Andrew W. Garroni

Andrew W. Garroni is an American film producer. After becoming known for producing the 1980 slasher film Maniac, Garroni became a partner in Magnum Motion Pictures. He subsequently established Axis Films International in Los Angeles,^[1] which primarily produced erotic thrillers by directors like Gregory Dark.

Garroni co-produced the 1980 psychological slasher film Maniac, directed by fellow New Yorker William Lustig and starring and co-written by Joe Spinell. Financed in part by Lustig's pornographic film profits and filmed between 1979 and 1980,^[2] Maniac premiered at the Cannes Film Festival.^[3] It also developed a cult following and an infamous international reputation, leading to seizures of film copies in a number of countries.^[4][5] Garroni would later go on to serve as an executive producer on the film's 2012 remake,^[6] which was directed by Franck Khalfoun and starred Elijah Wood.^[7][8]

Having founded Axis International Pictures, an independent film studio, Garroni became known for producing direct-to-video erotic thriller films. Many of these were directed by Gregory Dark, including Secret Games (1992),^[9][10] Animal Instincts (1992),^[11] Body of Influence (1993),^[12][13] all of which were adapted into successful film series. He also worked in other genres, as shown by the 1993 comedy film Buford's Beach Bunnies.^[14]

In 2007, the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) sued Garroni, along with multiple companies controlled by Garroni and his business associates, for allegedly engaging in "a nationwide scheme to use deception and coercion to extract payments from consumers," which involved offering users a free trial of software for downloading video content and then, after the end of the trial period, displaying pop-up messages demanding payment that "[took] up much of the computer screen, obstruct[ed] consumers from working in other windows, and lack[ed] any obvious way to permit consumers to minimize or close [them]."^[15] Garroni and his associates eventually reached a settlement with the FTC, agreeing to pay over $500,000 and being banned from installing software on consumers' devices without their consent; a similar lawsuit brought against Garroni and his associates by the state of Washington was settled for $50,000, along with "provisions that limit their business practices."^[15]

Garroni has been married to Catherine R. Gambino since April 16, 1983.^[16]

• Andrew W. Garroni on IMDb