A compelling hook gets my attention, but distinctive characters, emotional stakes, and a fresh point of view are what make a project stand out.
On the film side, we're looking for low- to mid-budget, entertainment-first, elevated commercial fare with international appeal and franchise potential. Adult actioners, globe-trotting thrillers, grounded genre, and four-quadrant family adventures set in the present day. We're also open to tweeners and genre-benders.
On the television side, we gravitate toward ongoing formats with the potential to travel internationally: premium procedurals, propulsive action thrillers, populist stories set outside traditional coastal worlds, and character-first family soaps with sky-high stakes.
Period pieces, straight comedy, traditional drama or dramedy, and isolated space-set stories. We're generally less interested in overtly political or relentlessly bleak material. On the film side, we tend to favor projects with completed scripts.
Alison Lani Genest is a film and television executive and producer who oversees development at Rob Friedman's Ascendant Entertainment. She works across film and television to identify, develop, package, and position commercially compelling projects for studios, streamers, and independent financiers.
Prior to joining Ascendant, Alison served as a Creative Executive at Fisher Stevens' Insurgent Media. Earlier in her career, she developed and produced music video content at Moving Box Studios for artists including The Chainsmokers, Tiësto, and Galantis. Before moving behind the camera, Alison worked as a performer in regional theater, commercials, film, and television, an experience that continues to inform her collaborative, creator-first approach to development.
