Factual indie Dare Pictures is closing after four years, with founder Derren Lawford set to work on future projects with film and TV agency Stern & Wild.
Lawford set up Dare in 2022 as a diversity and inclusion-focused production company, initially backed by angel investor Rosegown and later securing funding from US producer Asylum Entertainment.
Dare’s productions have included Fugitive: The Mystery of the Crypto Queen [main picture] and UK Prisons Exposed (both Channel 4), Geordie Stories : Sophie’s Fertility Journey (Paramount+) and This is Soho, a feature doc narrated by Stephen Fry and co-produced with Bad Tattoo.
The company was named best emerging indie at last year’s Broadcast Awards.
Lawford previously spent seven years at Woodcut Media, executive producing Netflix docs Mandela, My Dad and Me and Cut From A Different Cloth, ITV ob-doc The Ivy and National Geographic series Fiennes: Return To The Nile.
Represented by Stern & Wild, Lawford will continue to independently develop and produce original projects and IP, working directly with commissioners, partners and financiers on factual and cross-platform series.
“The lines between broadcasters, streamers, brands and audio are increasingly blurred. I’ve spent my career building teams and delivering work across those worlds,” he added.
“This next phase is about continuing to create ambitious content while applying that cross-platform experience more broadly in a consolidating market.”
