Three major job appointments for women executives have been announced at Creative BC, Annapurna, and the British Film Institute (BFI), ScreenDaily reports. Gaylene Gould is now the BFI’s Southbank location’s head of cinemas and events, a completely new role at the company. Sandi Richter Cooper will be the next British Columbia film commissioner and director of production services. And Adrienne Becker is Annapurna’s new Chief Operating Officer.
Gould will begin her new position April 24. She will be the Southbank venue’s head of audience development, business planning, and programming. She will report to Stuart Brown, BFI’s head of programming and acquisitions.
“The BFI has a public commitment to herald the astonishing and the intriguing” Gould explained. “I’m very much looking forward to joining the passionate team at BFI Southbank and helping a curious new generation make sense of their world.”
Also a consultant, Gould has previously worked with the Barbican, Independent Cinema Office, Tate Gallery, the National Theatre, Toronto International Film Festival, Hot Docs, and Arts Council England.
Meanwhile, as British Columbia film commissioner and director of production services, Cooper will report to Creative BC CEO Prem Gill. Beginning May 1, she will “lead the production services team in the delivery of provincial film commission services, from locations marketing and physical production resource support, to industry and community relations services.” Her new position will also see her working closely with current film commissioner Robert Wong, who will stay on at the company as a vp.
“The appointment will enable Creative BC to support ongoing collaboration between the industry and government stakeholders who contribute to the province’s film business,” ScreenDaily emphasizes.
Cooper has worked for over 25 years as an executive producer, strategic consultant, and independent producer in Vancouver and Los Angeles. Additionally, she launched a Canadian subsidiary for virtual reality company VRCinematic and was a partner and exec talent manager at Strategic Transitions.
“As BC Film Commissioner, Sandi’s relationships, knowledge and hands-on experience in BC’s motion picture industry, from physical production to virtual reality, will support the needs of our domestic and international producers alike,” Gill said of Cooper’s new role.
Finally, Becker will make the move to Annapurna after three years as Killer Content’s CEO. Reporting to Annapurna CEO Megan Ellison, she will be responsible for the company’s business strategy for Annapurna Pictures, Annapurna TV, and Annapurna Interactive.
“Annapurna is a stand-out, unique enterprise that persists, reinvents, and innovates, towards lasting value and impact,” Becker commented. “I am excited and humbled to be joining the very talented team assembled at Annapurna and the fearless leader and pioneer that is Megan Ellison.”
According to the source, Becker previously set up the development apparatus at Killer Content “and broadened the company into a creator of television and digital media and added the Killer Films Media brand and digital arm.” She also obtained investments. Becker will stay on Killer Content’s board after her transition to Annapurna.
Before serving at Killer Content, Becker founded its preceding company, Glass Elevator Media, was a partner at The Media Farm, was an entrepreneur-in-residence at CAA, led strategic planning at Nielsen Entertainment, and served as CEO of DailyCandy.
