The Men Who Brought Quentin Tarantino, John Wick to Germany Resign From Studio Babelsberg

(from left) Christoph Fisser and Carl Woebcken outside Studio Babelsberg

Photo by Soeren Stache/picture alliance via Getty Images

Charlie Woebcken and Christoph Fisser have resigned from the management board of Germany’s Studio Babelsberg in the wake of their sale of the storied German backlot to TPG Real Estate, owner of Cinespace Studios.

Their resignation, announced Tuesday, comes 20 years after Woebcken and Fisser acquired ´ Babelsberg in 2004. Under their guidance, the legendary German backlot was transformed into a modern international studio, attracting such blockbuster productions as Quentin Tarantino’s Inglourious Basterds, Wes Anderson’s The Budapest Hotel or Steven Spielberg’s Bridge of Spies. More recently, Keanu Reeves-starrers The Matrix Revolutions and John Wick: Chapter 4 both shot there.

In late 2021, Woebcken and Fisser sold their majority stake in the studio to TPG Real Estate Partners, which folded Studio Babelsberg into its Cinespace Studios network of backlots, encompassing some 109 active stages with additional operations in Chicago, Toronto, Atlanta and Wilmington.

Former Pinewood and APA International executive Andy Weltman took over as CEO of Studio Babelsberg in 2022. The board of directors includes CFO Andre Bleeker and Ashley Rice, President & Co-Managing Partner at Cinespace Studios.

Weltman said Woebcken and Fisser “guided the studio through good times and bad and significantly expanded Babelsberg’s position as one of the world’s leading film production hubs. We wish Charlie and Christoph the very best for their future.”

Rice said she was “grateful” for the duo’s support since the acquisition in helping integrate Studio Babelsberg within Cinespace Studios. “We are confident that with the current management team, we will continue the success story of Studio Babelsberg,” she said. “We are very well positioned to meet the demand for high-quality local and international content.”

Woebcken and Fisser will continue to work in the industry as independent producers. Fisser is head of the German production company Traumfabrik Babelsberg and Woebcken is active with the Association of Technical Companies for Film and Television (VTFF).