New Studio Rommi Plans Phone-First Romance Series
Producers Jamie Gordon and Maggie Malina have launched Rommi, a New York studio that will specialise in romance stories made for vertical video, Variety reported on 1 October 2026.
Gordon will serve as chief executive. Malina will serve as head of content. Gordon is a co-founder of Fugitive Films. Malina is the former head of scripted programming at MTV/VH1.
Rommi will focus on short-form series shot to be watched upright on a phone. The episodes are made for scrolling. They are typically cut into minute-long instalments that viewers watch in sequence.
Its first original, a romantic comedy titled “Drive Me Mad”, will debut in October. It is based on an original idea by romance author Ali Rosen.
More titles are already in the pipeline. Rommi has original stories in development from authors Emma Grey and Debbie Rigaud, Variety reported. The studio is also adapting two published novels, “The Mixtape” by Brittainy Cherry and “This Spells Love” by Kate Robb.
Rommi has partnered with Morgann Book and Thomas Johnston of Bookish Media to co-produce its slate. Book and Johnston work with authors and publishers on screen adaptations. The Rommi team is based in New York City.
For fans, this means more romance built for the phone screen from the start. The books come first, then the short episodes. No cinema release is planned. No television slot is needed.
