Maker Studios has signed filmmaker Adi Shankar to a first-of-its-kind deal that calls for the multi-channel network to fully finance three digital projects that Shankar will direct over the next two years, TheWrap has learned.
The first project will be an untitled animated project based on an original idea by Shankar that involves superheroes in developing countries. The second and third projects are in development for 2016.
Shankar’s groundbreaking deal with Maker Studios comes on the heels of his upcoming live-action directorial debut, “Gods and Secrets,” which features Kellan Lutz, Jackson Rathbone, Denise Richards, Jane Seymour, RJ Mitte, Shekhar Kapur and WWE legend Dallas Page as dark antiheroes.
Shankar’s deal with Maker was put together by Shankar’s attorney Ashwant Venkatram and Darren Yan, Maker’s head of talent partnerships.
“Shankar is the Quentin Tarantino of the digital generation, so it was only natural that he would land at Maker Studios where he would have access to the best talent in the world, with the greatest creative latitude,” said Yan.
Venkatram said that “Shankar’s deal is the first time a studio has signed a director from the digital space to a “traditional” multi-picture development deal, and will hopefully signify a paradigm shift in how future digital talent is viewed.”
Shankar, who executive produced “Dredd,” “The Grey” and “Lone Survivor,” launched a popular bootleg universe that includes riffs on everything from James Bond and The Punisher to the Power Rangers. He’s also slated to produce an adaptation of the beloved video game “Castlevania” as a “hard-hitting” animated series.