BriskPace Launches AI-Native Label With Orangutan Comedy Series

“Completely unhinged,” is how Al Munteanu describes the true-crime comedy that anchors his new venture.

Al Munteanu is launching a new-formats label, BriskPace Unlimited, anchored by a true-crime comedy series starring an imprisoned, politically ambitious orangutan.

Following the Rise and Fall of Lucky Briscoe

The first original project from the newly formed label is titled The Light and Hard Times of Lucky Briscoe. The series follows an orangutan who transitions from Communist Romania to a career as a sitcom star, guru, cult leader, fashion icon, and politician before landing in federal prison. Munteanu described the concept as completely unhinged, noting that the production team built the venture over the course of a year.

A Keynote Debut in Rome

Munteanu is unveiling a first look at the project during his keynote address at MIA in Rome on a Friday, sharing scenes from a finished pilot. The series is co-produced with AiMation, an AI studio in which BriskPace Unlimited holds a minority stake. Jason Hazeley, known for writing on the BBC comedy Cunk on Earth, serves as showrunner, while Joe Markham of The Amazing World of Gumball wrote the scripts. Munteanu created the series, serves as executive producer, and co-directs alongside Tom Paton, the founder of AiMation and director of Non-Player Combat.

Merging AI Imagery with Human Direction

The pilot was produced using AI-generated imagery and music supervised by a human creative team. Munteanu stated that the production process taught him how much production methods have shifted while core responsibilities remain unchanged, noting that he and Paton co-directed the project by letting the better idea win regardless of its origin. Hazeley characterized the tone of the series as an intersection of Adam Curtis and Chuck Jones, following a scheming ape against the system. Paton emphasized that the technology served the humor of the production rather than dictating it.

Expanding into Micro-Dramas and Vertical Content

BriskPace Unlimited plans to focus on AI-native productions, micro-dramas, and creator-led formats alongside the traditional film and television slate of BriskPace Studios. Beyond its stake in AiMation, the label acts as a seed investor alongside Groupe M6 in Sweetz, a French micro-drama app developed by AI studio Nation and app publisher Kovalee. BriskPace Unlimited is also an investor in Snips, an Israel-based platform that converts full-length film and television content into vertical micro-episodes, which launched in August with catalog deals from Banijay Rights and BIG Media.

Targeting Emerging Audiences with Unconventional Ideas

Munteanu stated that the new label is designed for unconventional ideas that target emerging audiences across multiple formats, spanning vampire stories, orangutans, and German themes. The studio developed both direct-to-audience and buyer distribution routes concurrently throughout the year.