umbrella of the holding company.

Production loans are created to fund each single-purpose LLC, and this debt (plus interest obligations) must be relieved before profit-sharing distributions can be made to creators, talent, crew, and lender(s).

especting union relationships

In many cases, the types of projects we produce fall into small or low-budget categories and are often not organized labor’s top priority given the size of the entertainment industry. Sometimes, it’s difficult to identify which labor rates apply to the kinds of projects we’re producing, and are too small to draw the attention of representatives who also have to deal with major studios and companies turning out big-budget motion pictures.

We understand that. And, yes, we have a plan for that.

You see, we take the union memberships held by writers, directors, actors, musicians, and other creative professionals with whom we work very seriously. That’s why we work to make sure ICU is a union signatory whenever requested or required, and we strive to meet or exceed the expectations put forth by labor unions recognizing the creative professionals we hire.

Not just promotion … engagement!

Advertising and marketing costs for traditional entertainment projects can run as much as the production budget (or more). And honestly, we’re not sure that’s always money well spent.

So, while our creative team develops the next great idea, our marketing team tries to figure out how to spread the word and generate excitement.

We take a more sophisticated view of the fandoms we engage on a regular basis. These are folks we know well. We know what they like. We know where they are. And we know how to reach them.

So when it comes to promoting a new project we’re producing, we expect to do more than just generate some “positive buzz.” We’re looking for ways to create a sense of anticipation and excitement.

We’re looking for active audience engagement.

Done right, engagement not only leads to a purchase. With a fan, engagement can lead to repeat purchases. That’s why ideas need to have “legs” and we have to make sure that whatever happens, fans have to have fun as they interact with our work.

Profit sharing

Financial reports are made available to partners in the production entity (i.e. the single-purpose LLC) on an annual basis. If the project turns a profit, those profits are used to pay off production loans (first priority), make an annual profit distribution to cast and crew, and then distribute the rest of the remaining profit to the members/investors in the LLC.

Profit-sharing payments are made to cast and crew on an annual basis for ten years starting the year the project is released. These payments do not exceed the total amount paid to an individual for their work on the production in any given year. This means it’s possible for a cast or crew member to receive up to ten times (10x) their pay in profit-sharing payments in the decade following their work on a project (assuming the project turns a profit every year). 

If a project generates enough profit to make its debt and cast/crew profit-sharing payments, the remainder of the profit is allocated pro-rata among all of the individuals and entities with ownership positions in the single-purpose LLC. 

An example of a project profit-sharing split is:

• • 30% to ICU and the Executive Producers on a project;
  • 5% to the creators who originated the IP;
  • 25% to the talent involved in the production;
  • 15% to the crew involved in the production; and
  • 20% to the lender(s) who financed the production.

The remaining 5% is retained on the subsidiary’s balance sheet. This small percentage of retained profit helps maintain positive cashflows during the life of the project. Profit-sharing distributions are made annually (or more frequently if advised to do so by financial counsel).

These payments continue on an annual basis for as long as the project is generating profit unless the single-purpose LLC is sold and/or dissolved for inactivity.

In the event we sell our rights to the IP and all assets related to its development and distribution, half of the net proceeds (defined as sales revenue less outstanding administrative costs and production loans) will be distributed to all related single-purpose LLCs associated with the IP.

This final lump-sum distribution will constitute a complete “rights buyout” of work performed for the subsidiary and release the new owner of the IP from any further profit-sharing distribution obligations.