Biographie
F.J. DeSanto is a producer/writer who has been responsible for acquiring, developing and maintaining a large slate of projects based on comic books, graphic novels, manga and anime while also overseeing deals with writers, agents, comic book companies, creators and movie studios. Earlier in his career he was the Senior Vice President of Production and Development and Producer for Comic Book Movies Inc., and spent nine years as Vice President of Development for the Executive Producers of the BATMAN franchise.
He's currently showrunning the original anime series TRANSFORMERS: WAR FOR CYBERTRON for Netflix, Hasbro and Rooster Teeth which launched in 2020. This is his second animated TRANSFORMERS trilogy, the last being PRIME WARS which he co-wrote, and executive produced for Hasbro, Machinima and Verizon. He Executive Produced VAGRANT QUEEN, a live action television series produced in conjunction with Blue Ice Pictures and premiered on Syfy Channel in 2020.
In the live action feature space, DeSanto Co-Produced "THE SPIRIT," written and directed by Frank Miller and based on the classic graphic novel series, for Lionsgate; and the animated TUROK: SON OF STONE DVD (Classic Media/The Weinstein Company).
As a writer and intellectual property creator, DeSanto has co-created FAILSAFE, an original property, which was released by Vault Comics and is currently in development as a feature film at Netflix with Michael B Jordan producing/starring and Joe Robert Cole (BLACK PANTHER) writing. ALIEN BOUNTY HUNTER, an original science fiction property which DeSanto developed with ENTOURAGE creator Stephen Levinson and Mark Wahlberg was also released by Vault as a comic book series.
Other projects in development include: HEATHEN, based on the Vault comic book series in conjunction with Constantin Films and Prime Universe, THE UNTITLED PLAGUE DOCTOR PROJECT with writer Gary Dauberman and Atomic Monster, DOC SAVAGE (Columbia Pictures/Original Film) written and to be directed by Shane Black and starring Dwayne Johnson; and an original modern day Knights Templar property, CRIMSON, created by writer Michael Palmer and produced alongside The Donners Company (X-MEN). He is partnered with the newly formed Vault Comics to bring their slate of original properties to the entertainment space.
He also Produced BEHIND THE COMICS, a show for AT&T Uverse showcasing modern comic talent working on classic characters such as Spider-Man and Batman and featuring Stan Lee, Alyssa Milano and Jim Lee. DeSanto also Executive Produced the documentaries TALKING WITH GODS and CAPTURED GHOSTS, which profiled the legendary comic book creators Grant Morrison and Warren Ellis (with Respect Films/Halo-8). He also served as an assistant to the producers of the feature film CONSTANTINE, directed by Francis Lawrence and starring Keanu Reeves (Warner Bros) and based on the DC Comics series.
Delving into branded properties, DeSanto was hired by 20th Century Fox and Boom Studios to write the comic book prequel to the motion picture AGENT 47, based on the hugely popular HITMAN series of video games. DeSanto also wrote an original manga based on STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION for Tokyopop, and was a co-writer on the comic book series THE SPIRIT for DC Comics. His first prose work, a GREEN HORNET story, was published by Moonstone Publications. In 2011, he wrote a story for an anthology novel based on the film IMMORTALS for Relativity.
At the request of Lucasfilm, he and director Kyle Newman (FANBOYS, BARELY LETHAL) wrote the critically acclaimed trilogy of original STAR WARS live audio shows known as the SMUGGLER'S series that was performed in front of thousands and watched by millions live on star wars.com during CELEBRATION 2012, 2015 and 2017.
A westernized graphic novel version of the Japanese classic manga CYBORG 009 written by Mr. DeSanto and Bradley Cramp (INVERTIGO) was the first ever book of it's kind to be simultaneously published in the US (by Archaia Entertainment) and Japan (by Shopro Books) and digitally through Comixology. It was nominated for three Harvey Awards, including Best Graphic Album.
He has also consulted for Microsoft on their intellectual property incubation studio, Lift London, to help develop their original games into cross platform franchises.
Known for his knowledge of manga and anime, DeSanto was the first person to ever speak on the topic of Japanese manga and anime at The Smithsonian Institution when moderating "Manga to Anime: Astro Boy to Spirited Away" a seminar that featured seminal creators and prominent executives from the Japanese entertainment industry. An expert on Hong Kong Cinema, he has also provided DVD commentaries for several US DVD releases of Chinese films.
F.J. DeSanto graduated New York University's Tisch School of the Arts Department of Undergraduate Film and TV with an honors scholar award. In 2001-2002, Mr. DeSanto returned to NYU as an adjunct professor, teaching a class entitled PROFESSIONAL COLLOQUIUM. The course, which Mr. DeSanto created, is designed to educate senior and graduate writing students on the fundamentals of the motion picture business.
