Robert DeNiro-Backed New York Film Studio Wins MIPIM Prize

A Robert DeNiro-backed New York media production studio has just won a prize at MIPIM – The Global Urban Festival — a four-day property and real estate trade show held annually in March in Cannes, France, CoStar News reports.

Based in Astoria, Queens, Wildflower Studios was named the winner of an award in the industrial and logistics category, given to the world’s best new commercial development projects. The $1 billion facility was designed by Danish “starchitect” Bjarke Ingels and developed by De Niro, Adam Gordon, and Meadow Partners. Described as the world’s first vertically oriented film studio, the building opened its doors on August 1.

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The World’s First Vertically Oriented Film Studio

The development features 11 soundstages stacked on two floors and has been described as the world’s first vertically oriented film studio. According to the competition's website, the award is given to buildings that “seek to enhance the built environment’s prospects, in line with [environmental, social and governance] goals."

The website states that the six key criteria are overall sustainability, originality of the concept, architectural qualities, integration of the project in its environment and community, quality of the user experience, and economic contribution.

Writing about the Wildflower Studio in December, the Hollywood Reporter said that despite New York’s film industry being valued at $82 billion, the city has “long suffered from a scattered, largely ad hoc studio infrastructure — much of it consisting of retrofitted warehouses — that struggles to compete with the sprawling, purpose-built soundstages of Los Angeles, London, and other tax-friendly film hubs.”

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More Expensive Than Any James Cameron Movie

“Wildflower Studios is vastly more expensive than any of James Cameron’s movies," Ingels told the Hollywood Reporter. "The nature of architecture is that it’s very risk-averse. So when no one has built a stacked movie studio before, no one would really want to do it.”

According to multiple sources, including Dezeen and Wildflower Studios website, the project addresses New York’s spatial constraints by building up to seven stories vertically. It also includes production support areas, public and private offices, and amenity spaces such as a fitness center, lounges, and cafes. Builders constructed Wildflower Studios with an electric transformer vault on the top floor to serve as an anti-flood device. Additionally, the rooftop is covered with 150,000 square feet of solar panels.

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Easier To Borrow A Billion Than A Million

According to the Hollywood Reporter, the studio was the brainchild of developer Adam Gordon — who provided Amazon with its first modern e-commerce facilities in New York through his company Wildflower Ltd. After being approached by three separate productions to shoot in his warehouses, he came up with the idea of developing a unique kind of facility, that factored in the urban density of New York. Gordon approached DeNiro, who invested in the project with his oldest son, Raphael, a New York real estate broker. In addition, the project secured an equity investment from Meadow Partners and a $600 million construction loan from Silverstein Capital Partners

“In the real estate world, it’s a lot easier to borrow a billion than a million,” Gordon said. “It gets people’s attention.” 

“Most People Would Rather Be In New York”

“New York is the greatest backlot. Plus, we have the most extraordinary talent, whether it’s actors or craftspeople, above and below the line,” DeNiro told the Hollywood Reporter. “The other cities are all good, and I’ve shot in all of them. It’s just that the bottom line is most people would rather be in New York if they could. Especially if they live there.” 

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