Develops and produces distinctive, commercially resonant film and television across genres.
Where art meets hard work, Aardwork Pictures creates bold, entertaining stories built to connect.
Aardwork Pictures is a film and television production company founded by producer Divya D’Souza, dedicated to developing and producing bold, eclectic stories that entertain, resonate, and connect through the universal human experience.
The company was born from the belief that exceptional storytelling lives at the intersection of art and hard work—where creative vision is matched by the dedication and perseverance required to bring it to life. The name is also deeply personal: AARD honors Divya’s parents, Anil and Ritoo D’Souza, whose unwavering support, resilience, and work ethic inspired the company’s foundation and continue to shape its values.
Aardwork champions filmmakers with singular voices and stories with something meaningful to say. Working across genres—from comedy and drama to thrillers and elevated genre fare—the company seeks projects that are distinctive yet accessible, emotionally resonant yet commercially minded, with the power to connect audiences through the shared humanity at the heart of every great story.
Divya D’Souza is a veteran producer and the Founder of Aardwork Pictures, bringing more than two decades of experience across film and television. Most recently, she served as Senior Vice President of Development and Production at Invention Studios, founded by acclaimed producer Nicholas Weinstock (Severance, Bridesmaids), where she helped oversee a global slate of film and television projects. She produced the comedic sci-fi thriller The Saviors, which premiered at SXSW 2026, starring Adam Scott, Danielle Deadwyler, Kate Berlant and Greg Kinnear, and the comedy In Memoriam, which premiered at the 2026 Tribeca Film Festival, written and directed by Rob Burnett and starring Marc Maron, Lily Gladstone, Sharon Stone, Judy Greer, Justin Long, Michael McKean and Alan Ruck.
Previously, Divya spent seven years at On the Day Productions, the production company founded by Melissa McCarthy and Ben Falcone, where she worked across development and production on projects including Thunder Force, God’s Favorite Idiot and Bob Ross: Happy Accidents, Betrayal & Greed. Over the course of her career, she has developed and produced projects with studios and platforms including Netflix, Warner Bros., HBO Max, Paramount and NBC.
Beyond her producing work, Divya serves on the Board of Directors of NewFilmmakers Los Angeles and has served as a mentor for the Pillars Fund Artist Fellowship, supporting and championing emerging filmmakers and underrepresented creative voices.
Divya founded Aardwork Pictures to bring together the two things she believes are essential to great storytelling: art and hard work. Through Aardwork, she champions filmmakers with distinctive voices and develops film and television across genres that is bold, entertaining, emotionally resonant and built to connect with audiences.
