“Working with The Mission is inspiring. Every meeting, every party, every opportunity to talk about the insanity of our times fills me with the fire to go out and try to make the world a better place. Why? Because Andrew, Laura, Trevor and everyone I’ve met through The Mission walk with me – not ahead or behind — on the journey. I feel like we are all in the same boat, all struggling to find the path, and together, we have a better shot of steering towards the light. You know how you spend your life looking for “your people”? Well, The Mission – and all of The Mission community – are my people.”
Our Mission
Our aim is to change the face of the entertainment industry, the product it puts out and the way in which people around the world relate to each other. We believe that a key way of doing this is to support artists with unique and distinct voices, artists who have thoughtful diversity in experience, thought and background. First and foremost, we look to support artists and entertainment that fulfill the obligation to the audience to a) entertain and b) serve as a reflection of the world around us - not just who we are, but who we could be.
We understand that story, and the connective tissue of the human experience, is the foundation of all content. From creation myths to the ancient Greeks sitting in amphitheaters watching men in masks to modern audiences sitting in a multiplex, storytelling has been a central and consistent facet of the way in which we as human beings connect with each other and the world around us.
By working to foster and create stories that emphasize and highlight our complex and shared humanity, we hope to demonstrate and illustrate one of our fundamental operating principles, “People are people.” By this we mean that as human beings, regardless of our background, religion, race or social standing, have a certain set of basic wants, needs and desires – to be loved, to be valued, to be accepted. These are the ties that bind us, and they are fundamentally stronger than those things that divide us. It is our belief that by highlighting these similarities, the universal humanity we all possess and the dignity to which we are all entitled, we can show that there is more we have in common than separates us.
“The Mission means community. In the hard knock world that is the Hollywood entertainment industry, its easy to feel lost or unrooted here. But The Mission provides a grounded safe haven for thoughtful creatives that’s invaluable when you’re starting out or even when you’ve been playing this Hollywood game for a little while.”
Our History
After leaving a previous production company, Andrew C. Coles was looking for something more fulfilling. Something that could marry his passions for storytelling + social justice advocacy. Something whose purpose and philosophical foundation lies in serving as advocates for storytellers that have been traditionally overlooked, undervalued and underrepresented. Much to his dismay, a company like that didn’t exist back then. So, much like the trailblazer he is, when a path wasn’t available — he forged ahead and made one for himself.
In October 2013, The Mission Entertainment was born. The first few years, Andrew and his team supported a wide-ranging list of clients — getting female filmmakers their first directing opportunities and writers of color their first staffing jobs.
The Mission Entertainment made the transition from a privately funded start-up to an independent company, a small business completely covering our own overhead + business development. In 2019, Nzinga Murráy joined our team as Executive Assistant and after 2 years is now a Creative Executive. On Thanksgiving Day 2019, our first produced feature film, Queen & Slim, was released through Universal Pictures. Directed by Melina Matsoukas and written by Lena Waithe, the film was produced in partnership with Michelle Knudsen and financed by Brad Weston + Pam Abdy’s Make Ready. In March 2020, our first produced television series, Twenties, aired on BET.
Now, after six years of business, we’ve produced in film (Queen & Slim), television (Twenties), and documentary (You Ain’t Got These on Quibi) as well as music videos, short form, PSA, and even creative consulting on the feature film The Ghost and the House of Truth which won Best Narrative Feature (World Cinema) at the 2019 Urbanworld Film Festival.
We’re proud to support several underrepresented storytellers in various capacities who’s work has been an influence + inspiration to millions. In addition to our office in Los Angeles, we have recently opened an office on the island of Kaua'i and plan to host a series of creative retreats there in 2021. In the coming months, we will be adding more team members at both junior and senior levels.
“The Mission is ‘community in action’ in the best way. In a collective sense, it is a model for diverse artists and executives combining resources, to create generation-defining work that may not otherwise exist. In terms of individual advancement, this community mindset has launched and amplified many careers, including clients of mine, across film and television. And these dual effects – collective and individual – reinforce each other.
The spirit of The Mission is bold, confident, inclusive, risk-taking, and forward-thinking, with vibrant, truthful work as a guiding principle for everything it produces and supports. The Mission is good.”