Fox Entertainment is venturing into the microdrama realm with a strategic investment in Holywater, a tech company from Ukraine specializing in vertical video productions.
While the financial specifics of Fox Entertainment’s investment in Holywater remain undisclosed, the agreement includes a commitment from Fox Entertainment Studios to produce an ongoing collection of over 200 vertical video titles for Holywater’s My Drama app within the next two years. This portfolio will cover a variety of genres, including microdramas. The first vertical video series slated for production by Fox Entertainment Studios are titled “Billionaire Blackmail” and “Bound by Obsession,” both of which are currently in the works and filming in Atlanta.
Fox Entertainment emphasized that their investment in Holywater signifies their commitment to a “recognized digital entertainment innovator” that employs state-of-the-art technology and an innovative business strategy aimed at steering the future of entertainment.
Founded in 2020 and headquartered in Kyiv, Ukraine, Holywater was established by co-CEOs Bogdan Nesvit and Anatolii Kasianov. The company claims its suite of four applications collectively reaches over 55 million users. These applications include My Drama, a vertical streaming service; FreeBits, an ad-supported companion streaming app; My Passion, an ebook platform; and My Muse, which features vertical series produced with the assistance of generative AI. According to Holywater, all platforms utilize serialized daily content releases to enhance user engagement, offering various monetization possibilities.
Fox Entertainment will collaborate with Holywater in the realms of original vertical video series production, advertising sales, and brand partnerships, with the added potential of integrating Fox’s intellectual properties—including spin-offs of existing Fox shows and remakes. Fox has announced plans to reveal “development agreements with leading Hollywood talent” in connection with the Holywater collaboration soon. Holywater engages creators and studios from around the globe, and has established partnerships with major tech firms like Meta, Google, and TikTok to amplify content distribution.
Rob Wade, CEO of Fox Entertainment, stated, “The future of entertainment will be shaped by innovation in digital storytelling, and our investment in vertical video positions Fox Entertainment for sustainable long-term growth as we strive to build a modern studio. Holywater is pioneering this transformation by effectively leveraging technology to stimulate creativity. This partnership focuses on discovering new, inventive ways to narrate stories and inspire creators like never before, while equipping us with the tools and flexibility needed to realize talent ideas more quickly, smartly, and across diverse platforms worldwide.”
In a joint statement, Holywater’s Nesvit and Kasianov remarked, “Vertical streaming is rapidly ascending as a dominant segment in entertainment, and our aim at Holywater is to mainstream vertical series by enhancing production quality and broadening the genre spectrum… Our collaboration with Fox Entertainment endorses that vision and grants us the scale and creative strength needed to expedite it.” They stressed that Fox has already proven to be a collaborative and innovative partner, enabling them to empower top-tier talent and develop an engaging library of compelling vertical series for global audiences.
The partnership with Holywater will leverage Fox Entertainment Studios’ extensive content library, which includes Studio Ramsay Global featuring chef Gordon Ramsay; Bento Box Entertainment known for its animation; scripted and unscripted production studios, along with a library of 350 platform-specific movies. The talent roster boasts names like Denis Leary, Jon Hamm, Hannah Waddingham, Josh Charles, Annie Potts, Minnie Driver, and Ken Jeong.
In June, Fox Corp. revealed its investment in The Lighthouse, a studio and creative hub tailored for content creators. Fox Entertainment is devising plans to augment this initiative, positioning the Fox Studios Lot in Century City as a center for “creator-driven innovation that is already shaping the entertainment landscape.”
The Raine Group acted as an advisor to Holywater during the negotiation of the deal with Fox Entertainment.
