SquareOne Acquires Telepool From Westbrook

German distributor-producer SquareOne Entertainment, part of rising European film studio Vuelta Group, has acquired German film and TV production, distribution and licensing company Telepool, which was owned by Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith’s Westbrook.

Vuelta launched last year with the high profile acquisitions of France’s Playtime, SquareOne and Scandinavia’s Scanbox. Vuelta, spearheaded by media finance veterans Jerome Levy and David Atlan-Jackson, expanded its footprint further in September with the acquisition of Italy’s Indiana Production, and the purchase of a stake in France’s Pan (formerly called Pan-Europeenne).

The 60-year-old Telepool moved into lead producing movies and series last year. Although the company had a barrel-load of experience in selling, distributing, licensing, financing and co-producing movies and series, this shift into initiating and lead producing projects represented a significant step for the company.

The strategic shift also formed part of Westbrook’s broader strategy for international expansion, which – in part – lay behind its acquisition of Telepool in December 2021. It seems Westbrook has had a change of heart and has been fielding offers for its German company.

Telepool stands on five major pillars: international film sales and TV distribution through Global Screen, whose recent titles have included movies “The Amazing Maurice” and “School of Magical Animals,” and series “Davos”; licensing and theatrical distribution in Germany; home entertainment distribution in Germany through the EuroVideo label; the TV licensing business for Switzerland; and now production.

As reported exclusively in Variety, Global Screen this week boarded horror-Western “The Trek.” This reflects a growing focus on genre content for Global Screen, best known for its expertise with animation, family entertainment and prestige drama.

Global Screen’s foray into elevated genre includes the Sandra Hüller led nightmare-thriller “Sleep,” a debut feature by Michael Venus in which the Oscar- and BAFTA-nominated Hüller plays a woman plagued by horrific dreams, which become a never-ending nightmare haunting an entire village community.

Recent genre titles handled also include “You’re Not Me” (Tú No Eres Yo) by Goya-nominated producers Marisa Crespo and Moisés Romera, a Spanish-language satirical thriller, which launched at Fantastic Fest in Austin, before having its international premiere at Imagine Film Festival Amsterdam.