Fox Networks Group & Tony Sella Form Creative Branding Solutions JV

LOS ANGELES: Fox Networks Group (FNG) has teamed up with Tony Sella, a former chief creative officer at 20th Century Fox Film, to establish AKS Content, a new joint venture meant to develop original content, integrations and promotions to help brands reach viewers.

Under the partnership, Sella will work across FNG's television portfolio, which includes FOX, FX, Fox Sports and National Geographic. He will have an equity stake in AKS Content and will serve as the company's chief creative officer. The exec will collaborate with Peter Rice, the chairman and CEO of FNG, and Randy Freer, FNG's president and COO, to manage the JV.

Sella's resumé includes 104 of the 150 highest grossing Fox films in the U.S., including Avatar, which was the highest grossing film ever. He has also contributed to such hit franchises as X-Men, Planet of the Apes, Ice Age, Night at the Museum and Fantastic Four, among many others. Before joining Fox—where he worked for two decades—Sella was the senior VP of creative advertising and VP of creative at The Walt Disney Company.

"Tony is one of the world's finest creative executives with a storied and award-winning career marketing the highest grossing movies in history," said Rice. "Our new creative partnership with AKS Content, along with Fox Advanced Ad Products and brand integrations like the current Pepsi campaign for Empire, which Tony helped develop, underscore our commitment to innovate and engage, rather than disrupt, today's highly sophisticated consumer."

Freer remarked: "Tony has a unique ability to connect brand marketers with creative talent. As the television industry undergoes rapid transformation, we're excited for Tony to help us bring the connection between brand advertising and content to new levels, in order to extend and enhance our core storytelling and give brands a totally authentic and engaging way to reach viewers."

Sella added: "Fox is an ideal partner for this new journey. This is a company that's made a real and proven pledge to invest in its channel brands. They're equally dedicated to being a place where creative talent can do the best work of their lives. This combined mission, backed by the leadership of Gary Newman, Dana Walden, John Landgraf and Courteney Monroe, and their amazing teams, creates a real runway for this AKS Content to do something new and different in the world of brand integrations."