Former Universal, Lucasfilm, HBO, and CAA execs join Y Combinator-backed film tech startup Cinapse
Los Angeles, Calif. - January 28, 2022 - Cinapse, the film and television industry’s mobile solution for digitizing production management and operations, announced today it has received financing from world renowned startup accelerator Y Combinator and venture capital firms Gaingels and FAST by GETTYLAB. Additionally, Hollywood executives Sandy Climan, David Anderman, Ginny Nugent, and Jim Kleverweis have joined its Board of Advisors.
Cinapse was founded by members of the Assistant Directors (AD) Department from HBO’s “Silicon Valley” and Lucasfilm's "The Mandalorian" and entrepreneurs from California’s Silicon Valley. Since its private beta launch in September 2020, it has been used by several of the largest studio productions in Hollywood and has enjoyed high praise from producers, unit production managers (UPMs), ADs, set production assistants (set PAs), and crew members alike.
Climan and Anderman will help guide business development strategy at Cinapse as it scales to service more of the industry. Nugent and Kleverweis will help guide product development to support Cinapse in solving chronic production inefficiencies as it ushers in a new era of digital production management solutions.
Sandy Climan has decades of executive experience in film and television, having previously served as Corporate EVP and President of Worldwide Business Development at Universal Studios. Climan founded the Corporate Advisory Practice and worked as a Senior Talent Agent for over a decade at Creative Artists Agency. Additionally, he has served as a bridge between Silicon Valley and Hollywood since the mid-1990s, and has been an active venture investor, board member, and senior advisor to numerous startups in media, technology, fintech, and healthcare.
“The Cinapse platform is the most intuitive and effective way to run a modern production. In an era where information needs to flow immediately and precisely, it provides the right tool set for seamless organization and the greatest efficiency in production collaboration,” said Climan.
David Anderman is a seasoned executive with a passion for business strategy and dealmaking at the intersection of the technology, media, and consumer product sectors. David was most recently the General Counsel at SpaceX and previously spent 16 years at Lucasfilm as COO and General Counsel. Notably, David negotiated and oversaw the $4 billion sale of Lucasfilm to Walt Disney and facilitated many groundbreaking initiatives at Lucasfilm including the first ever presentation of a feature film via digital cinema for “Star Wars: Episode I.”
Ginny Nugent was Senior Vice President of Production at HBO from 2000 to 2020. There, she supervised schedules and budgets for HBO original series, films and miniseries. Productions she worked on during her time at HBO include the Emmy®-winning and Golden Globe®-winning “Temple Grandin,” “The Normal Heart,” “Grey Gardens,” “Elizabeth I” and “Behind the Candelabra.” She also oversaw the original series “Silicon Valley,” “Euphoria,” “His Dark Materials” and the Emmy®-winning miniseries “Chernobyl” and “Catherine the Great.”
“I believe Cinapse will become the industry standard app that organizes the flood of information that every film professional faces on a daily basis. Cinapse is the app I’ve been waiting for to bring the film and television business into the 21st century,” said Nugent.
Jim Kleverweis has worked as a freelance line producer and executive producer for Sony Pictures, Walt Disney Studios, NBCUniversal and WarnerMedia on multiple television series and pilots including Emmy®-winning and Emmy®-nominated shows “Silicon Valley,” “Euphoria,” “Insecure” and “Ugly Betty.” He brings a multi-level understanding of television and film production.
“As someone who has worked every production job on set — from Set PA to AD to Producer — I’m excited to work with Cinapse on charting the next era of on-set production management,” he said.
With a combined 54 years as producers, Nugent and Kleverweis will leverage their experience to advise Cinapse in the development of features specifically for VPs of Production, Studio Executives, Producers, and UPMs. These features allow users to manage multiple productions from a single platform, receive timely updates, distribute and receive documents digitally, and increase efficiencies on set through detailed production analytics.
With memberships in the Producers Guild of America, the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, the Directors Guild of America, the Women’s Production Society, and Women in Film, the Board of Advisors will serve as liaisons between Cinapse and Hollywood unions, guilds, and trade organizations. Cinapse will collaborate with industry professionals to fine tune application features to address the most pressing production inefficiencies.
“I’m absolutely thrilled to continue working with Ginny and Jim after working with them on Silicon Valley and Euphoria,” said Herman Phillips, Co-founder and COO at Cinapse. “They each bring an incredibly deep knowledge of physical production and the industry as a whole to our company. Collaborating with two advisors who have worked together for years on major Hollywood productions will help Cinapse revolutionize the many archaic and inefficient production processes.”
“It’s a dream come true to be collaborating with the best producers and executives in the business,” said Greg Kufera, Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer at Cinapse. “Ginny, Jim, Sandy, and David’s experience at all levels of production will be essential to build an app that works for everyone, from the crew to the studio.”
Cinapse co-founders Greg Kufera and Herman Phillips were also recently named on the 2022 Forbes 30 Under 30 Hollywood and Entertainment list.
