Night Fire Films Inc

What Night Fire Films Inc does

Night Fire Films Inc is an independent documentary film production company founded in 1976 by director David Lebrun and based in Los Angeles, California. The company specializes in long-form documentary films on archaeology, anthropology, and art history, with a body of work that includes "Proteus" (2004), "Breaking the Maya Code" (2008), "Out of the Maya Tombs" (2017), and "The Hog Farm Movie" (2019). Its core technical capability lies in combining on-location documentary cinematography with hand-crafted animation techniques and digital restoration of archival materials, producing 4K-quality outputs that have screened at institutions including MoMA, Sundance, and the Museum of the Moving Image.

The company operates a small five-person production team and monetizes through a mix of grant funding (National Endowment for the Humanities, National Science Foundation, ARTE France co-productions), direct-to-consumer digital sales via Vimeo On Demand and iTunes (priced at $1.99-$14.99 per title), physical DVD/Blu-ray sales, and institutional licensing through distribution partners First Run Features and Documentary Educational Resources at $195 per DVD set. In 2021 it extended its business model into the museum exhibition vertical with "Transfigurations: Reanimating the Past," monetizing an archive of more than 40,000 high-resolution artifact photographs in an immersive exhibition format.

Night Fire Films serves three primary customer segments: museums and cultural institutions (which license content and host exhibitions), educational institutions (which acquire curriculum materials), and individual documentary enthusiasts (who purchase or stream titles directly). The company is privately held with no public stock symbol, no disclosed equity funding rounds, and operates on a project-by-project grant and distribution revenue cycle rather than recurring SaaS-style economics. Its brand is built on the founder's 50+ year directorial career and craft-driven, non-AI production techniques that distinguish it from automated content producers.

Name

Night Fire Films Inc

Legal name

Night Fire Films

Website

https://nightfirefilms.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1976

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Night Fire Films Inc is a Los Angeles-based independent documentary production company founded in 1976 by David Lebrun, producing archaeology, anthropology, and art history films for museums, educational institutions, and documentary audiences via streaming, DVD sales, institutional licensing, and museum exhibitions.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Documentary Film Production

SIC

Services-Motion Picture & Video Tape Production (7812)

akta.pro primary industry

True Crime Documentaries (MPADADAN)

Keywords

• Documentary film production
• Archaeological documentaries
• Anthropological films
• Educational film licensing
• Experimental animation

Headquarters

HQ city

Los Angeles

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Direct Product Sales: Sale of DVDs, Blu-rays, and streaming/rental downloads directly through company website. Products shipped via PayPal from Night Fire Films office.
2. Streaming Platforms: Revenue from Vimeo On Demand and iTunes through rental, streaming, and download purchases. Personal use licensing for consumers.
3. Educational Institutional Licensing: Classroom and public performance licensing for educational institutions, museums, and organizations through distributors.
4. Distribution Partnerships: Revenue sharing with distributors First Run Features and Documentary Educational Resources for broader market reach.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Night Fire Films Inc is a documentary film production company founded in 1976 that creates and distributes documentary and experimental films focused on anthropological, archaeological, and cultural subjects. Its offerings include feature-length documentaries, multi-part documentary series, educational DVD editions, and original soundtrack recordings, sold directly to consumers and licensed to museums, universities, and educational institutions.

Product overview

Night Fire Films is a documentary film production company offering a portfolio of documentary films and an immersive exhibition project called Transfigurations: Reanimating the Past. The core products include feature documentaries (Breaking the Maya Code, Out of the Maya Tombs, Proteus, Tanka, The Hog Farm Movie, Invisible Writing) that explore topics in archaeology, anthropology, and art history through documentary and animation. Films are distributed via Vimeo On Demand, iTunes, DVD, and educational institutions through Documentary Educational Resources. Related products include soundtrack recordings and educational DVD editions.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Transfigurations: An immersive exhibition project featuring animation installations based on over 40,000 photographs of ancient objects, creating animations from ancient art to provide new ways of experiencing historical artifacts.

Products and services

• Transfigurations: Reanimating the Past A feature documentary by David Lebrun that uses animation to reanimate and reinterpret archaeological and historical imagery, aimed at museums, educational institutions, and documentary enthusiasts.
• Breaking the Maya Code A feature documentary chronicling the historical decipherment of Maya hieroglyphic writing, targeted at museums, universities, and educated general audiences.
• Out of the Maya Tombs A multi-part documentary series following archaeological fieldwork in the Maya region, aimed at museums, higher education audiences, and documentary viewers.
• Proteus: A Nineteenth Century Vision A feature documentary exploring 19th-century natural history and philosophy through animation, aimed at museums, educational institutions, and specialty audiences.
• Tanka A short documentary exploring the Tibetan folk song tradition of Tanka, aimed at cultural institutions and specialty audiences.
• The Hog Farm Movie A documentary feature drawn from observational footage of the Hog Farm commune, aimed at cultural and historical documentary audiences.
• Invisible Writing A documentary work from Night Fire Films Inc's catalog exploring cultural and visual themes, aimed at specialty documentary audiences.
• Out of the Maya Tombs Educational Edition DVD An educational, classroom-ready DVD edition of the Out of the Maya Tombs series, sold to schools, universities, and libraries for instructional use.
• Breaking the Maya Code Original Soundtrack Recording An original soundtrack recording produced for the documentary Breaking the Maya Code, sold to consumers and institutions as a companion audio product.
• Proteus Original Soundtrack Recording An original soundtrack recording produced for the documentary Proteus: A Nineteenth Century Vision, sold to consumers and institutions as a companion audio product.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 90% of Maya script now understood by scholars
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• ARTE FrancecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 March 2008ARTE France co-produced Breaking the Maya Code with Night Fire Films. A 90-minute adaptation was released on European television by ARTE France. European broadcast premiere was September 2008.
• Precolumbian Art Research Institute (PARI)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNon-profit sponsor of Breaking the Maya Code, founded by Merle Greene Robertson. PARI provided access to research resources and archival materials.
• First Run FeaturescoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorUS distributor for Breaking the Maya Code DVD sales.
• Documentary Educational Resources (DER)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorEducational institution distributor for Out of the Maya Tombs. Provides institutionally licensed 2-DVD educational packages with classroom versions and bonus materials.
• VimeocoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorStreaming platform for film rentals, streaming, and downloads via Vimeo On Demand.
• iTunesminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDigital distribution platform for The Hog Farm Movie and other titles.
• Marianna Kistler Beach Museum of ArtcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHost venue for Transfigurations exhibitions including animations of ancient art of India and Paleolithic handaxes. Provided exhibition space and programming support.
• Getty Research InstituteminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHosted screening and panel discussion for Dance of the Maize God. Provided archival research access for Breaking the Maya Code production.
• Museums and Departments of Antiquities (International)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with museums and antiquities departments in Canada, Cyprus, England, France, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Hungary, India, Iran, Ireland, Lebanon, Mexico, and the US for Transfigurations photography and artifact documentation.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Emerging players

• MagellanTV: Streaming platform dedicated to documentary content with significant focus on history, archaeology, and science. A potential distribution partner comparable to Vimeo On Demand but with a more targeted documentary audience.

Direct peers

• Zeitgeist Films: Independent distributor of documentary and independent fiction films with a focus on cultural and artistic content. Comparable in size to Night Fire Films and adjacent in target audience.
• Kino Lorber: Independent distributor and producer of arthouse, documentary, and classic films. Similar niche positioning in cultural documentary distribution with broader catalog and theatrical ambitions.
• FilmRise: Independent film distributor and streaming platform with a significant documentary catalog. Comparable in vertical integration of production and distribution at indie scale.
• First Run Features: Independent film distributor specializing in arthouse, documentary, and foreign films. Direct partner of Night Fire Films for Breaking the Maya Code DVD distribution. Comparable in size and focus on independent cultural documentary distribution.
• Strand Releasing: Independent film distributor specializing in arthouse, documentary, and LGBTQ+ films. Comparable in market positioning as a small independent distributor of cultural content.
• Icarus Films: Independent distributor of documentary films with a catalog of over 1,500 titles focused on social, political, and cultural subjects. Closely comparable to Night Fire Films' arthouse documentary orientation despite operating at larger scale.
• Documentary Educational Resources: Distributor of educational documentaries with a focus on anthropology, archaeology, and cultural studies. Direct distribution partner for Night Fire Films' educational editions. Comparable in mission and overlap in target audience with academic institutions.

Broad incumbents

• PBS Distribution: Distributor of public broadcasting content including documentaries. Partnered with Night Fire Films via PBS NOVA for Breaking the Maya Code. Comparable in subject matter (cultural/educational documentaries) but operates at vastly larger scale.
• National Geographic Documentary Films: Major documentary producer/distributor with deep brand recognition in archaeology, science, and cultural exploration. Adjacent in subject matter to Night Fire Films' offerings but operates at much larger scale with broader commercial distribution.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCZqkFshrlwRd1GN5NuMfPYQ
• Facebookfacebook.com/NightFireFilms
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/night-fire-films-inc

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 Night Fire Films Inc