Which company did George Lucas co-found with Francis Ford Coppola in 1969?

George Lucas co-founded American Zoetrope with Francis Ford Coppola in 1969.

American Zoetrope was established as an independent film production company by Coppola and Lucas, two filmmakers associated with the New Hollywood movement. The company opened on December 12, 1969, initially operating from a warehouse in San Francisco before moving its headquarters to the historic Sentinel Building in the city’s North Beach neighborhood.

The partnership gave emerging filmmakers an alternative to Hollywood’s traditional studio system. American Zoetrope produced or supported films connected with both founders, including Lucas’s THX 1138 and American Graffiti. Coppola later used the company for projects such as The Conversation and Apocalypse Now, while the studio also worked with filmmakers including Akira Kurosawa and Wim Wenders.

The name refers to the zoetrope, an early optical device that creates the illusion of motion. The company later operated under names including Zoetrope Studios, but American Zoetrope is the canonical name associated with its founding. It should not be confused with DreamWorks, which Lucas co-founded decades later with Steven Spielberg and Jeffrey Katzenberg.