Thunderbird Entertainment 'remains fully operational' amid the coronavirus pandemic

Thunderbird Entertainment Group Inc (CVE:TBRD) (OTC:THBRF) said Monday it “remains fully operational'' amid the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. In a statement, the Vancouver-based company said its entire team of more than 1,000 crew members across all divisions having been set up to work remotely since March 30. Engineering work to move teams offsite started in February and was rolled out in March, with optimization taking place in early April. These moves allowed Thunderbird to continue delivering premium content, with all productions in development moving forward.  READ: Thunderbird Entertainment Group gets set for the launch of The Last Kids on Earth's second season Thunderbird also said its ability to remain fully operational has allowed it to respond to increased demand for content as major broadcasters and streamers are looking to fill slots and replace other productions where filming has been halted due to the pandemic.  New Thunderbird team members have been hired to help meet this demand as the company continues to pitch, develop, produce, sell, deliver and service content to its partners including Netflix, NBCUniversal, Nickelodeon, PBS, WGBH, Bell Media's Discovery, APTN, Corus Entertainment, the Weather Channel, and the CBC, among others. "While the pandemic has created unprecedented situations, I am proud and humbled by the nimbleness and resilience of the Thunderbird team; how we safeguarded our business, kept people working and doubled down on producing meaningful content that can bring a touch of joy when people need it most," said Mark Miller, president of Thunderbird.  "Viewers around the world are hungry for top-quality content as they spend more time at home, and it has been been inspiring to be a part of an industry working together to keep people entertained. Health and safety have always been our top priority, and Thunderbird's artists continue to set the benchmark by finding new ways to keep working and remain connected." Investor relations services agreement In other company news, Thunderbird said it has entered into an investor relations services agreement with Bristol Capital Ltd of Toronto. Under the IR Agreement, Bristol will provide investor relations services with the general objective of expanding awareness of the company amongst thousands of key buy- and sell-side investor professionals who are based throughout the US, Canada and Europe.  The initial term of the IR Agreement is for one year commencing immediately. The agreement may be extended or terminated by either party under certain circumstances. Under the agreement, compensation ranges between $7,000 and $10,000 per month, depending on the scope of services provided by Bristol to Thunderbird.  Two shareholders of Thunderbird have granted Bristol options to acquire in aggregate of 140,000 common shares of Thunderbird. The options will have an exercise price of $2 per common share, with an expiry date of 30 months from the date of option grant. The underlying common shares will vest at 35,000 shares per quarter over the course of the first calendar year, with all common shares vesting after one year. "With many of our biggest customers and partners hitting record subscriber numbers, and our company expected to come out of this crisis stronger than ever, we feel it is a great time to focus our attention on increasing awareness of Thunderbird and sharing our story with a broader investor community," said Brian Paes-Braga, chairman of Thunderbird.  "Bristol is a perfect fit with their broad network, experience, virtual road show capabilities, and well-established track record of supporting micro and small cap companies in Canada to increase their domestic and international investor exposure." Contact the author: patrick@proactiveinvestors.com Follow him on Twitter @PatrickMGraham