11:30 am PDT 3/25/2021
in
Mia Galuppo
The executive has led the nonprofit arts for more than ten years.
Keri Putnam will step down as CEO of the Sundance Institute before the end of the year, after a decade of tenure in the media and the nonprofit arts.
“I feel extremely proud of what we have accomplished in the past decade, especially last year, and it seemed like the right time to try a new chapter and also for the organization,” Putnam said in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter.
Putnam, who attended the famous festival in 1992, joined the Sundance Institute after a long career in production, including senior positions at HBO Filmes and serving as production president at Miramax. A central focus of the executive’s last decade has been to lead efforts to bring more diversity to the Sundance universe and, by extension, the independent film space, which has long been predominantly white and masculine. As Putnam explains, one of the main attractions of the work was “the role [Sundance] touched on the launch of artists that would not be prioritized by the commercial system. “
A program launched under Putnam’s supervision was Sundance Catalyst, which is designed to establish relationships between independent investors and filmmakers and, in the past eight years, has raised $ 40 million in capital and investment in subsidies. Other new efforts included a grant to diversify criticism covering the Park City festival, as well as a 2012 partnership with USC’s Annenberg Inclusions Initiative director, Dr. Stacy Smith, and Women in Film, to study the barriers faced by artists who identify with women. The latter led to the launch of the Women at Sundance program, which helped Sundance achieve gender parity in its programs. The 2021 iteration of the Sundance film festival saw filmmakers representing exactly 50 percent of the festival’s list, while 51 percent of filmmakers were people of color.
“I had been coming to Sundance since 1992. I loved the institute and had long understood the impact on the launch of talent and careers. In 2010, he was well established to do this job, but he also faced, along with the rest of the industry, an ever-changing field, “says Putnam. For Sundance, the decade of 2010 saw the rise of streamers in the independent space and the globalization that had long been part of the studio system, which was beginning to infiltrate the business models of independent cinema.
Putnam and his team have established satellite festivals in London and Hong Kong, as well as the institute’s filmmaking laboratory programs in Mexico, East Africa and the Middle East, among other locations.
“As a staunch supporter of independent creators, Keri has been instrumental in seeing the Institute undergo a decade of transformation, while maintaining its focus on Sundance’s mission to preserve, discover, incubate and encourage independent art in all forms,” he said. the founder and president of the Sundance Institute, Robert Redford, in a statement. “We cannot overstate its impact and we thank Keri for his invaluable support service to independent artists.”
“Under Keri’s leadership, Sundance has formed new partnerships across the industry and beyond,” said Pat Mitchell, chairman of the Sundance Institute’s board of trustees, in a statement. “As a result, the Institute is stronger than ever and ready to take advantage of this exciting time to continue its invaluable work on behalf of independent artists in the United States and around the world.” Mitchell and Vice President Ebs Burnough will head the research committee to replace Putnam, which Mitchell noted will come at the end of the fiscal year.
Putnam also oversaw the expansion of the Sundance Institute’s global presence, taking Sundance to artists and audiences beyond Utah with festivals in London and Hong Kong and lab programs not only in cities in the United States, but in Mexico, East Africa, the Middle East and beyond.
Putnam’s departure means that the famous festival’s 2021 iteration, the first Sundance to take place exclusively online due to restrictions around COVID-19, will be the last. She calls the feat “one of the most challenging things I have ever worked on and one of the proudest moments I have ever participated in”. The online festival also served as the first for the new festival director Tabitha Jackson, who took over John Cooper after her 11 years in office.
When asked what comes next, Putnam lists several possibilities, including a return to development and production or a stay in the work of arts and culture. “I’m really looking forward to exploring,” she says. “It is such a dynamic moment in the field that, as soon as I start listening a little and exploring the answer, it will open up.”