Bregman exits This Is That with busy slate of his own
Bregman starts firm
Oct 6, 2006
NEW YORK -- Anthony Bregman, a partner in This Is That Prods., is leaving the company to launch a new firm, Likely Story, with several new projects. He will produce some of them solo and others with his former partners Ted Hope and Anne Carey.
Upcoming joint projects already in development include an adaptation of Mitch Cullin's Sherlock Holmes novel "A Slight Trick of the Mind" and an untitled comedy from writer-director Nicole Holofcener ("Friends With Money"). Likely Story will produce another untitled Holofcener comedy on its own.
It also has on tap Oscar-winning screenwriter Charlie Kaufman's directorial debut, "Synecdoche, New York," about a theater director facing his mortality, which will begin production in the spring, and Jesse Peretz's "It Is What It Is," which Bregman describes as "a film about twentysomething relationships in the MySpace age." It is set for production in late fall.
Bregman said Likely Story plans three to four films a year, with This Is That scaling back to two to three projects from the seven it produced this year.
In a parting all describe as amicable, Bregman will bring longtime associate Stefanie Azpiazu along as his vp development and production. Diana Victor will remain as This Is That's head of business affairs, along with staffers Claire Pacacha, Kara Blanchard and Vinay Singh.
Bregman, Hope and Carey's professional relationship goes back 15 years, when they began working together at Good Machine with James Schamus and David Linde. After the sale of Good Machine to Universal Pictures in 2002, Linde and Schamus left to become co-presidents of Focus Features, and the remaining trio formed This Is That.
Bregman and Hope said the split resulted in part from too many cooks in the kitchen. "On (Peretz's romantic comedy) 'Fast Track,' Anthony, Anne and I all were producers, and we found it wasn't the most efficient use of our time," Hope said. "This year Anthony has been working nonstop and traveling all over the map -- to productions in Los Angeles, New Mexico, Mexico City. ... It probably showed Anthony he could do things on his own."
Said Bregman: "I've spent a total of 10 days in the office all year. I've always been a fan of productivity, and this seems to be the best way to achieve it. We're all still good friends, and as I understand that's a rarity in this industry."
Likely Story will share offices with This Is That until finding a space of its own in New York.
Upcoming This Is That projects include Alex Rivera's sci-fi thriller "The Sleep Dealer" and Tod Harrison Williams' "Trainwreck: My Life as an Idiot," each financed with private equity. Bregman just completed production on the Pastor brothers' thriller "The Carriers," and Hope is producing Alan Ball's untitled adaptation of Alicia Erian's coming-of-age novel "Towelhead."
Upcoming joint projects already in development include an adaptation of Mitch Cullin's Sherlock Holmes novel "A Slight Trick of the Mind" and an untitled comedy from writer-director Nicole Holofcener ("Friends With Money"). Likely Story will produce another untitled Holofcener comedy on its own.
It also has on tap Oscar-winning screenwriter Charlie Kaufman's directorial debut, "Synecdoche, New York," about a theater director facing his mortality, which will begin production in the spring, and Jesse Peretz's "It Is What It Is," which Bregman describes as "a film about twentysomething relationships in the MySpace age." It is set for production in late fall.
Bregman said Likely Story plans three to four films a year, with This Is That scaling back to two to three projects from the seven it produced this year.
In a parting all describe as amicable, Bregman will bring longtime associate Stefanie Azpiazu along as his vp development and production. Diana Victor will remain as This Is That's head of business affairs, along with staffers Claire Pacacha, Kara Blanchard and Vinay Singh.
Bregman, Hope and Carey's professional relationship goes back 15 years, when they began working together at Good Machine with James Schamus and David Linde. After the sale of Good Machine to Universal Pictures in 2002, Linde and Schamus left to become co-presidents of Focus Features, and the remaining trio formed This Is That.
Bregman and Hope said the split resulted in part from too many cooks in the kitchen. "On (Peretz's romantic comedy) 'Fast Track,' Anthony, Anne and I all were producers, and we found it wasn't the most efficient use of our time," Hope said. "This year Anthony has been working nonstop and traveling all over the map -- to productions in Los Angeles, New Mexico, Mexico City. ... It probably showed Anthony he could do things on his own."
Said Bregman: "I've spent a total of 10 days in the office all year. I've always been a fan of productivity, and this seems to be the best way to achieve it. We're all still good friends, and as I understand that's a rarity in this industry."
Likely Story will share offices with This Is That until finding a space of its own in New York.
Upcoming This Is That projects include Alex Rivera's sci-fi thriller "The Sleep Dealer" and Tod Harrison Williams' "Trainwreck: My Life as an Idiot," each financed with private equity. Bregman just completed production on the Pastor brothers' thriller "The Carriers," and Hope is producing Alan Ball's untitled adaptation of Alicia Erian's coming-of-age novel "Towelhead."
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