Michael Murphy Leaves Beyond International To Launch Rockabill Media
05.09.2023 - 08:54
/ deadline.com
Well-known international TV exec Michael Murphy is leaving Beyond after 19 years and has launched his own business.
Murphy has been with producer-distributor Beyond International for nearly two decades, but will launch Rockabill Media at MIPCOM Cannes with a trio of projects.
Banijay closed an estimated $30M deal for Beyond in January, with Beyond distribution business then assimilated into the Banijay Rights catalog.
The Ireland-based Murphy had been at Beyond since 2009, holding roles such as General Manager for Beyond Distribution and, more recently, Executive Director of Beyond Entertainment Holdings and of specialist music content producer and distributor BeyondTNC.
Murphy has owned a Rockabill Media entity since 2012 but is launching the production outfit as a new business of the same name. The operation will work on international TV and film projects and provide consultancy in areas such as content strategy, distribution, executive production and financing.
The business opens this week, and is working on three projects. The first of these is feature film Ismael, which Murphy is working on as executive producer with Norwegian producer Tomas Backström (Insomnia). Set in Ireland and based on the novel by Roy Jacobson, it tells the story of a former MI5 operative who must activate old skills to protect his family.
Wir Sind Maschinen is billed as a landmark, three-part music doc series from The Act of Killing maker Spring Films exploring how German electronic music changed the world. Murphy, who is executive producer, takes the project from BeyondTNC.
Details of the third project are minimal, but Rockabill is consulting on a fund-raising round for a genre production company focused on adapting existing female-led