Executive Team
Tim Chonacas
Chonacas has been active in the independent film world for the past 18 years. He began by raising production financing for a prominent film company that produced over 100 films and generated more than a billion dollars in box office revenue. During his time there, he built a vast network of contacts who are now leaders in the independent film industry.
Chonacas went on to executive produce titles such as Kilimanjaro (2013), Some Velvet Morning (2013), All Eyez on Me ("2Pac") (2017), and Inconceivable (2017). He has five additional credited films and ten uncredited films, with 25 features and 12 TV series currently in development and production alongside leading producers. In 2016, he managed a $15 million film fund on the Paramount Pictures Studio lot, which was a great success under his leadership. This achievement led him to establish his own fund.
In 2018, Chonacas co-founded and co-chaired Gold Tree with his attorney and longtime producing partner, William J. Immerman, following an eight-year professional relationship. During this time, he secured several high-profile productions for the company, featuring A-list talent.
In 2022, Chonacas and Immerman launched Gold Tree Studios, with its first location under Immerman’s leadership as COO. Despite facing challenges like two industry strikes, they kept the studio afloat and began expanding, starting with a second location in Buffalo, NY, and planning a third in Victoria on Vancouver Island, Canada.
After Immerman’s unexpected passing in June 2023, Chonacas carried forward their shared vision by founding Animation GT in 2024, taking the company into full 360-degree filmmaking across all mediums. That same year, he produced two films: Modi, starring Al Pacino and directed by Johnny Depp in his directorial debut, and Lear Rex, starring Jessica Chastain and Al Pacino.
Chonacas has now secured $500 million in equity and debt financing for a new Film/TV and Animation fund under the Gold Tree Entertainment Trust.
William J. Immerman
Immerman (1944–2023) was a renowned attorney, producer, and executive in the film industry, remembered for his immense contributions to cinema. He also practiced law specializing in representing sales agents, producers, financiers, and distributors, negotiating complex financing deals, and serving as production and distribution counsel.
Previously, Immerman served as president of production at RSVP Entertainment, an independent motion picture production company partially owned by Salem Productions, his independent film production and consulting company. Through Salem Productions, Immerman provided production and business affairs services to film production and distribution companies. He also served as senior executive vice president and COO of Yari Film Group, an independent film production, distribution, and finance company. Before that, he was senior executive vice president and COO of Crusader Entertainment, an Anschutz Film Group company. At Crusader, he was an executive producer of Ray, the biopic of Ray Charles starring Jamie Foxx, which received six Academy Award nominations and won two Oscars.
Immerman earned his B.S. from the University of Wisconsin and his J.D. from Stanford Law School. He also served as an officer in the United States Army Reserve, attaining the rank of Captain. His career began as a Deputy District Attorney for Los Angeles County, after which he entered the motion picture industry with American International Pictures (AIP) as Associate Counsel. At AIP, he held several positions, including Director of Business Affairs, Executive Assistant to the Chairman, Vice President of Business Affairs, and Production Executive. He was also a member of the production committee with greenlight authority on all projects.
Immerman later joined 20th Century Fox as Vice President of Business Affairs, where he served as chief negotiator for talent, production, and distribution and represented Fox on the boards of the Motion Picture Association of America and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers. He was later promoted to Senior Executive Vice President of Fox’s film division, where he played a pivotal role in approving iconic projects like Star Wars, Young Frankenstein, The Omen, and Silver Streak.
After leaving Fox, Immerman entered into an exclusive production deal with Warner Bros. and later became Executive Producer of Highpoint, one of the first films to benefit from Canadian tax incentives. He then founded Cinema Group, the first motion picture startup to raise funds through both a private placement and an IPO. As Chairman of the Board and President of Cinema Group, he oversaw the production and co-financing of films including Staying Alive, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, and Flashdance.
Immerman’s prolific career included producing or executive producing numerous films, such as Swimming Upstream, Danny Deckchair, Sound of Thunder, Sahara, What Doesn’t Kill You, The Maiden Heist, Where the Red Fern Grows, Nothing But the Truth, The Barber, Papa: Hemingway in Cuba, Bitter Harvest, Mr. Hockey: The Gordie Howe Story, Before We Go, and The Hurricane Heist.
He served on the National Advisory Board of the Sundance Film Festival and the National Advisory Board of the DeSantis Center for Motion Picture Industry Studies at Florida Atlantic University. He was a member of the Screen Actors Guild/AFTRA, served as a director of the SAG-AFTRA Foundation, and was a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. In 2010, he was honored with the Louis B. Mayer Award from the UCLA Anderson School of Management as the Outstanding Motion Picture Business Executive of the Year.
William Immerman’s legacy lives on through his monumental achievements and contributions to the film industry, inspiring generations of filmmakers and executives. Gold Tree will always remember him and his legendary foresight, continuing to break new barriers throughout the industry.