Frida Torresblanco and Frank Murray set up transatlantic TV, film outfit Hangtime
Frida Torresblanco and Frank Murray
BAFTA-winning Frida Torresblanco (Pan’s Labyrinth) and Frank Murray (First Reformed) have launched Hangtime, a transatlantic production company headquartered in London and New York.
The company brings together a combined 50 years of industry experience, with London-based Murray and Torresblanco in New York focusing on specialist and mainstream content across film, television and documentaries in both English and Spanish, capitalising on Torresblanco’s Spanish background.
Murray was UK scripted head of production at Amazon MGM Studios from 2020 to 2023. He oversaw several original series including thriller The Devil’s Hour with Peter Capaldi and Jessica Raine, which is currently filming its third season, and science fiction thriller The Power, starring Toni Colette and John Leguizamo.
Previously, Murray was an independent producer, making Paul Schrader’s First Reformed, starring Ethan Hawke and Amanda Seyfried. He also worked in production management across studio blockbusters and independent feature films including The Wrestler, Young Adult, 22 Jump Street, Hope Springs and Sisters.
Torresblanco was most recently CEO of Braven Films, which she founded in 2010. Her credits there included Disobedience, written and directed by Sebastian Lelio and starring Rachel Weisz, Rachel McAdams and Alessandro Nivola.
Prior to Braven, Torresblanco co-founded Esperanto with producing partner and Oscar-winning filmmaker Alfonso Cuarón. During her tenure, she produced Oscar winner Pan’s Labyrinth, written and directed by Guillermo del Toro.
The team is backed by an eight-figure investment out of New York and is in the late stages of securing an additional development fund.
Hangtime said it will be talent- and auteur-driven, with its founders looking to develop projects that leverage their existing relationships with established filmmakers.
Murray and Torresblanco’s line-up will span all genres including drama, crime, thrillers, action-adventure, horror and sci-fi across film and television.
In addition to the US and Spain, the company will prioritise producing content in key markets including the UK, Ireland, Australia, Canada and Latin America.
In addition to incubating its own projects, Hangtime will also work as an IP aggregator to service established studios and companies as well as trusted producer friends and strategic partners on both sides of the Atlantic.
Murray said: “We are so very thankful to our backers for believing in our vision for Hangtime. As a collective, we were quick to recognise the value of marrying Frida’s commitment to prestige auteur projects to my own devotion to hard and elevated genre. The global appetite for stories that excite, challenge and even play to the darker corners of our nature is what I am personally committed to satiating.”
Torresblanco added: “Blurring the lines between the seen and the unseen, our aim is to craft stories that resonate deeply, cross every border, and celebrate the unity of the human spirit. We aim to unveil not just in films and series, but windows into new realities – where every voice is heard and where every story has a chance at making a universal impact.”
