Duck Soup Films

What Duck Soup Films does

Duck Soup Films is a UK-based independent film and television production company headquartered in Leeds, founded in 2018 by three former Warp Films producers — Bekki Wray Rogers, Libby Durdy, and Jessica Brown Meek. The company specialises in authored scripted drama for film and television, with a stated focus on bold, contemporary, and thematically resonant storytelling. Its core catalogue consists of two productions: Lost Boys & Fairies, a 3x60-minute drama commissioned by BBC One that follows a gay couple's adoption journey, and DREAMERS, a 6x30-minute dance-drama commissioned by Channel 4. Both titles are distributed internationally by All3Media.

The company's revenue model is built on two streams: production and commissioning fees from UK public service broadcasters (BBC and Channel 4) and international distribution and licensing income routed through All3Media. Duck Soup operates a sales-led, project-based go-to-market in which founders pitch and develop original IP for broadcaster commissions rather than selling access to a platform or product. The company maintains a small team (11-50 employees), a corporate website, and an Instagram presence as its primary marketing surfaces, supplemented by earned media from award recognition.

The company has announced that it will cease active content development and production starting January, citing resource constraints and insufficient market support. It will continue to manage and represent its existing catalogue — which includes an International Emmy Award winner and multi-BAFTA Cymru recipient — for international partners and buyers via All3Media. There is no disclosed external investment, parent entity, or acquisition activity; ownership remains concentrated in the three co-founders.

Name

Duck Soup Films

Legal name

Duck Soup Films Limited

Website

https://ducksoupfilms.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Duck Soup Films is a Leeds-based independent production company that creates authored scripted drama for UK public service broadcasters, principally BBC One and Channel 4, with international distribution handled by All3Media. The company is now winding down active production and managing its existing award-winning catalogue.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Leeds

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Production/Commissioning Fees: Revenue generated from producing commissioned content for broadcasters. The company creates original drama programming that is commissioned and aired on BBC One and Channel 4.
2. Distribution and Licensing: International distribution of produced content catalogue through All3Media, including licensing fees from international broadcast and streaming sales.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Duck Soup Films is an independent UK production company that develops and produces bold, authored scripted drama content for film and TV. The company creates original drama series commissioned by major UK public service broadcasters (BBC One, Channel 4) and manages international distribution of its catalogue through All3Media.

Product overview

Duck Soup Films is a production company that creates bold, authored content for Film and TV. The company's portfolio includes two principal productions: Lost Boys & Fairies (3 x 60'), an award-winning BBC One drama series available on BBC iPlayer, and DREAMERS (6 x 30'), a Channel 4 series available to stream. The company has paused active development and production but continues to manage and represent its existing catalogue for international partners and buyers through distributor All3Media.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Lost Boys & Fairies A three-part BBC One drama series (3 x 60 minutes) following singer and artiste Gabriel, his partner Andy, and their journey to adoption. The series is available on BBC iPlayer and won the International Emmy Award for Best Drama Series.
• DREAMERS A six-part Channel 4 drama series (6 x 30 minutes) following an eclectic group of dance students navigating the intense highs and lows of coming of age, brought to life through irreplaceable dance choreography. Distributed by All3Media.

Quantifiable outcome

• Lost Boys & Fairies won International Emmy Award
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• All3MediacoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAll3Media serves as the international distributor for Duck Soup Films productions, managing international sales and distribution for Lost Boys & Fairies and DREAMERS to buyers and partners worldwide.
• BBC OnecoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorBBC One is the primary UK broadcaster for Duck Soup Films productions, commissioning and airing Lost Boys & Fairies (3x1hr drama). Content is available on BBC iPlayer.
• Channel 4coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorChannel 4 commissioned and aired DREAMERS (6x30min drama series), which premiered on 30 March 2025. Content is available to stream on Channel 4's platform.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights2 records

Direct peers

• Sister Pictures: Sister is a London-based indie drama production company behind Gentleman Jack, Chernobyl and The Split. It competes head-to-head with Duck Soup for BBC/Channel 4 commissions and operates an identical authored-drama strategy with a similarly small team of executive producers.
• Bad Wolf: Bad Wolf is a Cardiff-based UK indie drama producer behind His Dark Materials, Industry and A Discovery of Witches. It competes for BBC/Channel 4/Sky drama commissions and operates a comparable scale and authored-content slate model.
• Kudos Film and Television: Kudos is a long-standing UK drama indie behind Utopia, Broadchurch and Spooks, and is now part of Banijay. Duck Soup's Bekki Wray Rogers produced the first two series of Utopia at Kudos, and Kudos competes directly for the same Channel 4/BBC commissions.
• Baby Cow Productions: Baby Cow is a UK indie production company founded by Steve Coogan and Henry Normal, producing authored drama and comedy for UK broadcasters and streamers. It is a comparable small-to-mid indie competitor with similar commissioning relationships and creative positioning.
• Warp Films: Warp Films is a UK independent film and television drama producer known for THIS IS ENGLAND and UTOPIA. All three Duck Soup founders previously worked at Warp Films producing those exact titles, making Warp the closest comparable in genre (social-realist authored drama), customer base (UK PSBs), and creative pedigree.
• House Productions: House Productions is a UK indie drama shop producing prestige limited series and films (e.g., The Power of the Dog, Jack Thorne projects). It targets the same UK PSB and US streamer buyers as Duck Soup with a comparable scale and authored-content positioning.

Emerging players

• Fable Pictures: Fable Pictures is a UK indie focused on authored feature and television drama produced by Faye Ward. It competes for similar PSB slots and feature co-financing, and is at a similar scale and stage as Duck Soup.

Others

• Channel 4 (Film4): Channel 4, via Film4, produces and co-finances original UK drama and is one of Duck Soup's two commissioning customers. While primarily a broadcaster/in-house producer, it is the direct buyer of DREAMERS and shapes the commissioning environment Duck Soup operates in.
• All3Media: All3Media is Duck Soup's international distribution partner and one of the UK's largest independent production and distribution groups. Comparable on the distribution side of the value chain, and a likely acquirer or slate-funding partner for a small indie like Duck Soup.

Broad incumbents

• Sony Pictures Television (UK indie labels): Sony Pictures Television acquires and backs multiple UK drama indies (Left Bank, Silverprint). It is a comparable buyer/owner of small authored-drama producers and a likely acquirer of distressed catalog assets like Duck Soup's.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/ducksoupfilm
• Xx.com/ducksoupfilms
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/duck-soup-films-limited

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Duck Soup Films