Westchester-based productions company Interrogate has merged with The Sweetshop Global earlier this month, bringing local talent to the international stage.

Hailing from Auckland, New Zealand, Sweetshop has six offices across Europe, Asia and Australia, with a U.S. location in Santa Monica. Interrogate founder Jeff Miller, co-leading the company with Executive Producer George Meeker, is no stranger to Sweetshop. The two have managed the Sweetshop’s U.S. operations since the company expanded into the states in 2019. 

“The sweet shop has a global reach. We’re a United States company, and so for our talent, that is better they’re seen throughout the global markets, as opposed to just being in one country,” Meeker said. “Now the United States is a large country with lots of work, but from a global standpoint, (Sweetshop) has a much bigger reach than we did.”

Melanie Bridge, chief executive of the Sweetshop, added in a statement: “Partnerships like this are very special and we feel very lucky to have found that with them. With the extraordinary group of directors they’ve built at Interrogate now coming into the fold, our roster becomes even stronger, making this a real double win for all of us.”

The directors who will join Sweetshop include Vince Gilligan, Daniel Sackheim and Bart Timmer.

Meeker also shared that Interrogate would not cut its employees post-merger.

Artificial intelligence

Beyond expanding the creative network, the collaboration will also give Interrogate access to The Gardening Club, Sweetshop’s artificial intelligence-powered team.

“We don’t just arbitrarily use AI. We use AI very strategically to give the most bang for the buck, and that means dollar, but it also means emotion and storytelling,” Miller said. “Economics change, clients demand change, and one of the things that we’re able to do right now, both with the merger and with AI, is hopefully from our side offer up solutions that invite more Los Angeles opportunities now.”