Former Marvel Visual Artist Anthony Francisco, Who Designed Baby Groot, Joins Dolphin Entertainment To Spearhead NFT Studio

Valerie Complex
·2 min read
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EXCLUSIVE: Dolphin Entertainment CEO and founder Bill O’Dowd said Tuesday that visual designer Anthony Francisco is joining the the company as creative director.

Francisco’s last position was at Marvel Studios, where he was Senior Visual Development Artist — a post he held for nine years. His design work includes famed MCU characters and elements like Baby Groot, Loki and the Dora Milaje (the female warriors of Black Panther). Francisco’s designs, concepts and creations will also be featured in Eternals, Black Panther 2, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, Thor: Love and Thunder, and Captain Marvel 2.

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At Dolphin, Francisco will be in charge of developing and executing various NFT series involving original and existing IP with Dolphin’s growing NFT (non-fungible token) studio. The company most recently partnered with cryptocurrency exchange platform FTX to build NFT marketplaces across multiple entertainment and sports verticals.

“Anthony Francisco has the distinct honor of designing some of the most cherished characters in today’s pop culture, and we are thrilled to welcome him to the Dolphin family,” O’Dowd said. “With his talent and imagination already hard at work, I can say without question that Dolphin’s forthcoming NFT releases will be special and unique.”

Prior to Marvel, Francisco served as a Senior Concept Artist at Rhythm & Hues, contributing to films like R.I.P.D., Seventh Son, Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters, The Hunger Games and Snow White and the Huntsman. In January 2019, he published his first book, Anthony Francisco Art Vol. 1: Uber Monsters, which includes his creature designs and art concepts.

“NFTs are such an exciting new world for any visual artist,” says Francisco. “I’m very excited and grateful for the opportunity to establish a creative role that doesn’t already exist inside Dolphin Entertainment. The ideas are endlessly flowing and it’s thrilling for a designer like myself to feel that anything is possible. I can’t wait to share what we’ve been working on with the world.”

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