The North of Tyne Culture and Creative Investment Programme has invested £150,000 in Arcus Studios, a multi-award-winning animation and multimedia company based in Newcastle.
Since forming in 2010 Arcus Studios has built a great track record with clients such as BBC, E4 and the McMillan Trust. High-profile productions have included CBBC’s Iain and Hacker Round the World and Hacker and Dodge Unleashed, and the company has also received RTS Excellence in Animation Awards for three consecutive years from 2017-2019.
The capital injection will aid cashflow stability, capacity building through staff team expansion, and value addition through enhanced financial governance.
This marks another investment by the North of Tyne Culture and Creative Investment Programme, a partnership between Creative UK and the North of Tyne Combined Authority which offers first of its kind financial and business support to those working in the cultural and creative industries in North Tyneside, Northumberland and Newcastle.
Rahul Misra, investment manager, North of Tyne, Creative UK, said: “We are delighted to invest into Arcus Studios through our North of Tyne Culture and Creative Investment Programme. Arcus have shown the tenacity and perseverance that it takes to run a truly creative business. They have been on an upward trajectory since navigating the challenges of the pandemic, and through our investment, we look forward to supporting the next phase of their business journey.”
Michael Gandham – co-director and creative producer of Arcus Studios Ltd added: “We’re really excited about the opportunity that this loan offers for Arcus Studios to reach its potential. It will enable us to hone our sales and marketing skills and employ the right talent to allow us to expand and diversify our offer and well as ease capacity issues within the core team.”
The North of Tyne Culture and Creative Investment Programme is investing over £2 million on behalf of the North of Tyne Combined Authority through loan and equity financing. Providing loans of between £50,000-£150,000 and equity finance in the range of £50,000-100,000 per investment, the programme offers long-term finance for commercially viable, growth-minded businesses that are innovative, operate in the creative and cultural sector, and can deliver meaningful impact in the region.
