Whalar Group, a growing talent representation company in the creator economy, is making a big push to build a network TV-like weekly schedule with creator-driven series.
The company launched Lighthouse Studios as an entertainment production division that complements Whalar’s Lighthouse content development and production hubs in Brooklyn and the Venice area of Los Angeles. Akshay Mehta, an alumnus of Bron Ventures, CAA Media Finance, and Good Universe, will serve as CEO of Lighthouse Studios and will be based in Los Angeles.
Lighthouse Studios’ first major initiative is a partnership with Lyrical Lemonade, director and creator Cole Bennett’s digital media venture with more than 24 million YouTube followers. The deal calls for Lighthouse Studios to provide “capital, production infrastructure and strategic support” to help Lyrical Lemonade build a video network based on an eclectic mix of music, culture and lifestyle programming. Bennett is a top music video helmer known for his work with Eminem, Jack Harlow, and Lil Yachty.
Mehta has ambitions to strike similar deals with big-selling digital creators and assemble a series of regular series with new episodes delivered at roughly the same time each week. He hopes to offer a variety of formats and programs ranging from five minutes to an hour.
“Through Lighthouse Studios, we’re building our version of a network television channel led by YouTube creators who already have an audience and are trusted, whether it’s music or lifestyle or any genre,” Mehta told Variety. “We’re providing them with the working capital and operational infrastructure to build a level of prime-time programming that we think is the right scale. We aim to produce two episodes of new content a day, seven days a week, 48 weeks a year, across a fairly well-known programming network that has been in television for 70 years,” Mehta said. “We know that when today’s consumers find their shows, they also find ours, so we want to make sure they show up consistently in their feeds.”
Mehta wants the show to become a daily or weekly habit for viewers. “We don’t have to create programming 24 hours a day. We can focus on two to three pieces of content a day that are really meaningful to the viewers connected to our network,” Mehta says.
Lighthouse Studios plays as broadly as the marketplace allows. But for now, there’s no question that YouTube is the cornerstone of the world of long-form digital video content distribution.
“YouTube as a platform is so sticky right now that we think if you’re going to build this kind of scale, you need to create one space to drop into. We’ll be distributing short-form videos across TikTok, Snap and Instagram, but for long-form content and prime-time programming, YouTube will be the first stop,” he said.
The agreement with Lyrical Lemonade represents a new model for creators to team up with partners who bring capital, production infrastructure, and distribution expertise. Mehta said more such partnerships are on the way. Lighthouse’s ultimate goal is to develop talent and bundle and sell ad inventory for all of these shows across digital ad networks.
“There are many more products in the pipeline, but of course we want to ensure that every brand has its moment in the spotlight,” Mehta said. Our goal is to reach a certain size by 2027. ”
Lighthouse Studios partners retain their own brand names and YouTube channels. The parent company coordinates and promotes network distribution and advertising sales from behind the scenes.
“They will continue to have their own operations under Lighthouse and their own joint ventures,” Mehta said.
To prepare for Lyrical Lemonade’s content expansion, the company has established a leadership team under Bennett’s direction, with Joseph Rocha as CEO, Elliott Montanez as head of content and programming, and Jake Millan as head of talent and artist relations. Sara Kolli is a network producer and Sam McGrath is a content associate.
Bennett will serve as executive producer on all Lyrical Lemonade shows, serving as creative showrunner and guiding the network’s editorial vision.
“Lyrical Lemonade is built on a foundation of consistent accomplishments. Expanding into our network has always been a long-term vision, and now it’s a clear and intentional next step in our evolution,” said Bennett. “You’ll be able to explore a variety of interests with a consistent line from show to show. Lyrical Lemonade TV cracks the code in a way never before done on a YouTube-led network.”
Whalar Group co-founders and co-CEOs James Street and Neil Waller announced the launch of Lighthouse Studios, a move that has been in the works for some time.
“Neil and I moved to Los Angeles nine years ago believing that creators would play a central role in the future of entertainment and storytelling. The launch of Lighthouse Studios is the ultimate realization of that belief and a continuation of our commitment to supporting creative visionaries like Cole Bennett and the LLTV team with the capital and resources they need to shape the future of entertainment,” said Street and Waller.
Another appointment at Lighthouse Studios is Ray Brown, who helped bring Lyrical Lemonade to the company. Mr. Brown will serve as Chief Partnerships Officer.
“Lyrical Lemonade TV truly represents the creator-led network that Lighthouse Studios was built to support,” Brown said. “Cole and the Lyrical Lemonade TV team have already proven their ability to shape culture and launch artists, and our partnership will provide that vision with the infrastructure, investment and strategic partnership needed to scale up to a complete entertainment network.”
Whalar Group’s bet on creator content comes at the perfect time. Mehta cited YouTuber Markiplier’s DIY horror film Iron Lung, which had a phenomenal box office opening in January. He sees similarities to the boom that appeared in the gaming business about a decade ago.
“Obviously, Markiplier’s ‘Iron Lung’ is making a big splash right now. It reminds me of 2016, when an independent video game studio did the same thing and created a huge moment of creative and commercial achievement,” Mehta said. “We’re at a point right now where a lot of YouTube talent and content creators are thinking about their next stage, because they’ve been doing this for 10 years, and they’re now thinking, ‘How can I leverage this incredible relationship with my audience going forward?'” I think what I do best is working with talent and creators to uncover commercial and creative opportunities and how to build them for long-term success. ”
