News / Bristol festivals
Bristol Festivals appoints first executive director
The former managing director of the Encounters Short Film & Animation Festival has been named as the first executive director of Bristol Festivals.
Liz Harkman will be tasked with helping to build the umbrella organisation and its 33 member organisations, supporting the city’s festivals and their international reputation for variety and excellence.
Harkman said: “I’m hugely passionate about the sector in Bristol and believe in the importance of collaboration between the city’s festivals and how working together on audience development and city placemaking is a vital element to their success and growth.
“The city has a diverse cultural scene, championed by a huge number of festivals and I look forward to helping to shape the strategic vision for the organisation to support both our established and emerging festivals to grow and develop.”
Currently a project manager for Film Hub South West and West Midlands, Harkman’s experience also includes working internationally at Flickerfest Short Film Festival in Australia and Locarno Film Festival in Switzerland.
Bristol Festivals b co-chair Anna Rutherford said that research shows “unequivocally that festivals are a major economic and cultural asset to Bristol”.
She added: “Bristol Festivals are therefore delighted to be able to make this important strategic appointment and attract someone of this calibre with extensive experience.
“We look forward to working with Liz to drive the next phase of Bristol Festivals development.”
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