Courtesy
EXCLUSIVE: AWA Studios, the three-year-old film and television division of Artists, Writers & Artisans, is stepping up in the world of film financing by appointing industry veteran Victoria Rossellini as a senior strategic advisor.
Rossellini brings a deep well of experience to her new role at the studio that specializes in graphic novel adaptations. She has collaborated with filmmakers, studios and financiers to structure the business end of blockbusters like James Cameron’s Avatar franchise and Titanic as well as Ang Lee’s Life of Pi. Over nearly three decades at 20th Century Fox, Rossellini rose to President of Worldwide Business & Legal Affairs and Strategic Financing, working on numerous titles from the main studio as well as Fox 2000, and Fox Searchlight. She also helped craft business and finance arrangements with Dune Entertainment, Lightstorm and TSG Entertainment.
In her new post, Rossellini will work closely with AWA’s senior leadership team, including Co-Chair Jon Miller, Co-Chair & President Matthew Anderson, Studio Head Zach Studin, and General Counsel Bob Cohen. Their main priority will be securing strategic financing and partnerships for feature film production and distribution, as well as to maximize other parts of a film’s life cycle.
The advisory nature of the position would enable Rossellini to work on projects outside of AWA Studios, but given the anticipated pedigree of those opportunities, the parties view that arrangement as mutually beneficial.
“Vicki’s entertainment business expertise, her network of collaborators, and her skill in developing strategic partnerships are unparalleled within the industry and we know she will be an incredible asset to our team as we accelerate our feature film slate and assess multi-film partnerships over the coming months,” Miller said.
The initial wave of projects Rossellini will focus on includes feature adaptations of graphic fiction series Hotell, Marjorie Finnegan, Temporal Criminal and Old Haunts.
“As I learned more about AWA’s mission to bring graphic novel creators’ visions to life in film and television,” Rossellini said, “I realized how closely this aligns with my passion for building truly strategic industry relationships and custom business and financial structures to propel film projects to their full potential. I’ve been so impressed with the range, quality and number of AWA Studios’ projects in development and am excited to help these unique films reach global audiences.”
Hotell was adapted by and will be directed by rising genre filmmaker Elle Callahan (Head Count). The original comic series was written by John Lees and drawn by artist Dalibor Talajic.
Ruben Fleischer (Uncharted, Venom) will direct event film Marjorie Finnegan, Temporal Criminal adapted from the graphic novel of iconic creator Garth Ennis (The Boys, Preacher), which AWA Studios is producing alongside LuckyChap Entertainment (Barbie) with Catya McMullin adapting.
Old Haunts has been adapted by Aaron Rabin (Secret Invasion) and will be directed by celebrated Māori filmmaker James Ashcroft (Coming Home in the Dark). The original comic series was written by Ollie Masters (The Kitchen, Snow Blind) and Rob Williams (Out, Low Life, Ghost Rider) and drawn by artist Laurence Campbell (Breathing Space, The Punisher, BPRD).
Since leaving Fox in 2020, Rossellini has continued to work with and advise financiers, filmmakers, and production companies. Prior to Fox, Rossellini worked at Paramount Pictures and Columbia Pictures as well as in private practice, including an early stint at Rosenfeld, Meyer and Susman.
AWA established AWA Studios in 2021.
