Electric Theatre Collective

Who owns Electric Theatre Collective?

Electric Theatre Collective is currently owned by Growth Capital Partners through GCP Fund V (2021 vintage), since 2024.

Hand-verified · updated 2026-05-31

About Electric Theatre Collective

Electric Theatre Collective is a London-based visual effects and animation studio that provides high-end post-production and creative services for screen-based advertising, from television commercials to digital and social campaigns, alongside music videos and episodic content. Founded in 2011, it works for many of the world's largest brands, with published client work spanning Apple, Coca-Cola, Netflix, Renault and OpenAI, and operates from studios in London and New York. The studio is widely recognised within the advertising VFX segment, having won three Cannes Lions, Animation Company of the Year at the CICLOPE Festival and a D&AD Black Pencil, the first awarded to a VFX provider in that award's history. At the time of its 2024 growth investment it employed more than 140 people, positioning itself as one of the leading independent advertising VFX houses in Europe.

Ownership journey

Electric Theatre Collective was founded in London in 2011 as a specialist visual effects and animation company serving the advertising market, and it built its scale organically under founder-led management before taking on institutional capital. In early 2024 the studio agreed a partnership growth investment with Growth Capital Partners, backing the business through GCP Fund V, in a deal announced in February 2024 and intended to support its next stage of UK and international expansion. At the time of the transaction the company was led by chief executive Jon Purton, with Michael Baulk as chair, and GCP was represented by partner Kirsty McDonald and director James Handley. Growth Capital Partners remains an active backer and the company is still listed as a current portfolio holding; no exit or secondary transaction has been recorded.

Under PE ownership

The 2024 investment was framed as capital to accelerate ETC's growth and internationalisation, with the stated ambition of becoming the dominant advertising VFX studio worldwide. Since the deal the studio has expanded its footprint beyond its London base, operating a New York studio to serve North American clients, and has grown headcount by roughly 15 percent. It has also strengthened its management and operating infrastructure, hiring a chief financial officer and a head of people, establishing new senior leadership roles, rolling out an HR system and running its first company-wide employee survey. In parallel it has continued to invest in proprietary workflow technology to support delivery for global brand campaigns.