Experienced nonprofit arts leader, Rachael Brister, named new CEO

The Provincetown Film Society (PFS) announced today that after a national search, Rachael Brister has been hired as the organization’s new CEO. Brister will also serve as the Executive Director of The Provincetown International Film Festival.

Brister brings over 20 years of film festival, nonprofit leadership, marketing and fundraising experience to The Provincetown Film Society. Brister’s film experience includes Executive Director of ImageOut, The Rochester LGBT Film Festival and Executive Director of Three Dollar Bill Cinema in Seattle, WA, producers of The Seattle Queer Film Festival and The Seattle Transgender Film Festival. Most recently she was the founder and owner of RCB Communications, a boutique LGBTQ marketing and public relations firm. The firm’s work includes marketing and promotion of small businesses and events including the Gender Odyssey Conference in San Diego and Canrival and Pride in Provincetown.

Anthony Lawson, PFS Board President, said, “We are so pleased to have Rachael join the PFS team – her vision and experience made her an ideal candidate to help us champion diverse voices in film and continue to expand our mission locally and globally.” 

Brister also brings movie theatre management skills to the position. While living in Rochester, NY, she managed the Dryden Theatre at the George Eastman House Museum as well as The Little Theatre, Rochester’s five-screen nonprofit independent movie house.

“I am thrilled to be joining such a highly respected film organization that continually supports and lifts up the voices of minority communities and creates a space for emerging and established producers, directors and actors to tell their stories,” said Brister. “I feel so fortunate to be a part of an organization whose programming is imbued with the unique perspectives and value of inclusivity of America’s oldest arts colony. I look forward to building upon the significant accomplishments of the board and staff and work with them to write the next chapter of the Provincetown Film Society.”

Brister takes over the CEO role from Christine Walker who will remain involved with the organization with a focus on its women’s initiatives including the annual Women’s Media Summit.

Walker said, “I could not be more thrilled to turn over the reigns to a person whose leadership and extensive experience is second only to her dedication and compassion for all of our stakeholders including the artists whom we strive to bolster and support in all that we do.”

Brister will arrive in Provincetown in January and will begin her new role on February 1, 2019.

About Provincetown Film Society

The Provincetown Film Society (PFS) is an advocate for diverse representation in film, providing year-round programming and platforms that allow voices of all kinds to be heard via film. Locally, PFS’ work positively impacts the cultural and economic vitality of Provincetown. Nationally, its work helps shape industry discussions around parity in film. Through PFS’ work, we have an ability to better understand and appreciate human struggles and triumphs, showcasing our similarities and differences in today’s diverse culture. 

Now in its 22nd year, PFS began as a yearly film festival serving 12,000+ attendees with its signature Filmmaker On the Edge(®) presentations with such luminaries as Darren Aronofsky, Patricia Clarkson, Sofia Coppola, Ang Lee, Jane Lynch, Chloë Sevigny, Tilda Swinton, Quentin Tarantino, John Waters, Debra Winger and others. In 2015, under the leadership of CEO Christine Walker, PFS has expanded to a year-round institute serving emerging and established filmmakers and co-founding the first women’s media summit in the country to address equity in U.S. Entertainment media. This year, PFS will announce a new partnership with The Representation Project to expand the program to San Francisco and Los Angeles.

For more information on PFS, visit www.provincetownfilm.org.

# # #