Sony has opened a new studio to produce film and TV projects based on its games.
The newly created PlayStation Productions will be headed by Asad Qizilbash, who previously served the company as a marketing VP for exclusive games. THR reports that the studio has already started to set up shop and begin its first projects in the Sony Pictures lot in Culver City, California. Sony Pictures will also help with distribution. The initiative is being overseen by Sony Worldwide Studios head Shawn Layden. The studio will pull from its library of exclusive games, but specific projects have not been named.
“Instead of licensing our IP out to studios, we felt the better approach was for us to develop and produce for ourselves,” Qizilbash said. “One, because we’re more familiar, but also because we know what the PlayStation community loves.”
Qizilbash said the studio startup has looked at the Marvel model for inspiration, and even spoke with Marvel producer Kevin Feige, along with other producers like Lorenzo di Bonaventura from the Transformers franchise. Layden says that its studio will be different, since it’s approaching with a fuller understanding of the games and their audiences.
PlayStation is expanding its brand into movies just as it changes how it engages with video game audiences. It is skipping the annual video game expo E3 this year, and has started a series of direct streams called State of Play. It also has started to detail its plans for the PlayStation 5.