Tracey Edmonds Named President and COO of Our Stories Films

Our Stories Films is a joint venture between Johnson's RLJ Companies, LLC and Weinstein Co. to create family-friendly features for urban audiences.

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As president and chief operating officer, Edmonds will be responsible for driving the vision of the new film studio and all operations. In running the company, she will be charged with identifying and executing on projects from development to production. She will soon assemble a team of executives to support her in establishing the studio's unique position in the marketplace.

"For a long time, the African-American creative community has wanted to have a studio where greenlight authority rests with an African-American. I'm happy that Harvey and Bob have joined me in making this vision a reality. I'm excited that Tracey has chosen to become a part of this venture -- her track record and creative abilities will insure that the vision becomes a success."

"When looking for someone to lead Our Stories, we identified an executive who has a track record of innovation and success, the respect of the industry, and a strong understanding of, and relationships with, both business and talent," said Harvey Weinstein. "Tracey is the ideal choice, and we're thrilled that she will be heading up Our Stories."

Edmonds is the owner, president and CEO of Edmonds Entertainment Group, which produced George Tillman Jr.'s "Soul Food" and the Showtime series based on the film. Through her film production company e2 Filmworks, Edmonds produced Patrik-Ian Polk's "Punks" and executive produced Christopher Scott Cherot's "Hav Plenty."

She has also produced some of the most popular television shows to ever appear on BET, including the first African-American reality series, "College Hill," which debuted in 2004 to set a network record as BET's highest rated series premiere in 25 years. "College Hill" is now in its fourth season and continues to be a ratings winner. In 2006, Edmonds created and executive produced "Lil Kim: Countdown to Lockdown," which currently stands as the top-rated series debut in BET history. Edmonds also produced the popular "DMX: Soul of a Man" for BET.

Currently, Edmonds is in production on Good Luck Chuck, a romantic comedy for Lions Gate starring Jessica Alba and Dane Cook. Edmonds also has a slate of feature film project set up at Disney, Fox Searchlight, Columbia and Universal.

Our Stories is headquartered in Los Angeles with offices in New York City. Our Stories titles will be theatrically distributed by The Weinstein Company's Dimension Films and on DVD by Genius Products, Inc. Under the agreement, TWC has an equity stake in the venture. Johnson will oversee the decisions to produce, acquire and finance film projects. JP Morgan Chase has committed to financing the venture with up to $175 million under terms to be negotiated.