Johannesburg post-production company The Refinery recently announced that it had secured a new investor, and would continue operating from its Bryanston premises. This dispels the doubt and concern over the company’s future that has surrounded The Refinery since the liquidation of the company’s shareholder, Music For Pleasure (Pty) Ltd in 2009.
In an exclusive interview with Screen Africa before the announcement was issued, an enthusiastic MD Charl van der Merwe, said the company was ready to move forward. He was however not at liberty to disclose the identity of the new investor and what the shareholding would be.
“It is a private investment company that invests in media assets, among other things. They have re-capitalised the business completely and we can start with a clean slate. It is almost like starting a new business,” said Van der Merwe.
It took six months of hard negation to structure the deal, says Van der Merwe. “It was a legal nightmare, and took a great deal of work, mainly from a legal point of view. The Refinery was used as security for certain loans to various banks. I have been going through some of the correspondence over the past six months and on a few occasions the transaction reached a stalemate. This was a very uncertain time, and led to a lot of questions from staff and clients alike.”
Read more in the April 2010 issue of Screen Africa
