Francesco Rulli

Francesco Rulli
Born Florence, Italy
Occupation Businessman
Known for Founder and President of Film Annex; fashion business partner to John Malkovich; Managing Partner at Citadel of New York; Advisory Board Member Global Medical Relief Fund

Francesco Rulli is an Italian businessman, philanthropist and black belt Judo instructor at the New York Athletic Club. He founded MTI USA Inc. in 1995 and serves as the President. In 2006, he founded and served as the president of Film Annex, an online independent film distribution platform and web television network.[1] He launched the Bitcoin platform bitLanders in 2014 and serves as the President.[2] Rulli also co-founded Mrs. Mudd, a fashion and design consulting firm with American actor, producer and director John Malkovich.[3] Rulli was a featured actor in Malkovich's documentary Flipping Uncle Kimono.[4][5]

Career

In 2001, Rulli met Malkovich in New York through mutual friend and then ambassador Muhamed Sacirbey, and asked Malkovich if he would be interested in doing a men's clothing line.[6] In 2002, they founded Mrs. Mudd,[7] a fashion company selling outfits designed by Malkovich.[8] The company released its John Malkovich menswear collection, "Uncle Kimono", in 2003[9] The line expressed the idiosyncratic tastes of Malkovich, with items such as the "Nervous Breakdown Jacket."

MTI USA Inc.

Over the last 20 years, MTI USA Inc. has developed and strengthened its expertise in the art of conversation and dialogue between brands and customers,[10] including audience segmentation associated to customer's interests and life experience. Through its proprietary platforms Film Annex, bitLanders, bitCharities, and bitMiles, MTI USA Inc. has mastered its knowledge of building relationships and establishing meaningful conversations with users all over the world. MTI USA Inc. has offices in Europe, the US and Taiwan, which has allowed its expertise to be applied regionally to local cultures, traditions, and customers' expectations.

Film Annex

Rulli founded Film Annex, a Web TV Network that allows filmmakers to create free Web TVs to present their work under specific domain names, in 2006. Film Annex helps filmmakers create a brand out of their name, company, or project, in an effort to avoid a "forward-slash mentality".[11] The company's distribution of movies and web television aims to allow artists and filmmakers to fund their projects and promote their works with a shared advertising model. An editorial team approves the content of all films before release to ensure they are made by professionals.[12]

BitLanders & BitCharities

In August 2014, Rulli launched bitLanders, a social network with 500,000 registered users and an extended network of 180 million connections. bitLanders.com has gamified Bitcoin and charitable donations with a system of quests allowing users to donate Bitcoin to non-profits on bitCharities.com, where 30+ leading charities present their work and mission.[17]

Afghan Citadel Software Company

As another Film Annex project, in 2012, Rulli and Roya Mahboob, founder and CEO of the Afghan Citadel Software Company (ACSC), launched the Afghan Development Project and Women's Annex. The project aims to show the world positive developments in Afghanistan by broadcasting current event videos, interviews, and news clips as well as archival material directly from Afghan Youth Development.[18] Mahboob supplied technology training to students in 40 schools with the help of Rulli, and said it is a chance for girls to broaden their horizons.[19] Women's Annex is an educational and financing initiative that provides women with mentoring and monetizing options for any video content they post on social media, allowing them to find opportunities to begin filmmaking careers.

Judo

Rulli is a member of the New York Athletic Club's Judo Club,[20] chaired by Kevin Earls and Owen Tunney, and he is a Yodan (4th degree black belt) as an active competitor in Judo. He is a coach of and helps run the NYAC’s Saturday morning program, which is organized for NYAC members’ children to receive exposure to and basic training in judo.[21]

Rulli is the Producer of JudoArts.com. Film Annex and Rulli sponsored the 2013 New York Judo Open. Competition directors were Mel Appelbaum, Dr Arthur Canario, and John Walla. Film Annex has filmed the tournament and conducted interviews with the athletes since 2010.[22][23]

As a supporter of Judo, Rulli and Malkovich presented an unconventional fashion show in the documentary "Flipping Uncle Kimono", using 20 Judo fighters as models during a Milan fashion show that looked like a championship Judo match with the fighters wearing men's suits from the Mrs. Mudd fashion line by Malkovich. They did this on a stage in a courtyard in Milan, in front of a live audience, and with Malkovich and Rulli directing the action.[24]

Philanthropy

Rulli's company Film Annex funded 2013 Time 100 honoree Roya Mahboob in the construction of 11 classrooms and 2 stand alone IT centers in Herat and Kabul, Afghanistan, connecting 55,000 female students to the World Wide Web.[25] Rulli is an Advisory Board Member of the Global Medical Relief Fund, an organization working to bring aid to children injured or otherwise adversely affected by war, natural disaster or illness.[26] He is a Founding Board Member of Digital Citizen Fund (previously Women's Annex).[27] Rulli along with Porter Bibb and Alan McFarland are founding members of the Southampton Multimedia Center which serves as both a digital literacy educational and training facility for the local community.[28]

References

  1. ↑ "Film Annex". Crunch Base. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
  2. ↑ "Interview with Bitlanders CEO Francesco Rulli". Bitcoinist. Retrieved 4 April 2015.
  3. ↑ John, Heather (April 13, 2003). "Fashionable Liaisons: Meet John Malkovich, Tailor of the Cinema". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved January 24, 2012.
  4. ↑ http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000518/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1
  5. ↑ http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2134752/?ref_=tt_cl_t3
  6. ↑ Brescia, Joe (February 11, 2006). "From Broadway to Runway". New York Times. Retrieved January 24, 2012.
  7. ↑ "Meet Mrs. Mudd". New York Observer. Retrieved 13 February 2006.
  8. ↑ "Wearing John Malkovich". The Sydney Morning Herald. July 10, 2004. Retrieved January 24, 2012.
  9. ↑ "Let John Malkovich dress you…". April 30, 2005. Retrieved January 25, 2012.
  10. ↑ "Conversationalism for Brands". Medium. Retrieved 2 February 2016.
  11. ↑ Park, Jane. "Film Annex". Creative Commons Blog. Creative Commons. Retrieved 26 January 2012.
  12. ↑ http://www.constanceberjaut.com/rethinking-the-film-distribution/
  13. ↑ "Film Annex to Promote and Distribute Content Produced by METAN Development Group". OnlinePRNews.com. Retrieved 10 July 2013.
  14. ↑ "Cinco Dedos Peliculas". IMDB.com. Retrieved 10 July 2013.
  15. ↑ "Matthew Modine Releases His Short Films on Film Annex's Online Film Distribution Platform". MatthewModine.com. Retrieved 10 July 2013.
  16. ↑ "Matthew Modine Web TV Only on Film Annex". NakedFilmMaking.com. Retrieved 10 July 2013.
  17. ↑ "Exclusive: An Insight into Francesco Rulli’s Work and Thoughts". Newsbtc. Retrieved 17 May 2015.
  18. ↑ Shah, Angela. "In Afghanistan, Roya Mahboob Connects Girls With Computers". Newsweek's The Daily Beast. Retrieved 5 September 2012.
  19. ↑ "Afghan Women Help Drive Resurgent Economy". Voice of America. Retrieved 3 April 2013.
  20. ↑ New York Athletic Club's Judo Club
  21. ↑ DiPrinzio, Ron (October 2006). "Coaches Return for 111th Season" (PDF). The Winged Foot 125 (10): 10. Retrieved 26 January 2012.
  22. ↑ http://www.teamusa.org/USA-Judo/Features/2010/October/15/Film-Annex-to-Sponsor-Promote-and-Document-the-New-York-Open-Judo-Championship-this-Weekend.aspx
  23. ↑ http://www.newyorkopenjudo.com/index.php
  24. ↑ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0445020/plotsummary?ref_=tt_ov_pl
  25. ↑ "Afghan women on the march by US Secretary of State John Kerry". Politico. Retrieved 18 November 2013.
  26. ↑ "Board Members". GMRF Children. gmrfchildren.org. Retrieved 10 July 2013.
  27. ↑ "If I teach them, no one can stop them": Roya Mahboob is fighting to educate the girls of Afghanistan". SALON. Retrieved 8 March 2015.
  28. ↑ "Hamptons Smart Phone Film Project Mentors Young Filmmakers". Hamptons.com. Retrieved 28 April 2015.
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