Film Independent has announced that Rebecca Yeldham will assume directorship of the Los Angeles Film Festival, succeeding Richard Raddon, who resigned in November amid controversy over his support of the California-based Proposition 8 initiative, which effectively banned same-sex marriage. Rachel Rosen, the festival's director of programming, and Sean McManus, Film Independent's senior director, had been serving as interim co-directors since Raddon's departure.
Yeldham brings significant experience as a programmer, producer and production and acquisition executive. The Australian native, who had been serving on Film Independent's executive board, is currently developing, with Walter Salles, a film adapatation of Jack Kerouac's On the Road, and is in post-production on the documentary Searching for the Road. Yeldham also produced Sacha Gervasi's Anvil!: The Story of Anvil.
Prior to becoming an independent producer, Yeldham served as senior vice president of production at FilmFour, where she headed up the US production wing. From 1997 to 2001, she was the senior programmer of the Sundance Film Festival and associate director of the Sundance Institute's International Programs. From 1990 to 1994, Yeldham served as director of acquisitions and business affairs for Fox/Lorber and Associates,
"Rebecca has a wide range of experience in the industry and she's an inspiring leader; her many talents make her a natural fit for the Los Angeles Film Festival," said Dawn Hudson, executive director of Film Independent, in a statement. "She has been intimately involved in the building of this festival and the organization over the last nine years as a Film Independent Board member. Rebecca shares our vision of expanding the festival within Los Angeles and the global film community by introducing audiences to unique filmmakers and their films."
"Dawn and her team have done an amazing job growing the Los Angeles Film Festival over the last few years," said Yeldham. "In these times, there is such a desire to come together and celebrate our unique city, community and industry, to bridge differences and champion great filmmaking and film-going experiences. I'm thrilled to have the opportunity to join this dynamic team and lead the charge in taking this festival to the next level."
The Los Angeles Film Festival runs June 18 to June 28 in Westwood Village. With an expected audience of more than 100,000, the festival will screen more than 175 narrative features, documentaries, shorts, and music videos, alongside gala premieres, panels and seminars, free outdoor screenings, Family Day and live musical performances.