Unity Productions Foundation

What Unity Productions Foundation does

Unity Productions Foundation (UPF) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 1999 and headquartered in Potomac Falls, VA, that produces documentary and animated films focused on promoting peace and understanding between Muslims and people of other faiths. The organization has produced twelve documentaries for national broadcast and theatrical release, including Emmy-nominated 'The Sultan and The Saint,' 'Muhammad: Legacy of a Prophet,' 'Prince Among Slaves,' 'Islamic Art: Mirror of the Invisible World,' 'Enemy of the Reich: The Noor Inayat Khan Story,' and the feature animated film 'Lamya's Poem.' UPF operates several programs beyond film production: the 'Unfold Your Own Myth' workshop series for youth, the MOST (Muslims on Screen and Television) Hollywood consultancy providing research to TV producers, and the 20,000 Dialogues Project for community interfaith dialogue.

The organization's technology is centered on documentary and 2D animated film production, with content distributed through PBS national broadcast, major streaming platforms (Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, Google Play, Vudu, Kanopy), and direct educational outreach. UPF's business model is donation- and grant-driven, with primary revenue from foundation funders including the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, United States Institute of Peace, Corporation for Public Broadcasting, National Endowment for the Humanities, and Arthur Vining Davis Foundations. Secondary revenue comes from streaming licensing fees and educational DVD distribution. Target audiences include K-12 schools and universities, community organizations and houses of worship, refugee and Muslim youth, and general public/policy makers seeking interfaith educational content. UPF employs 18 people and is led by co-founders Alex Kronemer and Michael Wolfe.

Name

Unity Productions Foundation

Legal name

Unity Productions Foundation, Inc.

Website

https://upf.tv

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Unity Productions Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 1999 that produces documentary and animated films promoting interfaith understanding and Muslim-American narratives. It distributes through PBS, streaming platforms, and educational outreach to schools and community organizations, funded primarily by foundation grants and donations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Educational Documentary Film Production

NAICS

Motion Picture and Video Production (512110), Motion Picture and Video Industries (5121)

SIC

Services-Motion Picture & Video Tape Production (7812)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYMPADADAI

Arts & Culture Documentaries

Media, Entertainment & Sports/Film & Video Production/Distribution/Documentary & Nonfiction Production

SECONDARYMPADADAJ

Business, Politics & Current Affairs Documentaries

Media, Entertainment & Sports/Film & Video Production/Distribution/Documentary & Nonfiction Production

SECONDARYMPADADAL

Educational & Instructional Nonfiction

Media, Entertainment & Sports/Film & Video Production/Distribution/Documentary & Nonfiction Production

SECONDARYBPAGAHAJ

Media Arts & Film/Photography Nonprofits

Business & Public Services/Nonprofit, NGO & Social Services/Arts, Culture & Heritage Nonprofits

Keywords

• Documentary film production
• Interfaith educational media
• Muslim American storytelling
• Nonprofit film studio
• Peacebuilding media content

Headquarters

HQ city

Potomac Falls

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Donations and Charitable Contributions: UPF is an IRS-recognized 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that relies primarily on donations from individuals and foundations. They explicitly state they are not for profit and accept donations through their website.
2. Film Streaming and Licensing: UPF generates revenue through streaming fees on platforms like Amazon Prime, Apple TV, Google Play, and Vudu. Films are also available through Kanopy, a platform used by libraries and educational institutions.
3. Workshop Programs: UPF conducts the 'Unfold Your Own Myth' workshop series for youth, providing educational programming in partnership with schools and community organizations.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Unity Productions Foundation produces documentary and animated films focused on Muslim-American narratives, Islamic history, and interfaith understanding. It distributes these films through PBS broadcast, major streaming platforms, and licensed community/educational screenings, and supplements them with youth poetry workshops and a Hollywood consultancy on authentic Muslim characters.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Unfold Your Own Myth: A serial workshop model in self-expression and community reorientation using the film Lamya's Poem as a catalyst for youth empowerment through poetry
• MOST (Muslims on Screen and Television)
• 20,000 Dialogues Project

Products and services

• Lamya's Poem Feature-length animated film about a 12-year-old Syrian refugee girl who receives a book of poetry by Rumi and meets him as a young boy refugee, used in classrooms, community screenings, and festival programming to teach about displacement, poetry, and interfaith understanding.
• The Great Muslim American Road Trip Three-hour documentary series for TV and streaming following a young Muslim couple along Route 66 to discover Muslims' contributions to American spirituality, food, technology, and music.
• The Sultan and The Saint Emmy-nominated docudrama on the meeting of St. Francis of Assisi and the Sultan of Egypt during the Crusades, used in classrooms and interfaith programs to teach peacebuilding.
• Enemy of the Reich: The Noor Inayat Khan Story PBS-broadcast documentary about Noor Inayat Khan, a Muslim Indian spy in Nazi-occupied France, used in classrooms and broadcast to wide national audiences.
• Islamic Art: Mirror of the Invisible World PBS-broadcast documentary exploring Islamic artistic heritage, narrated by Susan Sarandon, used for cultural and educational programming.
• Prince Among Slaves Documentary feature on the true story of an enslaved African prince, used as educational content in school and community programming.
• Muhammad: Legacy of a Prophet PBS documentary exploring the life and legacy of the Prophet Muhammad, used in religious-studies and interfaith curricula.
• Inside Islam: What a Billion Muslims Really Think Documentary built on Gallup research data about Muslim attitudes worldwide, used in university courses on Islam and political thought.
• American Muslims: Facts vs. Fiction Educational film program compiled at the encouragement of the U.S. Department of Justice for community and law-enforcement educational programming.
• Nadia's Ramadan PBS Learning Media educational content for classrooms about Ramadan, distributed with Hena Khan children's books.
• Allah Made Me Funny Comedy documentary used in classrooms to teach cultural understanding of Muslims in America.
• Cities of Light: The Rise and Fall of Islamic Spain Documentary on the history of Islamic Spain and its contributions to European civilization, used in cultural and history curricula.
• Unfold Your Own Myth Workshop Series Serial workshop program for youth in self-expression and community reorientation that uses Lamya's Poem as a catalyst to guide participants in responding to personal challenges through poetry and journaling, targeting refugee, immigrant, and Muslim communities.
• MOST (Muslims on Screen and Television) Hollywood Consultancy Consultancy project providing research and expert networks to Hollywood show runners, TV producers, and screenwriters to help them develop more authentic Muslim characters and storylines.
• 20,000 Dialogues Project Initiative promoting interfaith dialogue through community-organized film screenings of UPF's documentaries, with seed funding from the Doris Duke Foundation for Islamic Art and the United States Institute of Peace.

Quantifiable outcome

• Films broadcast on PBS stations nationwide
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration9 records

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered flagship and core.

• PBSflagshipChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorBroadcast partner for UPF documentary films, airing content nationally on PBS stations.
• KidSpiritcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerYouth-led platform for publishing poetry created by participants in the Unfold Your Own Myth workshop program.
• Gallup OrganizationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnered with Gallup for research data used in 'Inside Islam: What a Billion Muslims Really Think' and 'American Muslims: Facts vs. Fiction'.
• MOST (Muslims on Screen and Television)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUPF's Hollywood consultancy providing research and expert networks to show runners, series TV producers, and screenwriters to develop authentic Muslim characters and storylines.
• KanopycoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorStreaming platform partner for distributing UPF films to libraries and educational institutions.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Participant Media: Mission-driven entertainment company producing film and television content intended to inspire social impact. Closely comparable mission (storytelling for social change) though operating as a commercial entity rather than nonprofit.
• Active Voice: Social-impact media organization that pairs documentary film campaigns with outreach and civic engagement strategies. Directly comparable in using film as a catalyst for community dialogue and intergroup understanding.
• Vulcan Productions: Documentary and scripted content producer focused on social and environmental impact, affiliated with the late Paul Allen's philanthropy. Comparable as a foundation-backed producer of long-form impact documentary content with broad broadcast distribution.
• Kartemquin Films: Emmy-winning nonprofit documentary production house producing socially conscious films for over 50 years. Closely comparable as a similarly structured nonprofit documentary producer with educational distribution and impact campaigns.
• Independent Television Service (ITVS): Publicly funded organization that supports independent documentary production for PBS broadcast. Directly comparable as a nonprofit intermediary that brings independent documentary content to the PBS system.
• Link TV: Nonprofit media organization that curates and produces global, multicultural, and social-justice-oriented programming for public television. Directly comparable as a similarly structured nonprofit producing mission-driven content for PBS-affiliated audiences.

Others

• Sundance Institute Documentary Fund: Funds and supports independent documentary storytelling worldwide, including films on social issues and marginalized communities. Adjacent as a documentary funding and impact hub serving similar filmmakers and audiences.

Broad incumbents

• PBS (Public Broadcasting Service): US public broadcaster and UPF's primary distribution partner for documentaries on history, religion, and culture. Comparable as a broader incumbent in the educational/interfaith programming space where UPF content sits.
• WETA / PBS LearningMedia: Major PBS producing station that distributes educational programming to schools and libraries nationwide. Comparable as a broader incumbent in the educational documentary distribution channel where UPF's content also reaches classrooms.

Emerging players

• MADE IN NY / Jewish Film Institute: Nonprofit presenter and producer of Jewish-themed film programming with similar faith-based/cultural documentary mission and educational distribution model. Comparable as a parallel faith-community nonprofit film organization with educational outreach.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/unityproductionsfnd
• Facebookfacebook.com/10478236630
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/unity-productions-foundation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Subsidiaries1 record

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 Unity Productions Foundation