FG Entertainment, Sydney set to launch its first major branded online film series Venger for G-Brothers Mercedes-Benz and Petronas

Sydney-based Filmgraphics Entertainment is preparing to launch its first branded content Internet film series, Venger, in a partnership with the Filmmakers Factory and major sponsors, The Lab Sydney and Red Apple.

Commissioned by G-Brothers Mercedes-Benz, Sydney and Petronas Lubricants International, the branded film takes a step away from traditional advertising by creating content that makes viewers actively seek it out. Episode 1 is due for release on the Venger website, YouTube and Facebook tomorrow: February 17, 2011.

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Starring Christian Clark (Gabriel, Crush), Henry Nixon (The Pacific, Noise) and Dan Mor (Underbelly, Cedar Boys); the series follows the story of Anthony McCullough, a former racecar driver and next in line to run a major gang syndicate, on a quest for revenge following the murder of his beloved fiancé.

Episode 1 of the Venger series features four current Mercedes car models with the sequel to include all of the AMG models, including the SLS.

The film series follows a similar format to the U.S. BMW film series, The Hire, produced for the Internet in 2001 and 2002, which took out the first Titanium Grand Prix at Cannes. The BMW series saw major success, receiving over 100 million film views and a 12% increase in sales numbers over previous years.

“Branded content presents a way of advertising that has proved to be a successful tool for marketers”, said Simon Ritch, producer of Venger. “It provides companies with the ability to reach audiences with content that is entertaining, rather than bombarding them with advertising that’s seen as invasive.”

“Venger is a real passion project for me, unlike the traditional commercials, it gave me the opportunity to create a story-driven roller coaster ride that people would want to watch online in their lunch-breaks,” said Marc Furmie, director and co-writer of Venger.

“(Co-Writers) Shiyan Zheng, Vincent Andriano and myself drew influences from classic action-revenge thrillers of the 70’s such as Bullitt, Death Wish and Dirty Harry. We wanted it to be a punch in the guts.”

“Filmgraphics Entertainment has supported this production in order to nurture content driven entertainment under the FG umbrella,” says FG’s executive producer Anna Fawcett.