JC Olivera/WireImage
Alison Victoriaand her boyfriend Brandt Andersen started out as friends.
After meeting at a retreat and talking for hours, theWindy City Rehabstar and Andersen started dating. The coupletook their relationship publicin June 2024, walking the red carpet together at the Daytime Emmys.
Victoria made their romanceInstagramofficial less than one week after the event, sharing photos of the couple from the red carpet on social media.
Brandt Andersen and partner Alison Victoria attend the “The Thicket” Premiere during the 50th Deauville American Film Festival on September 08, 2024 in Deauville, France.Francois G. Durand/Getty
Francois G. Durand/Getty
Andersen is best known for his work as a filmmaker, serving as director, producer and writer on various projects over the past decade. In a January 2015 interview forA Drink With, Andersen shared how he became a producer later in his career, first starting out “as the lowest level PA assistant.”
“When I was in college that’s what I was doing. I was taking the trash out, fetching coffee, all of those sorts of things,” he said. “I had a love for it and I thought I was going that way but then things pulled me towards technology and I ended up having a technology company. Eventually I ended up back in film.”
Andersen has served as a producer on several films, includingEverest, Lone Survivor, 2 Guns, SilenceandAmerican Made, according toSXSW. He wrote and directed the live-action shortRefugeein 2020, which was short-listed for an Academy Award and won best actor, best director and best drama short at the French Riviera Film Festival. Andersen’s 2024 film,The Strangers’ Case,which he wrote and directed,marked his first feature-length film.
Alison Victoria and Brandt Andersen attend the “Beetlejuice” Premiere during the 50th Deauville American Film Festival on September 07, 2024 in Deauville, France.Francois G. Durand/Getty
Before he became a filmmaker, Andersen’s early career involved a stint as a tech company founder and the owner of a basketball team. While he was a student at Brigham Young University, he founded and then served as the CEO of the company uSight from 1998 to 2005. Andersen eventually returned to school to receive his bachelor’s degree in fine arts,according to his Amman International Film Festival bio.
After he sold his company, Andersen was able to live out his dream of becoming the owner of an NBA franchise. He toldTheWashington Postin 2008 that after he sold uSight, he called the head offices of the NBA in New York and said that he was interested in owning a team.
Eventually, Andersen owned and operated the Utah Flash, an NBA G-League team, from 2005 to 2012. However, he sold the team after the Flash went on hiatus for the 2011-2012 season, according toThe Deseret News.
Alison Victoria and her boyfriend Brandt Andersen smile on a trip to Greece in August 2024.Alison Victoria/ Instagram
Alison Victoria/ Instagram
Throughout his career, Andersen has remained interested in human rights. The filmmaker opened up about his efforts during a March 2024 interview withDeadlineabout his filmThe Strangers’ Case. At the time, he shared, “I started going over to Turkey and Greece right during the Arab Spring when refugees were leaving Syria because they were being forced out and I felt like there were just ways I could help.”
Andersen was part of the Utah County Search and Rescue Team while he was in college and helped provide aid to Haiti after the catastrophic earthquake in 2010.
“Just something in me needed to go there and see what I could do to help,” he added. “It became a very important part of my life trying to figure out what I could do to help in these situations.”
His activism continued further into his career, with the producer co-foundingThe REEL Foundationin 2021 alongside Dina Prior. The nonprofit partners with charities and companies globally in order to fund humanitarian aid projects and the production of films from around the world, as well as support education in film.
Victoria opened up about how the couple initially met at a personal wellness retreat in California during an October 2024 interview withEntertainment Tonight.
“He was in this class with us – there’s 37 people in it – and we just became friends, we laughed so hard," she explained. Although they had a lot of fun together, Victoria said the pair didn’t have any romantic chemistry at the start.
However, Victoria said that after the retreat, she selected Andersen as one of her “buddies” to stay in touch with and they would talk “for hours and hours.”
“I mean 8 hours, 9 hours another night, 5 hours. It was truly like getting to each other’s core through the practice and in turn just falling,” she said. “Because when I left, I loved him … getting to know him on these calls and just becoming friends, I fell in love with him. It was crazy.”
Victoria emphasized that love was not what she went on the retreat for, calling their meeting a “sliding doors moment” because she was not meant to be at that specific session.
Brandt Andersen and Alison Victoria arrive for ‘The Strangers’ Case' film screening at Eden Cinemas in St. Julian’s on June 26, 2024 in Valletta, Malta.Tom Nicholson/Shutterstock
Tom Nicholson/Shutterstock
Victoria shared more details about their romance withEntertainment Tonight. At the time, she said that she had “never felt more safe” than with Andersen.
“I’ve always just been someone that’s like, ‘I got it, I’ll do it myself. Forge ahead and armor up,’ “ she explained. “I don’t have to wear that armor with him. I get to just be my authentic, vulnerable, scared little girl self with him and he takes care of me.”
Victoria emphasized that she sees a future with her boyfriend, telling the outlet “this is it,” before adding, “We’re just together, for this life, and hopefully the next life, and the next life.”
She continued, “I have never been in a partnership where I could just cry thinking about how sweet of a soul he is. He really is the best person that I’ve ever met, that this world has been gifted with.”
Alison Victoria and her boyfriend Brandt Andersen dress up to celebrate The Day of The Dead.Alison Victoria/ Instagram
“Brandt is a brilliant filmmaker and with his directorial debut, we’ve been traveling this summer to all these festivals,” she explained. “And when we first became friends, he was doing all the post for his film — like, sound and VFX stuff — and I was there for that journey, helping him along the way being like a true partner like he is to me.”
Her decision to add his name in the credits ofWindy City Rehabcame after Andersen made a similar choice in the end credits for one of his movies, surprising Victoria while they watched one of the last sound checks. She called it “the sweetest thing anyone’s ever done” for her.
“I just thought, ‘Wow, if I could do this in a special way for him — and I know he’ll notice it because he looks at those things like any film director would — I know he’s gonna love it, too,’ “ she said. “Because what he has done for me, like, this is truly the happiest time of my life and I owe such a big part of that to him and this partnership we have.”
Brandt Andersen and Alison Victoria attend the 51st Annual Daytime Emmy Creative Arts & Lifestyle Awards at The Westin Bonaventure Hotel & Suites, Los Angeles on June 08, 2024 in Los Angeles, California.Unique Nicole/Getty
Unique Nicole/Getty
Victoria and Andersen have attended several red carpets together over the course of their relationship, including the Daytime Emmys where they took their romance public.
source: people.com