Veteran producer Mark Fennessy confirmed plans to launch his next venture, the production company Helium. With the new launch, the globally respected, innovator, entrepreneur and creator of premium content hopes to cover all facets of the production industry. “In Helium I’m building something truly unique - an aggressive, yet lean and nimble disruptor, powered by originality through partnering with brave outliers, artists, curators and storytellers," Founder and Chief Creative Officer Mark Fennessy said.
The new indepedent venture will be responsible for creating and producing original content for a wide range of platforms and networks. The company will begin with a slate of popular drama series, including "Last King of The Cross," currently in early pre-production for Paramount+, the feature film 6 Festivals also for Paramount+, and in advanced development, the crime thriller series "Sex and Thugs and Rock n Roll," created through a collaboration with Richard Lowenstein and his company Ghost.
With years of experience under the chain's belt, the new company will count with the support of Helium Studios, Helium Pictures and Helium Records - will specialise in the creation of innovative, authentic and compelling content, whilst redefining the boundaries between music and pictures. “There is a voracious appetite out there for compelling content - presenting enormous potential for a new player with vast experience. HELIUM is a contemporary label for this new landscape,” he continued.
After leading the independent production label Crackerjack before forming FremantleMedia in Australia, to launching the powerhouse Shine with brother Carl and Elisabeth Murdoch, through to overseeing the merger with Endemol to create the juggernaut Endemol Shine Australia, Mark is synonymous with the production pillars of the Australian television industry. With a global vision coupled with his accomplished business acumen, Mark has led a catalog of television franchises and super brands which cross genres - from blockbuster unscripted hits to critically acclaimed scripted content, which has driven him to rank as number one in the Australian Financial Review’s Cultural List.