A plain-language guide to recoupment, what to expect as a financier, and the terms you'll come across — written for people who back stories before they back spreadsheets.
Screen production in Australia is financed through a layered mix of public funding (such as the Producer Offset and state screen agency support), broadcaster or platform licence fees, and private capital. Private investment doesn't replace public funding — it sits alongside it, helping close the gap between what's publicly available and what a production actually costs.
The following sections set out, in order, how money flows back through a finished production, what we think investors are entitled to expect from us, and a working glossary of the terms you'll meet along the way.
"Waterfall" is the industry term for the order in which revenue is paid out once a production starts earning money. Each tier is paid in full before the next tier receives anything.
Distribution and collection fees, sales agent commissions, and delivery costs are deducted first, off the top of gross receipts, before any party sees a return.
Financiers who have provided production capital — including private investors — recoup their principal in the order agreed in the finance plan. Where multiple parties sit at this tier, recoupment is typically pro-rata to contribution unless otherwise negotiated.
Once principal is recouped, investors typically receive an agreed premium or share of profit, structured according to the terms set at financial close. This is the tier where commercial upside is realised.
Where producers, cast, or crew have deferred part of their fee to help close the budget, those deferrals are typically paid at this stage, once investor positions are satisfied.
Remaining net profit is shared between the production company and any backend participants (writer, director, key cast) holding a profit share, as set out in the finance plan.
The exact order, percentages, and structure above are illustrative. Every Lantern Court finance plan sets out a specific waterfall in writing before any investment is accepted, and is reviewed by independent legal counsel for both parties.
Private investment in screen is a long-horizon, risk-bearing commitment. Here's what we think a responsible producer-investor relationship looks like, drawn from the framework set out in Screen Australia's Private Investment Toolkit.
Screen finance relationships often take years to develop, and individual productions can take years from finance close to audience. We won't suggest otherwise.
Every film or series is, in effect, a start-up. We set out specific project risks — legal, market, and production — in writing, not just upside, before you commit.
Value, risk, timeline and expectations are agreed before money moves, in a finance plan you can take to your own advisor.
Some investors want commercial return, some want cultural or social impact, some want both. We structure conversations around what you're actually trying to achieve.
We will never recommend you skip your own legal, tax or financial advice. Screen Australia's own guidance is explicit on this point, and so are we.
We don't option material we don't intend to make, and we won't pitch you a project before it's genuinely ready for private capital conversations.
This section draws on the public guidance published in Screen Australia's Private Investment Toolkit, a free industry resource developed with finance, tax, legal and production experts. It does not constitute advice from Screen Australia or from Lantern Court. See screenaustralia.gov.au/private-investment-toolkit.
Plain-language definitions of the terms most likely to come up in a Lantern Court finance conversation.
If you'd like to discuss a current project, request a finance plan, or simply understand how private investment could fit into your portfolio, we're glad to talk it through.
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