VANCOUVER, BC and LOS ANGELES, June 30, 2023 - The McLean Group of Companies today announced the sale of Vancouver Film Studios (VFS) and its related companies, Pacific Backlot and Signal Systems, to an affiliate of Hackman Capital Partners (HCP), and its premiere independent film and television studio platform.
Vancouver Film Studios, a certified B-Corp company, is home to 13 state-of-the-art sound stages alongside construction mills and office spaces, serving the needs of international and North American producers. The affiliated Pacific Backlot provides lighting, grip and other production equipment, while Signal Systems provides communications services.
"Vancouver Film Studios has been a core company in our family business for 25 years and we are confident HCP will take what we have built to even greater heights. Their expertise in the film industry combined with our exceptional team make for an 'all-star cast'," said Jason McLean, CEO of the McLean Group of Companies.
VFS will continue to operate as an independent film and television studio with the added network and support that HCP provides. VFS has been the location of many highly successful productions—including Deadpool, The Flash, Yellowjackets, and others—and has served as long-term home for such major global content creators as Disney, Warner Bros., 20th Century Studios, NBC Universal, Netflix, Apple and CBS.
"Within a burgeoning global production market, Vancouver Film Studios has a rare generational legacy, and we are thrilled to be its next steward," said Michael Hackman, founder and CEO of Hackman Capital Partners. "Not only is the facility purpose-built and state of the art, but we are inheriting a management team that is among the best in the business."
VFS has strong environmental, social and governance values, having been the first studio in the world to become B-Corporation Certified, being carbon neutral since 2008, launching the Indigenous Filmmakers Bursary in 2022, and many other notable community and environmental actions.
Jefferies LLC served as the exclusive financial advisor to VFS and its related companies on this transaction.
About the McLean Group of Companies
Based in Vancouver, BC, the McLean Group is a diversified portfolio of privately held businesses, underpinned by a commitment to people and the community. Established in 1972 as a real estate investment and development firm, the company is today a thriving second-generation family enterprise, with operating businesses in film and television production services, telecommunications, construction, and aviation, as well as a variety of real estate projects.
About Hackman Capital Partners
Based in Los Angeles, Hackman Capital Partners is a privately-held, vertically-integrated real estate investment and operating company and the world's largest owner and operator of independent film and television studios. It's unrivaled portfolio of 19 production campuses, including studios in development, represent more than 10 million square feet across North America, the UK and Ireland, and feature more than 145 active sound stages and over 60 stages planned for construction. In addition to recently acquired Vancouver Film Studios, these include The Culver Studios, Radford Studio Center, Television City Studios, MBS Media Campus, Raleigh Studios, and Saticoy Studios in Los Angeles; Silvercup Studios and Kaufman Astoria Studios in New York; Second Line Stages in New Orleans; Ardmore Studios and Troy Studios in Ireland; The Wharf London, Wardpark Studios, Cardington Studios and Pyramids Studios in the UK—and in development, Eastbrook Studios London in the UK, Greystones Media Campus in Ireland, and Basin Media Studios in Toronto.
SOURCE McLean Group of Companies
