Coming off the global success of the horror film Talk to Me, the Australian production company Causeway Films has expanded internationally, opening a new London office and appointing Daniel Negret as its CEO.
Negret, says the company, will take up the role on 30 October and will be based in London, with frequent visits to Australia and LA. He joins from prolific film financier Head Gear Films, where he served as the company’s CEO, overseeing operations including production finance, strategy, business development, legal and business affairs and marketing.
During his time at Head Gear Films, the Colombian-born executive oversaw the financier’s involvement in more than 60 productions, including Talk to Me, How to Have Sex, and Bandit.
Read: Talk to Me review: an Australian horror to possess you
He previously worked at Ingenious, Olsberg SPI and Merrill Lynch, and recently wrote and produced his own horror feature film, Shaman, in Ecuador.
Causeway Films was established by producers Kristina Ceyton and Samantha Jennings in 2014, launching with Sundance hit The Babadook. The company recently celebrated the success of Talk to Me, from filmmaking duo Danny and Michael Philippou, which screened in Sundance, Berlin and SXSW 2023 and was acquired by A24, becoming A24’s top genre release in North America with a domestic box office of $48.1m to date, taking the film’s global box office to more than $89m so far.
Read: Best Australian horror films – top 20
Additionally, the company has produced eight titles that have participated in A-list festivals and won numerous prizes: The Nightingale (Venice 2018), Cargo (Tribeca 2018), Bouyancy (Berlinale 2019), Good Madam (Toronto 2021), You Won’t be Alone (Sundance 2022), Blaze (Tribeca 2022), Of an Age (Melbourne 2022) and Housekeeping for Beginners (Venice 2023).
Read: Of An Age film is a tender and romantic Melburnian treat
A Causeway spokesperson said: ‘We’re delighted to bring on board Daniel to help expand our collaborations and partnerships internationally across film and television.’
Negret said: ‘It’s an honour to be joining Sam, Kristina and the Causeway team. I’ve long admired them, their films and the company they’ve built. I look forward to adding to their tremendous success and helping the company navigate through this exciting new chapter.’
