How Jackie Levine Helps Bring Audible Originals to the Screen

Audible fans may have noticed that more and more of their favorite Originals are being adapted for TV and film. The beloved Audible mystery series Mistletoe Murders was released on the Hallmark Channel on October 31, and we recently announced that hit titles like The Prophecy, Hot White Heist, Oracle, and James Patterson’s Daniel X: Genesis are in development with Amazon MGM Studios. That’s because Audible Originals, with their cinematic-quality sound design, riveting storylines and top-tier talent, make perfect sense for adaptation.

Put another way: “It’s TV for the ears,” says Audible’s Head of TV and Film, Jackie Levine. She joined us in 2022 to identify Audible Originals that are ripe for adaptation to the screen, then package and sell them to studios and production companies. To package something for adaptation, Levine calls upon her deep experience as a film and TV producer to conceptualize the show or movie—what is the tone and what is it comparable to?—and then communicate that to a showrunner, writer and/or director to get them onboard and see what they want to bring to it. Sometimes studios have filmmakers and showrunners in mind, and sometimes Levine pulls from her own deep contact list to bring in someone exciting, like a hot director, to be part of her pitch.

Once a project is sold, Levine stays across it to ensure “quality control,” confirming that what goes onscreen represents Audible and our creators well. “Some of the creators like to remain involved, which is great, and others are more hands-off,” she says, “so I update all of our creators about the progress we are making.” In the last two years, Levine has packaged nearly 40 projects across the US, Canada and the UK, and her team has started expanding into Germany, Australia and Latin America, as well.

So what is Levine looking for in an audio project to pitch for TV and film? It’s a little more complicated than merely picking the best-selling titles. “Although I take note of titles that perform well on Audible, it doesn’t always mean they’re right for adaptations,” she explains. Levine meets regularly with TV and film executives to understand the content they’re interested in buying, so she knows if a studio is looking for, say, more female-focused romantic comedies.

“I’m generally looking for high-concept ideas that can be sold in a quick ‘elevator’ pitch,” says Levine. “I focus on compelling stories, multi-dimensional characters, and how can we put this together and sell it. And it’s even better if there’s high-level talent involvement in our audio and they want to remain involved.”

It goes without saying that it’s intensely hard to get a film or TV series greenlit (when a project moves from ideation to officially studio-approved production). But Levine reports that when it comes to pitching studios, audio-first productions have a huge advantage to more traditional TV and film pitches. “It allows you to go into the room with a proof of concept,” she explains. “First, because we can give a sense of a title’s built-in audience from how it performs on Audible, and second, because the series comes alive for them as they listen.”

Instead of trying to find time to read pitches and scripts, buyers can throw on their headphones and listen while they’re commuting or at the gym—just like Audible customers do—and perhaps more easily grasp the potential for the project. “Our content comes alive for our customers, and we want the buyers to have the same experience and get excited,” says Levine. “It’s also why many authors are excited to work with us to make Audible Originals—because of the possibility of adaptation.”

Levine says the day to day is not so different from when she worked in TV and film as a producer, packaging and selling, “pushing things up the hill to get them made.” The difference, she says, is that “at Audible, I have way more great content at my hands, which is very exciting.”

And Levine lives for the successes. Whenever she sells a project, “I’m thrilled! It’s extremely rewarding to take the incredible work done by Audible’s creators and content and production teams, and help get it adapted. I feel really grateful that I get to do this.”