Family Business Film combines creative storytelling with innovative animation, creating compelling narratives that merge European and Indian influences. Founded by directors Franziska Schönenberger and Jayakrishnan Subramanian following their award-winning documentary "Amma Appa", the studio operates internationally with bases in Munich and Pondicherry. In 2018, Stefanie Ramb joined the team, launching the podcast series "Dubai Dreams" as a companion to their documentary "The Shadows of the Desert", produced by Nominal Film. Franziska led production efforts in India and managed the film’s distribution strategy.
In 2019, the studio produced the ARD-award-winning children’s film "Rettai Jadai – The Girl with the Red Ribbons", followed by the social media short film "My Mirror" in 2020. In 2021, they secured script funding from FFF Bayern for the feature "Bride Without Dowry". Currently, they have two projects in post-production: the animated documentary "Maya's Song" and the hybrid film "Invisible Room". Their immersive project "The G.O.A.T.", co-produced with Trampoline Media India, has successfully secured prototype funding.
Within the company, Franziska leads creative production and development, Jayakrishnan oversees post-production and the creative aspects, while Stefanie, specialising in project management, dramaturgy, and sound design, ensures efficient project execution and strategic distribution. As a writers' collective, Franziska, Jayakrishnan, and Stefanie collaboratively develop scripts, drawing from their diverse cultural backgrounds. Their semi-autobiographical novel Swapping Dirndl for Sari, co-written by Franziska and Stefanie, was published by Hoffmann und Campe. Currently, the trio is developing two new projects: the romantic comedy "The Saraswati of Öttling" and the hybrid documentary "Paper Plane", showcasing their collaborative creativity and storytelling. Their works were shown in Cannes, Copenhagen, Los Angeles, Malmö, Melbourne, Mumbai, Seatle, Tehran, Tokyo, Toronto, Tromsø, Uppsala or Warsaw.