FilmNation Entertainment, the independent studio behind “Arrival” and “Room,” has promoted Ashley Fox and Brad Zimmerman to senior VPs of production.
The pair will source and develop material that can be transformed into movies and will oversee film productions on behalf of the company. They will continue to report to Ben Browning, FilmNation’s president of production, film and television. Fox previously served as VP of development and Zimmerman was VP of production and acquisitions.
“Brad and Ashley are tenacious, driven and have great taste,” Browning said in a statement. “As we are looking to increase our film output, they have proven their ability to identify distinctive films and manage productions. It is exciting to see them grow their responsibilities at FilmNation.”
Fox is currently in post-production on Dominic Cooke’s “Ironbark,” a spy thriller that stars Oscar-nominee Benedict Cumberbatch and Emmy-winner Rachel Brosnahan. Her upcoming projects include Emerald Fennell’s “Promising Young Woman,” which Fox will executive produce. It stars Carey Mulligan and sold to Focus Features at the Berlin Film Festival. Fox joined the company in 2016 after a stint as an agent at WME working with bestselling authors such as Ted Chiang (whose short story was the basis for “Arrival”), Michael Punke, and Maggie Stiefvater.
Zimmerman recently executive produced Veronika Franz and Severin Fiala’s “The Lodge,” which sold to Neon at Sundance. He was also a production executive on the Mindy Kaling and Emma Thompson comedy “Late Night.” That film scored a massive $13 million domestic distribution deal at the festival, a record number for stateside rights. Upcoming projects include the English language remake of Joachim Trier’s “Thelma” to be directed by Craig Gillespie. Zimmerman joined FilmNation in 2017 after serving as a development executive under producer Matt Tolmach.