Good Fortune

What Good Fortune does

Good Fortune is an independent documentary film production company headquartered in Brooklyn, New York. Founded in 2005/2006 by Emmy Award-winning filmmakers Landon Van Soest and Jeremy S. Levine, the company produces feature-length documentaries and branded content across multiple distribution channels.

The company operates across four revenue streams: feature documentary licensing to streaming platforms and broadcasters (Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, PBS); branded content production for enterprise and non-profit clients (including Facebook, Toyota, eBay, 23andMe, Ben & Jerry's, Brooklyn Brewery, Nationwide Financial, Wix, UNICEF, Lincoln Center, Everytown for Gun Safety, and (RED)); educational sales through distributor Alexander Street Press; and DVD/digital sales. The firm's portfolio includes the Emmy Award-winning feature "Good Fortune" (PBS POV, 2016), the Berlinale- and Tribeca-premiering "For Ahkeem" (2017), and "The Jewel Thief" (2023), which became the #1 most-watched film worldwide on Hulu.

Good Fortune is a privately held, bootstrapped company with no external funding rounds. Its operating scale is small, with headcount in the 7-15 employee range. The co-founders also established the Brooklyn Filmmakers Collective in 2007, a filmmaker development community that serves as a talent pipeline within the New York independent documentary ecosystem. The company's recent strategic activity includes a partnership with The Documentary Group and Vice Films on "Light Darkness Light" (2024) and a 30+ episode branded series with the Dramatists Guild Foundation ("The Legacy Project," 2024).

Name

Good Fortune

Legal name

Transient Pictures

Website

https://transientpictures.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2005

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Good Fortune is a Brooklyn-based independent documentary film production company founded in 2005/2006 by Emmy Award-winning filmmakers, producing feature documentaries for streaming platforms and PBS alongside branded content for enterprise and non-profit clients.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Documentary Production Services

NAICS

Information (51)

SIC

Services-Advertising Agencies (7311), Services-Advertising (7310)

akta.pro primary industry

Branded Documentary / Nonfiction (Corporate & NGO) (MPADADAK)

akta.pro secondary industry

Historical, Biographical & Archival Documentaries (MPADADAE)

Keywords

• Documentary production services
• Branded video content
• Feature film production
• Commercial video services
• Advocacy video production

Headquarters

HQ city

Brooklyn

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Feature Documentary Licensing: Feature documentaries licensed to streaming platforms (Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu) and broadcast networks (PBS). Good Fortune broadcast on PBS POV, For Ahkeem on Amazon Prime Video, The Jewel Thief on Hulu
2. Branded Content Production: Docu-style commercials and promotional videos for major brands and non-profits. Clients include Facebook, Ben & Jerry's, Toyota, eBay, 23andMe, Nationwide, Brooklyn Brewery, Wix, UNICEF, Lincoln Center
3. Educational Sales: Documentaries sold for educational use through Alexander Street Press and similar academic distributors. Walking the Line and Good Fortune available for educational licensing
4. DVD and Digital Sales: Physical and digital distribution of feature documentaries. Buy DVDs available for Good Fortune, Walking the Line

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Good Fortune is the Emmy Award-winning feature documentary produced by Transient Pictures that explores how international aid efforts affect communities in Kenya. The company produces documentary films, branded video content, customer story videos, and advocacy films for major brands, streaming platforms, and non-profit organizations.

Product overview

Good Fortune is a feature documentary produced by Transient Pictures. The company is a full-service documentary production company that creates feature documentaries, branded content, commercial films, and advocacy videos. Good Fortune is one of their flagship documentary films, exploring international aid and development in Africa, and won a national Emmy Award. The product portfolio includes multiple feature documentaries (For Ahkeem, The Jewel Thief, Light Darkness Light, Walking The Line), branded content series for clients like eBay, 23andMe, Nationwide Financial, and Toyota, as well as advocacy videos for organizations like Everytown and UNICEF.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Good Fortune An Emmy Award-winning feature documentary exploring how international efforts to alleviate poverty in Africa may be undermining the communities they aim to benefit. Through intimate portraits of two Kenyans battling to save their homes from large-scale development organizations, the film presents foreign aid through the eyes of the people it is intended to benefit. Distributed on PBS POV, Netflix, and educational channels.
• For Ahkeem A feature documentary that premiered at Berlinale and Tribeca Film Festivals, opened theatrically in 10 cities, won 10 film festival awards including 7 Best Feature Documentary awards, and was distributed on Amazon Prime Video. Selected at over 60 film festivals.
• The Jewel Thief A feature documentary released as a Hulu Original that became Hulu's #1 most watched movie worldwide in summer 2023. Nominated for a Critics Choice Award. Distributed on Hulu and Amazon Prime Video.
• Light Darkness Light A feature documentary about a blind Anglican priest receiving a bionic eye, co-produced with The Documentary Group and Vice Films, with support from RYOT Films.
• Branded Documentary Content Production

Quantifiable outcome

• The Jewel Thief became Hulu's #1 most watched movie worldwide
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers13 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

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• The Documentary GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-production partner for Light Darkness Light documentary about a blind Anglican priest receiving a bionic eye. Documentary being produced through partnership with The Documentary Group and Vice Films.
• Vice FilmscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-production partner for Light Darkness Light documentary. Partnership with Vice Films for production support.
• RYOT FilmsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSupported by RYOT Films for Light Darkness Light documentary production.
• Dramatists Guild FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOngoing partnership to create The Legacy Project series - 30+ episodes about the creative process of American theater's most exciting writers including Stephen Sondheim, Edward Albee, Arthur Laurents, Alan Menken, Kristen Anderson-Lopez.
• HulucoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorThe Jewel Thief released as Hulu Original Documentary and became #1 most watched movie worldwide on the platform in summer 2023.
• Amazon Prime VideocoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorFor Ahkeem distributed by Amazon Prime Video along with The Orchard. Documentary opened theatrically in 10 cities before streaming.
• PBS/POVcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorGood Fortune broadcast nationally in prime time on PBS POV award-winning documentary series. POV is one of the most prestigious documentary platforms.
• Alexander Street PressminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorEducational sales and distribution of Walking the Line and Good Fortune through Alexander Street Press for universities and academic institutions.
• Saatchi & SaatchiImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerAgency partnership for San Francisco in 90 Seconds Toyota Prius Plug-In Hybrid promotional video as part of interactive user experience.
• Vice (Agency)minorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerAgency partner for Dance (RED) Saves Lives promotional video in partnership with Vice.
• UberminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSan Francisco in 90 Seconds video centered around choreographed moves of a jolly Uber driver for Toyota Prius Plug-In Hybrid promotion.
• Brooklyn Filmmakers CollectivecoreOthersNot-for-profit filmmaking community founded by Transient Pictures founders in 2007 to foster independent filmmaking community in NYC. Weekly peer workshops, awards from Sundance, Independent Spirit Awards, IFP.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Participant Media: Global entertainment company producing documentary and narrative film/TV with social-impact intent, distributing via Netflix, Amazon, and theatrical. Broader and better-capitalized incumbent in the same impact-documentary category where Transient Pictures competes for distribution deals.
• Wieden+Kennedy Content: Branded-content and documentary production arm of Wieden+Kennedy, producing long-form brand storytelling for major advertisers. Represents the larger, better-resourced branded-content competitor chasing the same enterprise brand budgets as Transient Pictures.
• Vice Films: Documentary and feature film division of Vice Media, co-producer of Transient's Light Darkness Light. A scaled incumbent that both partners with and competes for premium documentary IP, brand-sponsored content, and streaming distribution slots.

Direct peers

• Kartemquin Films: Chicago-based Emmy-winning documentary production company producing socially engaged feature documentaries (e.g., Hoop Dreams, The Interrupters). Directly comparable as a mission-driven, founder-led documentary shop with festival prestige and brand/educational distribution.
• Sandbox Films: New York-based documentary production and financing company focused on science and society films distributed via theatrical, streaming, and PBS. Comparable in production model, prestige positioning, and reliance on streaming/broadcast distribution partnerships.
• Arts & Sciences: Independent creative studio producing documentary-style commercials and branded films for major brands. Closely comparable in offering docu-style branded content to enterprise advertisers and competing for the same client roster (tech, CPG, automotive).
• Insurgent Media: Independent production company producing socially engaged documentary features and series. Comparable in producing for streaming platforms (Netflix, Hulu) and in mission-driven, founder-led operations.
• Moxie Firecracker Films: Brooklyn-based documentary production company producing socially conscious feature documentaries (e.g., The Hottest August, Blind Ambition). Closely comparable in scale, geography, and mission-driven docu style targeting the same festival and streaming outlets.

Others

• Impact Partners: Film finance and production company that funds and co-produces socially driven documentary features. A financing/ecosystem peer rather than direct competitor; relevant as a potential capital or co-production partner for Transient's feature slate.

Emerging players

• XTR (Documentary+): Documentary production and streaming-distribution company operating Documentary+ platform, producing and releasing feature docs directly to consumers. An emerging player in the same documentary-to-streaming pipeline Transient Pictures depends on.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/transientpictures
• YouTubevimeo.com/transientpictures
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/good-fortune

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 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 Good Fortune