MUBI

Overview

MUBI is a curated streaming platform, film distributor, and production company founded in 2007 by Efe Cakarel. Originally launched as The Auteurs, the platform rebranded as MUBI in 2010. Operating in over 190 countries, MUBI combines a subscription streaming service with theatrical distribution, film production, and international sales. The company is headquartered in London with offices in New York, Los Angeles, Berlin, and Istanbul.

MUBI's streaming model is built around curation rather than volume. Rather than licensing or producing thousands of titles, the platform presents a carefully selected rotating catalog, historically structured around a "film a day" model where a new title appears each day and remains for 30 days. This scarcity model drives engagement and positions MUBI as a service for dedicated cinephiles rather than casual viewers. The company has approximately 15 million subscribers globally.

Distribution Model

MUBI operates as both a streaming platform and a theatrical distributor. Under the MUBI GO program (available in the UK and select other markets), subscribers receive a free weekly cinema ticket to see a MUBI-selected film in theaters, directly connecting the streaming subscription to theatrical attendance. This model gives MUBI a unique position as an integrated theatrical-and-streaming distributor.

MUBI's theatrical distribution arm acquires and releases films in the UK, US, and other territories, running full theatrical campaigns with P&A investment. For international films that MUBI acquires globally, the company can handle theatrical distribution in multiple territories through its network of offices, making it capable of a coordinated international release.

MUBI Presents and MUBI Productions

MUBI has expanded from distribution into production and financing through MUBI Productions. The company has co-produced and financed films by major directors including Pablo Larrain (El Conde, 2023), Andrew Haigh (All of Us Strangers, 2023), Agnieszka Holland (Green Border, 2023), and Martin Scorsese (a development relationship). MUBI Productions focuses on prestige international co-productions with strong authorial identity.

MUBI Presents is the label under which the company releases theatrical acquisitions, primarily in the UK but with US theatrical distribution for select titles. Films released under MUBI Presents have included work by major European and international directors.

What Filmmakers Should Know

MUBI is an increasingly important partner for international arthouse and prestige cinema. The company's acquisition activity covers Cannes, Berlin, Venice, Sundance, and other major festivals, and it has the financial capacity to compete with established specialty distributors for high-profile international titles.

For filmmakers whose work sits in the international arthouse category, MUBI offers a distinctive distribution proposition: global streaming reach on a platform whose audience is specifically a high-engagement cinephile base, combined with theatrical distribution in key markets. The MUBI audience is smaller than Netflix or Amazon's subscriber base but significantly more dedicated to discovering and watching international and challenging films.

MUBI's deal structures vary by market and project. For global acquisitions, the company offers streaming rights across its territory footprint combined with theatrical commitment in markets where MUBI distributes theatrically. For platform-only acquisitions, MUBI's subscriber base and curatorial reputation provide meaningful audience access.

The MUBI Audience

Understanding MUBI's audience is essential to evaluating it as a distribution partner. MUBI subscribers are disproportionately film-literate, internationally minded, and willing to engage with challenging or unconventional films. They are less likely to be casual viewers who arrived at a film through algorithmic recommendation and more likely to be active film culture participants. For films with a natural cinephile audience -- formally ambitious work, world cinema, documentary -- MUBI's platform may generate higher quality engagement than a higher-volume platform with a broader but shallower subscriber base.

Notable Releases and Co-Productions

Aftersun (2022, Charlotte Wells -- UK distribution), All of Us Strangers (2023, Andrew Haigh -- production), El Conde (2023, Pablo Larrain -- production and streaming), Green Border (2023, Agnieszka Holland), Evil Does Not Exist (2023, Ryusuke Hamaguchi). MUBI's catalog and production output reflect a consistent commitment to international auteur cinema.

See Also

For how curated streaming platforms compare to volume-based streamers in terms of audience quality and revenue, see Streaming vs Theatrical Revenue. To model the revenue structure of an international MUBI-style deal combining streaming and theatrical windows, use the Revenue Forecast Calculator.