A true piece of custom men’s jewelry, an unprecedented wristwatch crafted especially for Francis Ford Coppola will be sold via a live auction at Phillips’s New York Watch Auction: XIII in December 6–7, 2025; the estimated value is more than $1 million.
The F.P. Journe FFC Prototype is the result of the artistic vision of master horologist François Paul Journe, and what makes this piece truly unique is its ingenious mechanism of displaying the hours: a mechanical hand with five titanium fingers moves as it articulates to show the hours, while the minutes are indicated by a rotating ring outside. This is a poetic fusion of art, mechanics and meaning.
Photo courtesy of Phillips.
Coppola, who is currently 86 years old, has decided to put seven items from his private collection up for sale at auction in order to compensate for some of the personal financial losses he incurred because of his self-funded 2024 film, Megalopolis.
It took Journe seven years to develop the innovative movement used in this prototype, and the movement maintains the reserve power necessary for a long-lasting mechanical watch — a hallmark of Journe’s technical mastery and one of the most avant-garde collaborations in independent watchmaking.
The F.P. Journe FFC Prototype was presented to the public in 2019 when Journe had Coppola’s name engraved on the back of the case — a distinct mark of provenance and exclusivity. Journe typically does not sell his prototype timepieces, so this timepiece represents a rare opportunity for serious collectors.
Photo courtesy of Phillips.
François Paul Journe: The Mastermind Behind the Watch Movement
François Paul Journe was born in 1957 in Marseilles, France. Before opening his own workshop, he studied at the École d’Horlogerie de Paris and worked under his uncle restoring clocks — an experience that influenced his subsequent development of complications.
In 1999 Journe created his eponymous watchmaker’s boutique, F.P. Journe, and branded it Invenit et Fecit (“He invented it and made it”) in order to indicate that all movements were developed in-house.
His innovative designs include the Chronomètre à Résonance and the Sonnerie Souveraine. Each F.P. Journe timepiece is crafted entirely in-house, with annual production limited to roughly 800–1,000 pieces.
When he accepted Coppola’s request to “tell time with one hand,” he utilized his complete range of creativity to link cinematographic imagination with precise mechanical engineering in a single timepiece.
Francis Ford Coppola: A Filmmaker and Watch Enthusiast
Francis Ford Coppola was born in Detroit, Michigan on April 7th, 1939 and grew up in Queens, NY. He is recognized as one of the most important filmmakers of the 1970s in America. Coppola won numerous Academy Awards for directing The Godfather, The Godfather Part II and The Conversation. He also founded American Zoetrope with George Lucas to support independent filmmaking.
Over the last decade or two, Coppola has pursued additional interests — wine, hospitality and now, horology — and thus, the selection of timepieces from his collection being sold is reflective of his creative path.
Therefore, this forthcoming sale is more than a rare timepiece — it is a convergence of cinematic legend, horological genius and a captivating story of taking risks, creating art and leaving a lasting legacy.
Photo courtesy of Phillips.
In addition to the FFC, Coppola is also parting with his personal Resonance — a sentimental piece once gifted to him by his late wife, Eleanor.
