Rocco Nisivoccia Jr. is a Director, Producer, and Production Manager who, after film school, landed his first Production Assistant gig on Spider-Man 2 (2004) with one of the most creative pitches we have ever heard. Working his way up in the industry working through Locations (Emergence, The Sopranos, Daredevil, Jessica Jones) and Production Management (Wu-Tang: An American Saga), he directed and produced his first feature, Aliens vs. Zombies, in 2017. A rabid football fan, Rocco landed a dream job as the Football Production Manager on FX’s American Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez (2024). Paul and Steve sit with Rocco and break down the intricacies of coordinating accurate football for the screen, how football itself was a critical character in American Sports Story, his passion for collaborative storytelling, and the importance of relationships in an ever-changing industry.

Rocco’s IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm2012988/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1

MENTIONS

American Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez trailer: https://youtu.be/nYd-BgM6tdQ?si=17naEpZfGKe3UMph

Game Changing Films: https://www.gamechangingfilms.com/

Aliens vs. Zombies: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3626214/reference/

Hard Out Productions: http://www.hardoutproductions.com/

What American Sports Story: Aaron Hernandez Gets Right: https://slate.com/culture/2024/10/american-sports-story-aaron-hernandez-fx-patriots-football-nfl.html

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