American Film History Francis Ford Coppola Signed Zoetrope Productions Agreement 1981

Francis Ford Coppola

Manuscripts & Autographs

Coppola, Francis Ford. Signed certificate agreement dated February 13, 1981, documents the corporate administration of Zoetrope Productions during Coppola’s effort to establish an independent, filmmaker-controlled alternative to the conventional Hollywood studio system. Founded by Coppola and George Lucas in 1969, Zoetrope developed and produced films outside traditional studio structures; by 1981, Coppola was investing heavily in the company’s production facilities and new filmmaking technologies. The agreement records that institutional framework through a formal transaction involving Coppola and company secretary Jean Autrey, revealing how Zoetrope’s business affairs were authorized through written corporate instruments and providing primary-source evidence for the study of independent film production, studio governance, and Coppola’s role as both director and company executive.

Coppola, Francis Ford. Certificate agreement with Jean Autrey, Secretary of Zoetrope Productions. February 13, 1981. One typed page; dimensions and place of execution not supplied. Signed boldly in black ink, “Francis Coppola.” The document identifies Autrey in her capacity as company secretary and formalizes an unspecified agreement between Coppola and Zoetrope Productions. Because the supplied description does not provide the certificate’s complete text, financial terms, subject, or legal purpose, those elements cannot be characterized further. Its named parties, corporate designation, date, and executed signature nevertheless demonstrate the process by which company decisions or interests were documented and authenticated within Zoetrope’s administrative structure.

The February 1981 date places the agreement during the intensive production period preceding One from the Heart, Coppola’s technologically ambitious Zoetrope production released in 1982. The project relied on elaborate studio-built sets and costly production methods, contributing to serious financial pressure on the company and making surviving corporate documents from this period relevant to the relationship between artistic independence, technological experimentation, and film financing. No tears, staining, losses, or other defects are identified; the typed text and bold black signature remain clean and clear, near fine. Signed corporate record from a consequential period in Coppola’s attempt to unite independent authorship, studio ownership, and innovative film production.

Item #10278

Price: $300.00