MUBI CEO Efe Cakarel has addressed the ongoing controversy over the company’s recent $100 million investment from Sequoia Capital, a venture capital firm that was found to have ties to several companies connected to the Israeli military. In a lengthy statement shared with the press Thursday, August 14, Cakarel clarified the profits MUBI generates do not fund other companies in Sequoia’s portfolio, and a suggestion that their work is funding the war in Gaza is “simply untrue.”
Cakarel also wrote that Sequoia partner Shaun Maguire, who has come under fire for social media posts accused of being Islamaphobic, has no involvement with MUBI operationally or strategically, that the company does not endorse his views, and have expressed concerns to Sequoia. He also shares that Sequoia is merely a minority investor without oversight over programming, editorial, or financial decisions. Cakarel remains the majority shareholder in MUBI.
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Cakarel’s letter stops short of returning Sequoia’s investment, a demand from some that would be near-impossible without Sequoia agreeing to sell its minority stake in the arthouse film distributor. But the CEO wrote that MUBI will put in place an “Ethical Funding and Investment Policy” to establish future criteria for funding partners, as well as an artist advisory council of filmmakers and other cultural voices to inform the funding policy.
That policy will be published on Friday, August 15, and MUBI is even inviting the public to give feedback on those guidelines, the final version of which will be published October 15.
“We know some in our community will want us to go further, and others may feel we have gone too far,” Cakarel wrote in part. “Our responsibility is to protect a space where filmmakers and audiences can meet. That means being transparent about how we are funded, explicit about how we protect artistic independence, and humble about what we still need to learn.”
In addition to an open letter signed last week by 63 different filmmakers demanding the company condemn Sequoia and remove partner Andrew Reed from MUBI’s board, IndieWire has learned that nearly half of MUBI’s 400+ employees anonymously signed a letter calling on management to return Sequoia’s investment.
The internal letter, obtained by IndieWire, demanded MUBI and Cakarel return the $100 million investment from Sequoia Capital, remove Reed from MUBI’s board, and “decline any future funding that implicates MUBI in the business of murder.” It said the company’s ties with Kela, a defense startup founded in 2024 by Israeli intelligence veterans following the October 7 terrorist attacks, as well as two other Israeli defense companies, makes MUBI complicit with genocide in Palestine and puts the “company’s future at serious risk.”
Though the letter was signed anonymously, 201 staffers across nine departments at MUBI endorsed the letter that was then sent to Cakarel and management. The letter was sent on June 16, two days after MUBI first issued a statement on Instagram addressing online backlash. A pair of insiders who spoke to IndieWire said the letter came about after they felt the June 14 Instagram statement was inadequate and “dismissive” of the online criticism. Those who signed also objected to leadership in the very early days of the backlash referring to critiques as “trolling” and mis-informed.
“Already, key collaborators — including filmmakers, artists, writers, and other partners — have expressed disappointment and concern over the Sequoia investment and questioned their own future engagement with MUBI, some withdrawing planned contributions as a result,” the letter reads in part. “There are mounting calls to boycott MUBI; members are canceling subscriptions, and filmmakers may soon begin to remove their films from the platform and database … the Sequoia investment will inevitably continue to harm our reputation and our work, threatening our partnerships and our mission. Subsequent statements from MUBI leadership have been inadequate, failing to address the fundamental contradiction this investment presents.”
“The reaction to the statement was mainly anger, disappointment about a lack of accountability that it showed,” one member of MUBI’s global content team told IndieWire. “The fact that it was not meaningfully engaging with any of the criticism but rather justification was a disappointment. Just seeing the alignment with the investment rather than with the community, engaging with what could be steps towards dealing with this in a more ethical way moving forward, was something that I found very disappointing.”
On June 18, two days after staffers sent the letter, Cakarel convened the entire staff over Zoom and acknowledged the letter “reflects real pain, fear, and frustration that I do not take lightly,” according to a transcript account of the meeting shared with IndieWire.
“I hear you. And I see you. And I do speak for the entire management team when I say that,” Cakarel said in the meeting. He explained that in the company’s history, it had not traditionally made political statements, including the war in Ukraine, the Black Lives Matter movement, or Brexit, but that’s because “we believe our platform should speak through our films.”
“That said, I need to emphasize we are not neutral about humanity, we stand for dignity, for empathy, for freedom of expression, and for the value of every human life,” Cakarel added.
He further echoed comments made in Thursday’s public statement, including that Maguire has no involvement with MUBI, and that MUBI’s profits do not fund any other Sequoia investments nor do they shape editorial decisions.
For a chunk of employees who signed the initial letter, Cakarel’s clarification answered their questions, eased their concerns, and felt their fellow staffers should move on.But the two employees who spoke to IndieWire about the letter and company meeting still felt unheard, and they believe they’re in the majority among their colleagues.
The insiders said they felt unsupported by management in how to appropriately address the controversy when dealing with partners or clients. They also bristled at a survey sent by management that required identifying themselves with a company email address, fearing that speaking out could have blowback for their jobs. An individual with knowledge of the situation told IndieWire the emails were only requested as a means of starting a dialogue with concerned employees.
“There were people who were working with partners and who were feeling very exposed, like that the company’s failure to respond substantively had then trickled down to the individual workers who were now representing the company in our own professional relationships that of course the company relies on and and derives value from, but that we weren’t supported in understanding how to how to manage those relationships through this very controversial decision,” a second member of MUBI’s content team told IndieWire.
The insiders would still like to see Sequoia’s investment returned, but it’s been clear to them for some time that such a step would be highly unlikely. One of the employees expressed a desire for an ethical framework much like the one Cakarel laid out on Thursday, as well as the company taking a stand against Maguire’s comments.
Above all, they want to see the company’s values reflected in the actions MUBI’s leadership makes.
“We keep being told that this investment is not going to affect our values, but we don’t understand anymore I think what those values are,” the second content team staffer said. “I think most people would imagine that the values of a company are reflected in their business decisions. If MUBI is going to be this flagship producer and distributor of art house film, which is a part of the culture that we all have deep investments in and care deeply about, we want to be sure that it can be a responsible steward for that work and that our own efforts aren’t going to waste or aren’t in service of of a company that doesn’t ultimately care about the work in the way that we do.”
Read Cakarel’s full statement issued on Thursday, as well as the internal message from staffers sent on June 16, below:
To our community,
I want to thank everyone who has taken the time to reach out over the past few weeks. Your words, your questions, and your concerns have all been heard and taken to heart.
I’ve spent these weeks in deep reflection, talking with our team, filmmakers, producers, and partners around the world. We have been exploring how to take thoughtful and decisive action while upholding the values that have always guided us.
What’s happening in Gaza is unbelievably tragic and devastating. The loss of civilian lives, including thousands of children, the destruction of homes, hospitals, and cultural institutions, and the deliberate targeting of an entire population’s ability to survive and thrive are unconscionable. We condemn all acts that harm innocent civilians and reaffirm the right of all people to live in peace and safety. The immense suffering, displacement, and starvation of the Palestinian people is a humanitarian catastrophe that must end. We stand firmly against war and tyranny in all forms, and in support of the dignity and freedom of all people.
I also want to clarify our relationship with Sequoia Capital and Shaun Maguire. Following the investment from Sequoia, some have suggested that we are complicit in the events occurring in Gaza. These accusations are fundamentally at odds with the values we hold as individuals and as a company. The profits MUBI generates do not fund any other companies in Sequoia’s portfolio. Our returns go to Sequoia’s limited partners — institutions such as universities, foundations, and pension funds — not to other Sequoia-backed businesses such as Kela. Any suggestion that our work is connected to funding the war is simply untrue.
Shaun Maguire, the Sequoia partner at the center of much of this controversy, is not a partner of any of the funds that invested in MUBI. He has no involvement with our company operationally, strategically, or in any capacity. He is not on our board, has no relationship with our team, and played no role in our partnership with Sequoia. We neither support nor endorse Shaun’s views, and we have voiced our strong concerns about his public statements directly to Sequoia.
Finally, as a minority investor, Sequoia has minimal involvement in MUBI. As the founder and CEO, I remain the largest shareholder and maintain full control over all business and curatorial decisions. Sequoia has no oversight or authority over our programming, editorial, or financial decisions.
That said, we recognize that how we fund our work matters, and we are sharing initiatives we are undertaking to ensure clarity around our funding process in the future. We are formalizing an Ethical Funding and Investment Policy that will set clear criteria for future funding partners, establish safeguards that separate investor interests from editorial and commissioning decisions, and outline a process to review and address any concerns that arise. The policy will be published on August 15, 2025 for public consultation, inviting feedback from filmmakers, artists, audiences, festivals, civil-society groups, and all who care about MUBI’s mission. We will review all submissions and publish the final policy on October 15, 2025.
We are also forming an independent Artists Advisory Council, to be established by September 15, 2025. This group will include filmmakers, artists, and cultural voices from different regions alongside a human-rights due-diligence expert. It will advise on the Ethical Funding and Investment Policy, endorse the final policy, and continue on an ongoing basis to provide independent guidance on matters relating to MUBI’s values and responsibilities.
Separately, we are expanding our support for artists at risk through a dedicated Artists At Risk Fund. Over the next three years, we will fund commissions, residencies, and restoration projects administered at arm’s length by an independent panel, focusing on filmmakers working under conflict, displacement, or censorship, including Palestinian filmmakers. Full details will be provided by October 30, 2025.
We know some in our community will want us to go further, and others may feel we have gone too far. Our responsibility is to protect a space where filmmakers and audiences can meet. That means being transparent about how we are funded, explicit about how we protect artistic independence, and humble about what we still need to learn.
Looking ahead, we remain committed to the same mission that has guided us for the past 18 years: elevating great cinema and making it accessible to audiences around the globe. We will continue to champion bold and diverse voices, stay true to the values that define us, and ensure that exceptional filmmaking reaches the widest possible audience.
Warmly,
Efe Cakarel
Founder & CEO
MUBI
—
16 June 2025
To Efe Cakarel and MUBI management:
We write as MUBI staff members in response to recent changes to the company’s ownership
structure. Like many of our subscribers and partners, we are deeply troubled by the news that
MUBI has accepted a large investment from Sequoia Capital, whose investments also include
Kela, an Israeli defense contractor; Mach Industries, a weapons manufacturer partnered with an
Israeli firm; and Neros, another manufacturer of weaponized drones. This investment comes at
a time when Israel stands formally accused of genocide and war crimes by both the
International Criminal Court and the International Court of Justice.
Our work is now remunerated in part by this investment, and the value we create for the
company may well be put toward the Israeli war machine when that investment yields returns.
This makes MUBI, and each of us, complicit in the ongoing genocide of Palestinians by the
Israeli government, and puts the company’s future at serious risk. We call upon MUBI to return
the investment from Sequoia Capital, to reverse the recent appointment of Sequoia partner
Andrew Reed to MUBI’s board of directors, and to decline any future funding that implicates
MUBI in the business of murder.
We remain dedicated to MUBI’s project of bringing the best in film and cinema culture to
audiences around the globe, and we know how important sustainable growth is to our continued
success. We object to the Sequoia investment, in part, because it compromises our company’s
core values and endangers our growth. MUBI’s principled support of independent cinema from
diverse, international filmmakers has attracted and inspired our industry collaborators and
audiences. It is part of an ethic that distinguishes us from other technology and media
companies, and that ethic is what makes us so committed to our work. This recent business
decision goes against our guiding ethos, betraying our partners and the passionately engaged
community we have fostered over the last eighteen years.
Already, key collaborators—including filmmakers, artists, writers, and other partners—have
expressed disappointment and concern over the Sequoia investment and questioned their own
future engagement with MUBI, some withdrawing planned contributions as a result. There are
mounting calls to boycott MUBI; members are canceling subscriptions, and filmmakers may
soon begin to remove their films from the platform and database. The first company-wide
internal communication described such appeals as “trolling” and expressed hope that the
situation “quiets down soon,” but we share the concerns of our audiences and collaborators and
wish to amplify them. The Sequoia investment will inevitably continue to harm our reputation
and our work, threatening our partnerships and our mission. Subsequent statements from MUBI
leadership have been inadequate, failing to address the fundamental contradiction this
investment presents.
In addition to urging that the Sequoia investment be returned, that Andrew Reed’s appointment
to the board be reversed, and that MUBI commit to never accepting funding from the global war
machine, we ask management for transparency on the following points:
Did management take due diligence to understand Sequoia Capital’s full portfolio
before accepting its investment in MUBI?
If so, did management raise concerns about its investments in Israeli war-tech
companies, either while negotiating the terms of the investment or since?
What internal transparency procedures will be implemented to ensure that staff are
informed and confident about the business decisions of the company?
Management has insisted in official statements that “MUBI remains an independent
founder-led company,” and that “recent fundraising does not affect that independence,
our values, or our code of conduct.” How has management ensured that the interests of
investors will have no bearing on business, programming, and editorial decisions?
Despite statements to the contrary, investments in a company are a material reflection
of its values. How will MUBI correct course to more accurately reflect its values in its
ownership structure?
We hope this letter is received with the good faith in which it was written. We care deeply about
MUBI and believe this moment is an opportunity to develop a better company culture. We
respectfully request a written response by the end of the working day on Wednesday, June 18.
Thank you for taking the time to address these concerns.
Signed,
201 concerned MUBI staff members from across 9 departments
