What Premium Films does

Premium Films is a privately held Paris-based sales agency founded in 1998 that specializes in the international distribution of short films. Operating as a B2B intermediary, the company represents independent short film producers and rights owners, licensing their works to professional buyers including film distributors, broadcasters, streaming platforms, festivals, and VOD services. The firm curates a catalogue of several hundred international shorts sourced from over 100 countries, spanning diverse genres, languages, and runtime formats, with selective, hand-picked acquisitions rather than open submissions.

The company's core technology is its online catalogue platform with advanced search and filtering capabilities (by country, language, genre, year, runtime, audience rating, and topic), supplemented by authenticated buyer accounts that enable online screening, customizable favourites lists, and direct digital material downloads. A separate producer portal allows rights owners to submit screeners for representation consideration. There is no consumer-facing app or API; distribution is exclusively direct-to-professional-buyer. Revenue is generated through licensing commissions on distribution transactions negotiated case-by-case by territory, duration, and usage rights. Pricing is not publicly disclosed.

In 2018, Premium Films formed the joint venture MPM Premium with MPM Film to expand into feature film distribution and World Cinema, while Premium Films retained its short film specialization under its existing brand. The firm has been continuously operating for over 27 years, with notable festival placements at Cannes, Sundance, Tribeca, Venice, and Palm Springs, and at least one Academy Award win (I'm Not A Robot) and multiple Oscar nominations across its catalogue.

Name

Premium Films

Legal name

Premium Films

Website

https://premium-films.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1998

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Premium Films is a Paris-based B2B sales agency founded in 1998 that curates and licenses international short films to professional buyers including distributors, broadcasters, and streaming platforms. It represents independent producers through a digital catalogue and account portal, with films from 100+ countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Film Distribution Services

NAICS

Motion Picture and Video Distribution (51212)

SIC

Services-Motion Picture & Video Tape Distribution (7822)

akta.pro primary industry

Clip Licensing & Stock Video (Short-form Excerpts) (MPABANAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

B2B Marketplaces & Wholesale Platforms (BPAMAGAD)

Keywords

• Short film distribution
• Film sales agency
• Film rights licensing
• International short films
• Film catalogue sales

Headquarters

HQ city

Paris

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Short Film Distribution & Licensing: Premium Films generates revenue by licensing short film rights to buyers (distributors, broadcasters, streaming platforms, festivals). As a sales agent, the company represents film producers and sells distribution rights on their behalf, typically earning a commission on transactions. Buyers receive licensed access to screen films for distribution.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Premium Films is a B2B sales agency that represents independent short film producers and licenses short film rights to professional buyers such as distributors, broadcasters, streaming platforms, and festivals. Its core offering is a curated, searchable online catalogue of international short films, supported by authenticated buyer accounts with screening, favourites, and digital delivery tools, and a producer screener submission portal.

Product overview

Premium Films operates as a single unified platform offering short film distribution services through its curated catalogue and account-based licensing system. The core product is the Short Film Catalogue, complemented by Buyer Accounts for film licensing professionals and Producer Accounts for rights owners submitting films. In 2018, Premium Films expanded into feature films through MPM Premium, a joint venture with MPM Film focusing on World Cinema and emerging directors.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• MPM Premium: A joint venture created in 2018 with MPM Film, focusing on World Cinema and new directors

Products and services

• Short Film Catalogue A curated digital catalogue of international short films available for licensing, featuring advanced search filters by country, language, genre, year, running time, and audience rating. Used by professional film buyers (distributors, broadcasters, streaming platforms, festivals) to source and license short film rights.
• Buyer Account A registered account service for professional buyers that provides authenticated access to the online catalogue for screening shorts, advanced search features, personalised title recommendations, saved favourites, and direct digital delivery of materials for licensing.
• Producer Account An online submission portal enabling film producers and rights owners to send screeners of their short films for consideration by Premium Films for sales representation and inclusion in the international distribution catalogue.

Quantifiable outcome

• Two films nominated for Academy Awards (2026)
• +4 more outcomes

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• MPM FilmcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2018In 2018, Premium Films joined forces with MPM Film to create the joint sales company MPM Premium, with a strong focus on World Cinema and new directors. Premium Films continues to operate its short film business under the Premium Films brand while MPM Premium handles feature films and world cinema distribution.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Miyu Distribution: Miyu Distribution is a French short film distribution company specialising in international sales of animated and live-action shorts. It shares Premium Films' Paris roots and similar B2B short film sales agency model.
• Factory 25: Factory 25 is a US-based independent film label distributing shorts and features via home video, VOD, and theatrical channels. It is comparable to Premium Films as a small specialist distributor focused on curated, festival-driven independent content.
• National Film Board of Canada (NFB): The NFB is one of the world's largest producers and distributors of short films, with a global B2B licensing programme. While publicly funded, its international short film sales operation directly mirrors Premium Films' distribution function.
• Visit Films: Visit Films is an international sales agency representing independent and short films for worldwide distribution, festival placement, and platform licensing. It shares Premium Films' festival-driven acquisition approach and B2B sales model.
• Shorts International / ShortsTV: ShortsTV is a leading B2B distributor and cable/satellite channel dedicated to short films, selling and licensing short-form content to broadcasters, platforms, and hotels globally. Like Premium Films, it operates as a specialist short film intermediary targeting professional buyers.
• Ouat Media: Ouat Media is a Canadian-based sales agency that distributes and licenses award-winning short films to broadcasters and platforms worldwide. It is directly comparable to Premium Films in offering curated short film distribution to professional buyers.
• The Film Collaborative: The Film Collaborative is a non-profit distributor and sales services provider specialising in independent and short film release strategy, sales representation, and festival placement. It overlaps with Premium Films' role as a sales agent for short filmmakers.

Others

• MPM Film: MPM Film is Premium Films' joint venture partner since 2018, co-creating MPM Premium for feature film distribution and World Cinema. While not a direct competitor, MPM Film is the closest partner ecosystem company and a related sales agent.

Regional players

• Soda Pictures: Soda Pictures (now under various UK indie distribution entities) is a UK-based independent film distributor with a short film and new directors focus. It is comparable to Premium Films' sales agency model but primarily serves UK and European territories.

Broad incumbents

• Magnolia Pictures: Magnolia Pictures is a larger US independent film distributor with broad feature, documentary, and short film catalogues. It overlaps with Premium Films' distribution function but at a much larger scale and broader portfolio.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/100064306524670

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 Premium Films