Bayonet Media

What Bayonet Media does

Bayonet Media is a privately held, full-service commercial production studio founded in 2012 and headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, with a second office in Los Angeles at the Hollywood Athletic Club. The studio produces commercials and branded content for advertising agencies and consumer brand marketers, alongside an active slate of non-fiction content for linear, theatrical, and digital distribution. Its service offering spans concept development, principal production, and post-production under one roof, including custom set construction, 16mm film production, VFX/CGI, and notably a virtual stage / LED volume production capability that has been used to build photoreal virtual sets in days rather than months. The company's commercial client roster includes Salesforce, FedEx, AT&T, GE, HBO, Toyota, Walmart, Jim Beam, Schlage, SlimFast, Splenda, Papa Murphy's, AARP, Ruth's Chris, Java House, and Big Y, plus network clients such as Food Network and History Channel.

The business model is project-based professional services: Bayonet earns revenue through custom production fees negotiated per project, with no disclosed recurring or subscription revenue. The go-to-market motion is enterprise field sales — direct relationships with agency creative producers and in-house brand teams, supported by an industry portfolio, an awards dossier (44+ Emmy Awards, multiple Addy Best of Shows), and a director-attached model where named directors (Joe Vella, Andrew P. Quinn, Geneva Peschka, Ross Simpson, Brody Bernheisel, Sam Washington) lead specific campaigns. Headcount is disclosed at 1-10 employees, but the operating model relies on a flexible bench of freelance crew across the country, and a sister entity, Chop Shop Post, provides in-ecosystem post-production services.

Customer segments split horizontally across two primary buckets: (1) advertising agencies and brand marketers seeking commercial production partners (the dominant revenue line), and (2) television networks and film/streaming platforms commissioning non-fiction content (Food Network's 'How Not to Mess Up Christmas Cookies,' History Channel's 'The Unbelievable,' PBS regional 'Hoosier Legends'). Strategic partnerships with The Basement Agency, Ed Carpenter Racing, Food Network, Three Sixty Group, and Chop Shop Post extend the studio's reach. Ownership is founder- or management-controlled with no disclosed institutional investors or funding rounds.

Name

Bayonet Media

Legal name

Bayonet Media

Website

https://bayonetmedia.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Bayonet Media is a privately held full-service commercial production studio with offices in Indianapolis and Los Angeles, producing commercials, branded content, and non-fiction programming for advertising agencies, consumer brands, and television networks using virtual stage, VFX, and traditional film capabilities.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Indianapolis

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Commercial Production: Bayonet produces commercials for agencies and brands including branded content, lifestyle videos, digital campaigns, and product-focused spots. Revenue is generated through project-based production fees.
2. Feature Film and Documentary Production: Development, production, and delivery of non-fiction content for linear, theatrical, and digital audiences. Includes feature films like Pressing On and documentary series like Bourbon Boom.
3. Television and Digital Series Production: Produced series for networks including Food Network (How Not to Mess Up Christmas Cookies), History Channel, and linear television shows like Hoosier Legends.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Bayonet Media is a full-service commercial production studio that creates branded content, commercials, and campaign films for advertising agencies and major consumer brands, and develops non-fiction content (feature films, documentary series, and short films) for television networks and digital platforms. Production and post-production are delivered end-to-end, including virtual stage/LED volume production, VFX, CGI, custom set construction, and editing.

Product overview

Bayonet Media is a full-service commercial creative studio with dual Midwest (Indianapolis, IN) and West Coast (Los Angeles, CA) locations. The company produces commercials and branded content for major national brands and agencies, and develops non-fiction content for linear, theatrical, and digital audiences. Their portfolio spans commercial production (SlimFast, Salesforce Agentforce, FedEx, Schlage, Java House, Big Y, Catalina Crunch, Jim Beam, Ruth's Chris, Papa Murphy's, Splenda Stevia, AARP), feature documentary films (Pressing On, The Bourbon Boom), short narrative films (Food That Saves You, The Invisible Crown), and digital/web series content (Hoosier Legends, How Not to Mess Up Christmas Cookies, Dog Cat Man Van, Crusty Crusaders, No Mean City, Uprooted with Gaz Oakley, The Forest & The Trees). The studio has full production and post-production capabilities including custom set construction, VFX, and CGI.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Commercial Production Full-service commercial production studio creating branded content and commercials for agencies and major brands including M&Ms, Ring, Snickers, Jim Beam, AT&T, GE, HBO, Toyota, FedEx, Walmart, Salesforce, Schlage, SlimFast, Java House, and Ruth's Chris.
• Post-Production Services Full post-production capabilities including editing, VFX, CGI, and visual effects for commercials and branded content campaigns, delivered alongside or independently of principal photography.
• Non-Fiction Content Development Development, production, and delivery of non-fiction content for linear, theatrical, and digital audiences, including documentary series and feature films.
• Virtual Stage Production Hybrid virtual world-building with practical set elements, real-time lighting, dynamic set extensions, and interactive design that transforms locations like train stations, airports, and assembly lines into photoreal virtual sets without traditional location shoots.
• Hoosier Legends Emmy Award-winning television show profiling legendary Indiana sports figures, hosted by Brian Hammons, with 33 episodes produced for linear broadcast.
• Pressing On Feature-length documentary film exploring the survival of letterpress printing in a digital age, nominated for an Emmy in Non-Fiction for cinematography.
• The Bourbon Boom Hosted 6-part episodic documentary series touring the American Bourbon Boom, presented by Chace Crawford.
• How Not to Mess Up Christmas Cookies 5-episode digital series for Food Network in which Chef Ben Hardy shares classic holiday cookie recipes, commissioned after Bayonet pitched the concept.
• Food That Saves You Short narrative film about a man overcoming depression following his wife's death through a shared passion, directed by Joe Vella.
• The Invisible Crown Documentary examining emotional, mental, and physical consequences of living with Endometriosis, directed by Amelia Kramer.

Quantifiable outcome

• Virtual sets that would have cost millions and taken over a month to construct practically were created in days
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers15 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.

• The Basement AgencycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBayonet partnered with The Basement agency for creative collaboration on Schlage brand campaign. Director Sam Washington and Bayonet worked together with the agency to bring Schlage's brand vision to life through lifestyle video series.
• ECR (Ed Carpenter Racing)flagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerBayonet partnered with Java House and ECR (formerly Ed Carpenter Racing) for high-octane comedy campaign featuring IndyCar drivers. The partnership delivered national campaign during Fox Sports broadcast of Indianapolis 500, introducing Java House products to race fans. Drivers included Alexander Rossi, Christian Rasmussen, Ed Carpenter, and Danica Patrick cameo.
• Food NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAfter pitching a concept to Food Network, Bayonet was commissioned to develop, cast, produce, edit, and deliver a five-episode digital series How Not to Mess Up Christmas Cookies. The series was developed, produced, and delivered to the network.
• Three Sixty GroupminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBayonet collaborated with Three Sixty Group and NFHS to create two PSAs focusing on the national shortage of referees for high school sports.
• Chop ShopminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerChop Shop provided editing services for The Invisible Crown documentary, shot by Bayonet and directed by Amelia Kramer. Chop Shop Post is also referenced as a related company (https://chopshoppost.com/).

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• Dwell Films: Midwest-based commercial and branded video production studio serving brands and agencies, a regional peer competing in Bayonet's home market.

Direct peers

• Tool of North America: Production company delivering commercials, digital, and interactive content for major brands, comparable to Bayonet's full-service commercial studio.
• Biscuit Filmworks: Director-driven commercial production company producing high-end advertising spots for national brands, mirroring Bayonet's director-roster approach.
• m ss ng p eces: Content and commercial production studio spanning ads, branded content, and original series/film, matching Bayonet's multi-format model.
• Hungry Man: National commercial production company producing branded content and commercials for major agencies and brands, the same core business as Bayonet.
• O Positive: Commercial and branded-content production studio serving brands and agencies, directly comparable to Bayonet's project-based commercial production model.
• Prettybird: Creative production company making commercials, music videos, and branded content for brands and agencies, closely aligned with Bayonet's offering.

Others

• The Mill: VFX and post-production studio serving advertising; overlaps with Bayonet's VFX/CGI and virtual production capabilities but focused on post rather than full production.

Broad incumbents

• Anonymous Content: Established production and management company producing commercials, film, and TV; overlaps with Bayonet's commercial and non-fiction work as a much larger player.
• RadicalMedia: Large production company producing commercials, documentaries, and series across formats, overlapping with Bayonet but at far greater scale.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/BayonetMedia
• Facebookfacebook.com/BayonetMedia
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/bayonet-media

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 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 Bayonet Media