End Cue
End Cue is a privately held independent film production company founded in 2013 and based in Los Angeles and London, producing feature films, documentaries, and shorts that it premieres at festivals and licenses to Netflix, Mubi, Focus Features, Bleecker Street, and IFC Films.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2013
- HeadquartersCulver City, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What End Cue does
End Cue is a privately held independent film production company founded in 2013 by Andrew Kortschak and Walter Kortschak, headquartered in Los Angeles with a secondary office in London. The company produces feature films, documentaries, and short films across genres including thriller, drama, dark comedy, and animation, and has built a catalog of 15+ productions such as Cop Car, Mediterranea, The Clovehitch Killer, The Art of Self-Defense, Print the Legend, and Recorder: The Marion Stokes Project. End Cue pioneered AI-authored screenwriting through its proprietary 'Benjamin' LSTM neural network, which wrote the entirety of the short film Sunspring (2016) starring Thomas Middleditch.
The company's commercial model is event-driven and B2B: projects are typically premiered at major film festivals (Sundance, SXSW, Tribeca, Cannes, Palm Springs Shortfest) to build buzz, after which End Cue licenses distribution rights to streaming platforms such as Netflix and Mubi, and to theatrical and specialty distributors including Focus Features, Bleecker Street, and IFC Films. Revenue is generated through one-time licensing fees and backend participation on individual titles. The company also engages in script acquisition, having purchased the #1 Blacklist spec Bubbles (later attached to Netflix with Taika Waititi directing). End Cue's GTM combines festival-driven earned media, top-tier entertainment industry press coverage (Variety, Hollywood Reporter, Forbes, The Guardian), and selective partnerships with distributors.
Customer concentration is moderate given End Cue's dependence on a small set of large distributor counterparties, each relationship producing non-exclusive territory splits on a project-by-project basis. The team is small and founder-led, with Walter Kortschak's Summit Partners background and Andrew Kortschak's USC film training providing a distinctive tech-entertainment bridge. No external funding rounds have been disclosed, and the company remains founder-owned with no parent organization or public listing.
End Cue firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- End Cue
- Legal name
- End Cue
- Website
- https://endcue.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2013
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- End Cue is a privately held independent film production company founded in 2013 and based in Los Angeles and London, producing feature films, documentaries, and shorts that it premieres at festivals and licenses to Netflix, Mubi, Focus Features, Bleecker Street, and IFC Films.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Where End Cue is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Culver City
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
End Cue business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Film Licensing and Distribution: End Cue generates revenue by producing films and licensing distribution rights to streaming platforms (Netflix, Mubi), theatrical distributors (Focus Features, Bleecker Street), and specialty distributors (IFC Films). Revenue comes from upfront licensing fees and backend participation.
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels3 records
End Cue product offering
Product offeringCore offering
End Cue is an independent film production company that develops, finances, and produces feature films, documentaries, and short films, then licenses distribution rights to streaming platforms (Netflix, Mubi) and theatrical distributors (Focus Features, Bleecker Street, IFC Films). The company also develops proprietary AI-assisted screenplay tools (the Benjamin neural network) and supports emerging filmmakers with projects positioned for major film festival premieres.
Product overview
End Cue is a film production company founded by Andrew and Walter Kortschak, based in London and Los Angeles. The company operates as a unified film production studio producing three categories of content: Feature Films (narrative features including Cop Car, The Clovehitch Killer, The Art of Self-Defense), Documentaries (Print the Legend, Recorder, Gore Vidal: United States of Amnesia), and Short Films (including the pioneering AI-written Sunspring). End Cue's work spans feature-length film, animation, documentary, and television, with a focus on empowering artists to tell stories without compromise.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Feature Films Narrative feature-length films produced by End Cue spanning thriller, drama, and dark comedy genres, including Cop Car, Mediterranea, The Benefactor, The Clovehitch Killer, and The Art of Self-Defense, distributed via Focus Features, Bleecker Street, and IFC Films.
- Documentaries Documentary productions covering real-world subjects including 3D printing technology (Print the Legend, acquired by Netflix), archival television recording (Recorder: The Marion Stokes Project), and literary biography (Gore Vidal: United States of Amnesia).
- Short Films Short-form film productions including Sunspring, the first AI-written short film, and Great Choice, an award-winning short film (Best Live Action Short at Palm Springs International Shortfest 2017, Best Short Film at Overlook Film Festival 2017).
- Sunspring A 9-minute science fiction short film written entirely by the Benjamin AI neural network, directed by Oscar Sharp, starring Thomas Middleditch. Premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival on June 9, 2016, and is considered the first feature film written entirely by artificial intelligence.
- Great Choice Award-winning short film (7 minutes 20 seconds) about a woman stuck inside a 1994 Red Lobster commercial. Written and directed by Robin Comisar, starring Carrie Coon.
- Print the Legend Documentary about the emerging 3D printing industry capturing the rise of desktop 3D printing pioneers during a pivotal moment. Premiered at SXSW 2014 and acquired by Netflix.
- Recorder: The Marion Stokes Project Documentary about Marion Stokes, who secretly recorded television 24 hours a day for 30 years on 70,000 VHS tapes. Directed by Matt Wolf. Premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival on April 25, 2019.
- Cop Car Feature film directed by Jon Watts (later of Spider-Man: Homecoming), starring Kevin Bacon, about two boys who find an abandoned cop car. Theatrical distribution handled by Focus Features after Sundance premiere.
- The Clovehitch Killer Thriller feature film directed by Duncan Skiles, starring Dylan McDermott, about a teenage boy who suspects his father is a serial killer. Distributed by IFC Films.
- The Art of Self-Defense Dark comedy feature film directed by Riley Stearns, starring Jesse Eisenberg, about a man who enlists in a dojo to learn self-defense. Theatrical distribution handled by Bleecker Street after SXSW premiere.
Quantifiable outcome
- Films have been acquired by major platforms including Netflix, Mubi, Focus Features, and Bleecker Street
Companies that use End Cue
Customer profileNamed customers5 records
Segments1 record
Ideal customer profiles3 records
End Cue technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability2 records
Feature1 record
End Cue partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators3 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights4 records
End Cue competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- A24: A24 is the leading independent film production and distribution company, releasing auteur-driven features (Moonlight, Hereditary, Everything Everywhere All at Once) through festival premieres followed by theatrical and streaming distribution. Like End Cue, A24 sources projects from emerging filmmakers and leverages critical acclaim to drive value.
- Plan B Entertainment: Plan B Entertainment is an independent film and television production company (founded by Brad Pitt, Jennifer Aniston, and Brad Grey) that produces award-winning features and documentaries. It shares End Cue's model of developing projects with emerging filmmakers and placing them with major distributors.
- Annapurna Pictures: Annapurna Pictures is an independent production and distribution company producing prestige features and documentaries (Her, Phantom Thread, If Beale Street Could Talk). It is directly comparable to End Cue in its indie/specialty focus and reliance on festival-driven launches and streaming acquisition.
- Neon: Neon is an independent film production and distribution company known for festival-circuit acquisitions (Parasite, I, Tonya, Anora). It overlaps with End Cue in festival-first strategy and in producing and acquiring prestige features for theatrical and streaming release.
- Participant Media: Participant Media is an independent production company producing impact-driven features and documentaries (An Inconvenient Truth, Roma, Food, Inc.). It is directly comparable to End Cue's documentary and socially-conscious feature work, with a similar reliance on festival premieres and elite streaming partners.
- Topic Studios: Topic Studios is the film and television production arm of First Look Media, producing independent features and documentaries (Spotlight, The Big Sick). It is comparable to End Cue in its indie feature and documentary slate and festival-gated distribution strategy.
- Film4: Film4 is the UK-based film production and development arm of Channel 4, financing and producing independent British and international features (12 Years a Slave, Slumdog Millionaire). It is a close peer to End Cue given overlapping UK indie production footprint and festival-driven film slate.
- Duplass Brothers Productions: Duplass Brothers Productions is an independent production company (Mark and Jay Duplass) producing indie features, documentaries, and series (The Puffy Chair, Jeff, Who Lives at Home, HBO's Togetherness). It mirrors End Cue's small-team, founder-driven indie producer model with festival-to-streamer positioning.
- Search Pictures: Search Pictures is an independent film production company (Mary Parent) producing features across genres including tentpole indie and festival-driven projects (Monster House, Sleepless in Seattle). It is comparable to End Cue in the indie/specialty production space with global distribution relationships.
- Concordia Studio: Concordia Studio is an independent production company focused on feature documentaries and prestige non-fiction (Hale County This Morning, This Evening, Boys State). It is directly comparable to End Cue's documentary production and festival-led distribution approach.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
End Cue social profiles
Digital presenceEnd Cue financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
End Cue leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles4 records
End Cue funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
End Cue M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments3 records
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about End Cue
What does End Cue do?
End Cue is an independent film production company that develops, finances, and produces feature films, documentaries, and short films, then licenses distribution rights to streaming platforms (Netflix, Mubi) and theatrical distributors (Focus Features, Bleecker Street, IFC Films). The company also develops proprietary AI-assisted screenplay tools (the Benjamin neural network) and supports emerging filmmakers with projects positioned for major film festival premieres.
Is End Cue a public or private company?
End Cue is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was End Cue founded?
End Cue was founded in 2013. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is End Cue based?
End Cue is headquartered in Culver City, United States, in the North America region.
How does End Cue make money?
One revenue line is on record: film Licensing and Distribution.
Who are End Cue's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are A24, Plan B Entertainment, Annapurna Pictures, Neon, Participant Media, Topic Studios, Film4, Duplass Brothers Productions, Search Pictures and Concordia Studio.
Does End Cue have an API?
No public API is recorded for End Cue.