Fazekas & Butters Taps Juan Alfonso to Be Head of Television

Fazekas & Butters, a production company led by Michele Fazekas and Tara Butters, has named Juan Alfonso as the new head of television. There, he will develop and produce projects, and seek out and engage with writers, intellectual property and creative partners, “matchmaking talented people and ideas,” according to Alfonso. The pod, which launched in 2015, has an overall deal with ABC Studios. Victoria Vigo will join him as manager of television.

“We have loved working with Juan over the years because he is above all else, a partner — he fights for your project and believes in your vision,” said Fazekas & Butters in a statement. “His extensive experience at the studio is invaluable, he’s smart, collaborative, and just generally a lovely person. We are thrilled he’s our new head of television.”

Alfonso was most recently vice president of drama development for ABC Studios, where he worked on “American Crime,” “Secrets & Lies” and “Grand Hotel.” He also worked on “Marvel’s Agent Carter” and “Kevin (Probably) Saves the World”; Fazekas and Butters were showrunners on both series.

Prior to that, he led new content development and production for ESPN International, overseeing the debut of new documentaries, scripted series and certain studio shows. Alfonso is also a playwright. His play, “An Educated Guess,” is in contention for this fall’s New Stages Festival in Chicago.

“I’ve been working with Tara & Michele for 5 years on the studio side, and have always been a huge fan of their remarkable brand of smarts, humor and emotion, and the way they manage to blend genres in a way that feels effortless,” said Alfonso.  “In this new role, I’m excited to help the company grow by matchmaking talented people and ideas to create meaningful stories that come from a unique perspective.”

At Fazekas & Butters, Alfonso will also serve as executive producer of the duo’s forthcoming “Emergence,” starring Allison Tolman. The show premieres on ABC in September. The exec producer/showrunner duo created the CW’s “Reaper,” served as writers and producers on “Law & Order: SVU” for five seasons, and have developed pilots for the CW, CBS, NBC and Fox, as well as written for “Terra Nova” and “Dollhouse.

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