Lenders are moving in on studio complexes owned by Hackman Capital Partners, the biggest independent owner of soundstages in Los Angeles, as production levels in the region hover around all-time lows.
A lender consortium led by Deutsche Bank have kicked off the process of selling Television City, a storied lot in the central L.A. Fairfax Avenue corridor. They’re owed more than $357 million, according to a notice of default filed last month.
At the same time, Deutsche Bank is looking to offload Manhattan Beach Studios. An industrial company has submitted a preemptive offer, a person involved in the sale tells The Hollywood Reporter. Plans involve clearing or retrofitting the 15 soundstages on the 22-acre studio campus.
“The studio market is evolving, and the financing environment for studio assets remains complex,” said a spokesperson for Hackman in a statement. “We are engaged in active discussions with our lending partners and are carefully evaluating the most appropriate path forward.”
Hackman spent the past decade assembling one of the world’s largest studio portfolios during a time production was booming. It bet big not only on the underlying real estate but also the physical entertainment infrastructure — soundstages, production offices and support facilities — in a bid to vertically integrate ownership with operations as it looked to become the premier one-stop shop for film and TV making. By 2024, it owned more than 145 soundstages across North America, the United Kingdom and Ireland.
