Ali Abbasi-directed The Apprentice, starring Sebastian Stan as Trump, Jeremy Strong as his fixer Roy Cohn and Maria Bakalova as Ivana Trump, debuted to acclaim at Cannes but became bogged down by legal threats from the former President who took exception to the material. Then producers had to deal with main financier Kinematics — some of whose projects, including The Apprentice, have been backed by Trump supporter Dan Snyder — exiting the movie. All this got in the way of the team securing domestic distribution, which is now set with Tom Ortenberg’s Briarcliff for an October 11 release.
We first announced producer Rich Spirit, overseen by LA-based USC alum Shani, in May during the bustle of Cannes. The company, we can reveal, has now expanded into distribution and is backing The Apprentice‘s release with Briarcliff.
Shani tells us the evolved company will encompass production, financing, and now distribution, with a focus on creative direction and guerrilla marketing for independent films with theatrical ambitions. The company will partner with established distributors to support acquisition costs, P&A, and grassroots marketing aimed at younger audiences.
Shani invested his own capital to start Rich Spirit earlier this year, invested $500k into The Apprentice early on as an EP, and when the opportunity arose to buy out Kinematics and use the film as a pilot for Rich Spirit’s distribution ambitions, Shani raised additional capital from private investors. His model consists of buying three-four films a year, investing 50% of the capital itself and partnering with the investor group on the remaining 50%.
Here’s our chat with Shani:
DEADLINE: What is your background? Where does your capital come from?
JAMES SHANI: I began my career producing music videos and commercials for artists like Lady Gaga and John Legend, aiming to follow in the footsteps of producer Steve Golin. I then helped make two movies – Gully and Mama Bears – that both had strong film festival premieres at Tribeca and SXSW, respectively. The two films were picked up for distribution but quickly became 1 of the 100+ titles they were distributing that year and never marketed properly.
DEADLINE: Tell us about Rich Spirit the distributor?
JAMES SHANI: Rich Spirit was founded on the belief that audiences — especially the younger demo — deserve more bold, original films that reflect their reality and experiences, and The Apprentice is the perfect opportunity for us to deliver that. Ali Abbasi’s uncompromising vision, coupled with the opportunity to collaborate with Tom Ortenberg and his experienced team, convinced us that this was a risk worth taking. It’s exactly the kind of audacious art we aim to bring to audiences as we enter the theatrical landscape.
The studio will be dedicated to focusing on genre and international films from filmmakers of color, recognizing a growing demand among young audiences for original films and narratives with a distinct global perspective. As part of our distribution model, Rich Spirit will emphasize creative direction, project positioning, and marketing the experience of each film. The company also plans to engage communities at a grass-root level through in-person activations and a non-profit arm in the near future.
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DEADLINE: How much will you be acquiring?
SHANI: The intention is for us to be a true indie, boutique studio, the way we now have more niche, indie record labels, and to take a 360, long-term approach at establishing and reaching audiences with our films. To do that well and to give films the attention and resources they deserve, less is more; we won’t acquire and release more than three-four films a year for the first few years until we prove out the model and feel we can scale without compromising the efforts.
With The Apprentice, for example, our wide release in October is a crucial moment, but we’ve talked about keeping a long tail marketing strategy well into mid-2025 where we do things like university screening events to convene with students and thought leaders around the themes of the film. We are also exploring pop-up events in cities you wouldn’t expect and have one of our cast members, filmmakers or department heads lead a discussion.
DEADLINE: Will The Apprentice have an Oscar campaign? How many categories might it compete in?
SHANI: Yes, [Briarcliff CEO] Tom Ortenberg and I are building out the Oscar campaign now. We feel strongly about multiple categories including Ali’s direction, as well as Jeremy and Sebastian’s performances. We are exploring awards possibilities in many craft categories as well.
DEADLINE: When will the film be available online and on which platforms?
SHANI: I can’t speak to this yet but things are coming together.
DEADLINE: Has Rich Spirit already acquired a second movie?
SHANI: We are currently in talks with a film out of TIFF. In addition, we are in discussions with Briafcliff about partnering on a film they’re releasing next year, as well as about acquiring a second film together.
DEADLINE: Will Rich Spirit attend major festivals and markets like Cannes, Berlin, Sundance, etc?
SHANI: You know how most people in our industry have a cute, all too detailed story about how their love of film and filmmaking started at a young age? I feel I’m the rare breed that truly fell in love with the art form later in life – like years after college – and the experience that did it for me was my first trip to Sundance in 2015. And now, almost a decade later, a big motivation to expand Rich Spirit into distribution is to be an option for filmmakers at festivals – even if we’re only acquiring a handful of films each year.
DEADLINE: Will the company grow in headcount? How is that process going?
SHANI: We have made a few hires and continue to expand. Our business model will lean more boutique, where we have strategic partnerships with companies and individuals for key areas like media buying and independent contractor relationships for specific projects. This not only keeps things lean and responsible from an overhead standpoint but, more importantly, allows us to be flexible and more easily customize marketing and creative strategy for each film.