Cami Winikoff
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Cami Winikoff | |
|---|---|
| Occupation | Producer |
| Years active | 1984–present |
| Employer | Sobini Films |
| Spouse | Scott Greco |
| Children | Monika Wesley Steven Greco |
Cami Sarah Winikoff is an American film and television producer and the current president and co-founder of Sobini Films. She was invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in 2019.[1]
Independent
Winikoff began an independent producer.[2] Her first feature Scarecrows was released in 1988.[citation needed]
Trimark Pictures
Winikoff joined Trimark Pictures in August 1990.[2] She was appointed director of production in 1991, promoted to vice president of production in 1995, and again to senior vice president in January 1997.[2] Winikoff began to serve as executive vice president and chief administrative officer of Trimark in September 1997, where she oversaw all business, legal affairs, production, post-production, servicing and administration for the company.[2][3] She also sat on the board of directors of CinemaNow.com, dedicated to the streaming and production of niche-oriented independent films.[2][3]
Winikoff was promoted to chief operating officer at Trimark in 2000 and oversaw all operational facets of the company including its production arm and green-light process.[2][3] This included the administration of theatrical, television, and home entertainment productions.[4] She helped build the company and was a key player in negotiations with its merger with Lionsgate in late 2000.[4]
At Trimark, she headed the production of over 75 films.[5] Her production credits include Eve's Bayou, winner of Independent Spirit Awards), directed by Kasi Lemmons, starring Samuel L. Jackson; Frida, winner of two Academy Awards, starring Salma Hayek; Love and a .45 starring Renée Zellweger and Gil Bellows; Kicking and Screaming by Noah Baumbach; Kama Sutra: A Tale of Love by Mira Nair; and the Leprechaun film series.[citation needed]
Lionsgate
After the merger with Lionsgate, Winikoff served as its executive vice president, where she helped build the company's executive team and business plan.[5]
Sobini Films
Winikoff was tapped as the president of Sobini Films in 2002.[4] In her time at Sobini, she has developed a diverse range of feature films and franchises.[5] Her credits include JT Leroy starring Kristen Stewart and Laura Dern; I'd Kill for You with her daughter Monika Wesley; Mary Shelley starring Elle Fanning; Miles Ahead starring Don Cheadle; Good Kill starring Ethan Hawke; Stonehearst Asylum starring Kate Beckinsale; An American Girl: Chrissa Stands Strong for HBO, recipient of the National Parenting Publications Gold Award; and Streets of Legend.[citation needed] She also produced the documentary Jujitsu-ing Reality, shortlisted for the 2013 Best Documentary Short Subject Academy Award.[6]
She produced The Prince & Me starring Julia Stiles for Paramount Studios and its sequels.[7] As the producer of Peaceful Warrior starring Nick Nolte,[8] she was inspired by the film, and not satisfied by its minimal exposure, worked with Adam Fogelson of Universal Pictures to test a new marketing plan, giving away tickets at Best Buy to gain a wider audience.[9][10][11]
She is currently developing Z, a reboot of the Zorro franchise.[12]
Activism
Winikoff has been active in promoting dark skies in Malibu, California, as president of the Malibu Community Alliance (MCA). She negotiated with local agencies for five years to develop a new dark skies ordinance, which took effect October 15, 2018.[13] Previously, she and the MCA settled with the Santa Monica–Malibu Unified School District over an appeal to the California Coastal Commission regarding Malibu High School's upgraded lighting in 2016.[14] The Coastal Commission approved the settlement.[15]
Winikoff has also served on the board of Malibu Unites, a local advocacy group that pressured the school district's handling of toxins.[16]