The Wild Bunch group is developing its production strategy by creating Italian firm BIM Produzione, following its 2014 acquisition of BIM Distribuzione, a company originally founded by Valerio De Paolis. The new firm will produce Italian TV series, documentaries and films in response to growing demand from national operators and global platforms.

BIM Produzione is founded in association with Riccardo Russo, who is taking on the role of CEO and Managing Director. Antonio Medici, meanwhile, COO of BIM Distribuzione, will act as President for the new company. Russo was previously Head of International TV Productions at Leone Film Group, and Head of International Co-Productions with LUX (where he produced the series Medici: Masters of Florence, distributed by Wild Bunch TV). “Joining this great family is a double privilege for me”, Riccardo Russo confirmed in a statement released by BIM. “On the one hand, I’ve already had the honour of working with the Wild Bunch group for the first season of Medici, which, thanks to Wild Bunch, was sold in over 100 countries and was one of the first ever examples of great Italian co-productions in this new, televisual era. On the other hand, to have my name associated with that of BIM is a significant milestone for me, on both a professional and a personal level, owing to the fundamental role the many films distributed by BIM have had on my cultural and film education”.

Antonio Medici added that “BIM’s entry into the landscape of audiovisual production, as was already announced some time ago, rounds off our efforts to consolidate Wild Bunch’s various activities, a necessary step for competing on the current market. Speaking on behalf of both BIM and the Wild Bunch group, I feel that Riccardo’s expertise, experience and interpersonal skills are crucial to our meeting this new challenge armed with the appropriate tools and the necessary sense of resolve”.

Wild Bunch consolidated its share capital following the recent financial restructuring of the company, and has thus been able to add BIM Produzione to its existing production entities: Senator Film Produktion (Germany) Wild Bunch and Wild Bunch TV (France) and Vértigo Films (Spain). The pan-European holding company based in Berlin and Paris is now the only independent group to be directly active in both distribution and production across four major European territories.