As Variety reports, the studio will target modestly budgeted productions in the $1 million to $10 million range, with a focus on helping YouTubers and social media creators move into mainstream film and television. Dolphin CEO Bill O’Dowd and Kynetic CEO David Freeman are leading the venture.
David FreemanBill O’Dowd
Graviteur plans to develop scripted projects across genres, including horror, young adult, anime, comedy, romance, sci-fi, and sports. The company is building around creators with established audiences and aims to structure deals that allow those creators to retain ownership and control.
Creator Ownership and Speed
Freeman said the studio will approach development and marketing differently from traditional media companies by involving audiences earlier in the process.
“It’s not about talking about the project the way that legacy [media] does, three to four weeks ahead of the release, doing a big P&A push,” Freeman said. “It’s about bringing that audience in on day one and bringing them through the development phase and the script-writing phase and the production phase.”
Freeman added that Graviteur will prioritize faster development cycles and audience-first marketing. “These audiences that creators have built for us are not used to waiting years for new IP,” he said. “They’re used to much shorter timelines.”
The launch comes as low-budget creator-adjacent and genre projects draw increased attention from the film industry. Variety cited the recent box office success of Focus Features’ “Obsession,” produced for under $1 million, and A24’s “Backrooms,” produced for about $10 million, as examples of momentum around the model.
First Slate
Graviteur is developing an initial scripted slate that includes “Crush Party,” a YA thriller written by Johnny Saras. The studio is seeking to cast the feature with creator talent, with negotiations underway.
O’Dowd said Dolphin’s existing companies will support the venture, including 42West, The Door, Shore Fire Media, Elle Communications, Special Projects, and The Digital Dept.
“If ever there was an idea that combines what we’ve done for 30 years with financing and production and distribution of content with the marketing team we built, it’s this,” O’Dowd said. “The whole operation of Dolphin will be behind Graviteur.”
Dragomir is a Serbian freelance blog writer and translator. He is passionate about covering insightful stories and exploring topics such as influencer marketing, the creator economy, technology, business, and cyber fraud.
Dolphin Entertainment and Kynetic Media Ventures have launched Graviteur Studios, a production venture focused on creator-led film and television projects.
As Variety reports, the studio will target modestly budgeted productions in the $1 million to $10 million range, with a focus on helping YouTubers and social media creators move into mainstream film and television. Dolphin CEO Bill O’Dowd and Kynetic CEO David Freeman are leading the venture.
Graviteur plans to develop scripted projects across genres, including horror, young adult, anime, comedy, romance, sci-fi, and sports. The company is building around creators with established audiences and aims to structure deals that allow those creators to retain ownership and control.
Creator Ownership and Speed
Freeman said the studio will approach development and marketing differently from traditional media companies by involving audiences earlier in the process.
“It’s not about talking about the project the way that legacy [media] does, three to four weeks ahead of the release, doing a big P&A push,” Freeman said. “It’s about bringing that audience in on day one and bringing them through the development phase and the script-writing phase and the production phase.”
Freeman added that Graviteur will prioritize faster development cycles and audience-first marketing. “These audiences that creators have built for us are not used to waiting years for new IP,” he said. “They’re used to much shorter timelines.”
The launch comes as low-budget creator-adjacent and genre projects draw increased attention from the film industry. Variety cited the recent box office success of Focus Features’ “Obsession,” produced for under $1 million, and A24’s “Backrooms,” produced for about $10 million, as examples of momentum around the model.
First Slate
Graviteur is developing an initial scripted slate that includes “Crush Party,” a YA thriller written by Johnny Saras. The studio is seeking to cast the feature with creator talent, with negotiations underway.
O’Dowd said Dolphin’s existing companies will support the venture, including 42West, The Door, Shore Fire Media, Elle Communications, Special Projects, and The Digital Dept.
“If ever there was an idea that combines what we’ve done for 30 years with financing and production and distribution of content with the marketing team we built, it’s this,” O’Dowd said. “The whole operation of Dolphin will be behind Graviteur.”
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