European production and sales studio Vuelta Group is merging subsidiary sales arms Film Constellation and Global Screen into a single entity called Global Constellation.
Fabien Westerhoff takes executive role as Managing Director of the Theatrical film division bringing together the complementary strengths of both companies, with a strategic market focus on animation, family entertainment, and genre cinema. Ulrike Schroder, Managing Director of the TV division will head the exclusive hub for international TV distribution within VUELTA.
London and Paris-based Film Constellation was launched during Cannes 2016 by sales exec Fabien Westerhoff, after stints at WestEnd Films and HanWay Films. The company also created a Paris-based production arm in 2022.
The company has since handled the international sale of more than 40 features including James Marsh’s Dance First with Gabriel Byrne; Fernando Trueba’s feature-length animation The Shot The Piano Player, and documentary Ryuichi Sakamoto – Opus, with current titles including Jérémy Comte’s Captive and Alejandro Amenábar’s The Captive.
Film Constellation’s 2016 launch was supported with an equity investment by Paris-based sales company Films Distribution, which rebranded as Playtime and expanded the scope of its activities further into financing and production in 2017.
Playtime was then acquired by the Vuelta Group in 2023. Film Constellation is among three sales entities, alongside Brussels-based B For Film and Berlin and Lyon-based Films Boutique, working under the umbrella of Playtime, which also runs its own sales operation.
Global Screen is the international sales arm of German production group Telepool, which Vuelta Group acquired in May 2024. Its past sales titles have included animation productions The Amazing Maurice and Luis and the Aliens, dramas including The Collini Case and The Conference, Stella – A Life and Lassie – A New Adventure.
Pan-European studio Vuelta brings together a network of distribution and production companies, including Pan in France, SquareOne/Telepool in Germany, WW Entertainment in Benelux, Indiana Production and Piper Film in Italy, Scanbox Entertainment in Scandinavia, and Playtime.
