EXCLUSIVE: Nicole Finnan, the veteran UK producer and commercial director who most recently led Peaky Blinders producer Caryn Mandabach Productions, has launched her own consultancy business.
Jaeger Media will look to work with start-up and small-to-mid-size producers, artists and influencers to help them maximize commercial opportunities and protect their IP. Services will be available through a simple fee structure.
Finnan is well-known for her commercial acumen in the British TV and film space, and with so many indie producers struggling to stay afloat as the traditional commissioning business model strains, independent advice and support is being south more often. Notably, she was part of the teams that launched UK drama houses Ecosse Films, Ruby Film & Television and Eleventh Hour Films.
Beginning her TV career at Brideshead Revisited and Mistresses producer Ecosse, she rose to Commercial and Finance Director, before moving to Ruby Film, where she was exec producer on Jason Isaac BBC series Case Histories and BBC film Toast.
In 2011, she joined Eleventh Hour, known for shows such as Safe House, Foyle’s War and New Blood. She became Managing Director of the Alex Rider producer in 2017 and over the deal that saw Sony Pictures Television become a shareholder a year later. SPT took a majority in the business last year.
After exiting, she became a freelance media consultant and board member at Inceptive Films, before joining Caryn Mandabach Productions in January 2023 as Managing Director. She restructured the business and struck new agreements with Peaking Blinders creator Steven Knight, negotiated the deal to turn the BAFTA-winning BBC crime drama into a Netflix film and then led the company’s sale to Banijay Entertainment, which closed in June last year.
Finnan told Deadline she had decided to leave Caryn Mandabach after the sale and took a break for media, working as Chief of Staff for an MP following the election in the UK last year. During this time, she was formulating the plan for Jaeger.
“I had been thinking about it for quite a while – I was there at the start of Ecosse, Ruby Film and TV and Eleventh Hour, but building this consultancy will give me the ability to work with and help more than one company or group of creatives at the same time,” she said.
The plan is for Jaeger to work with a range of clients, and particularly those that are looking to diversify revenue streams.
“I would like to help them grow their businesses, which I enjoy doing, and put the right deals in place and support in whichever way I can,” she told Deadline. “It’s tough out there for production companies and it might help to have someone there with a different perspective. I am the eternal optimist and believe there are opportunities out there.”
Finna noted that many companies simply don’t have the time or capacity to restructure and diversify, which is where Jaeger could step in an help. “I can fill that gap,” she said.
“I have had the privilege of working on many exceptional dramas and film as well as big brands, such as Alex Rider and Peaky Blinders, and so understand what is possible in terms of FAST channels, gaming, art, literature, audio and more. I take a 360 view and can help businesses explore other opportunities. I can also help navigate the ever-changing advancements in technology. To keep up, I am even completing a course in AI and have been tracking the developments there.
Finnan is self-financing Jaeger and could look to take equity stakes in clients’ businesses should that make sense.
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