Imagine Impact

Imagine Impact, operating under the formal name Impact Creative Systems, functions as a professional network and marketplace tailored for the entertainment industry. Established in September 2018 by the acclaimed filmmaking duo Brian Grazer and Ron Howard, along with CEO Tyler Mitchell, the company aims to modernize and democratize Hollywood's talent discovery and development processes. Grazer and Howard, with their storied careers in film and television production, recognized the industry's high barriers to entry and the inefficiencies in how talent is sourced. This led to the creation of a platform modeled after Silicon Valley's Y Combinator, designed to connect aspiring storytellers with established industry professionals. Tyler Mitchell, who previously worked in Imagine Entertainment's film department and has a background as a producer and writer, brings executive leadership to fuse creative development with technological solutions.

The company's core offering is The Creative Network, a platform that serves two primary functions: a content accelerator and a professional network for production crews. Initially launched as a content accelerator, Impact provided a system to discover and cultivate writers globally, offering them mentorship and a direct line to major studios and production companies like Netflix, Sony, and Amblin. This program has successfully developed numerous projects and helped many writers secure representation with top-tier agencies. Building on this, the company expanded its platform to serve below-the-line talent—the crew members who are essential to any production. This service, often referred to as Impact Crew, operates as a comprehensive database where productions can source and hire crew for various roles, significantly reducing the time it takes to assemble a team. The platform features profiles for hundreds of thousands of crew members, which productions can filter by role, availability, and location to quickly fill positions.

Impact's business model is rooted in creating efficiency in a historically relationship-driven industry. While basic access to the network has been free, the company planned to introduce premium services. Revenue streams are also generated through partnerships with major studios and streaming services that utilize Impact's proprietary systems to source and develop original content. In September 2020, the company secured a Series A financing round led by the venture capital firm Benchmark, which established it as a stand-alone entity, Impact Creative Systems, and allowed for further technological expansion. This investment underscored the market's confidence in Impact's marketplace model, which aims to level the playing field for creative talent and streamline production hiring.

Keywords: entertainment technology, film production, TV crew, professional network, content accelerator, talent discovery, crew hiring, screenplay development, Hollywood, Brian Grazer, Ron Howard, production marketplace, below-the-line, creative talent, content marketplace, entertainment industry, production crew jobs, film crew network, script development