New Director of Film Hired
For Immediate Release
October 1, 2009
Contact: Dee Grano
704-333-9755
THE LIGHT FACTORY ANNOUNCES NEW DIRECTOR OF FILM
Linnea Beyer plans to elevate Film Program to best in region and nation
Charlotte, NC – TheLight Factory Contemporary Museum of Photography and Film announces the new director of film, Linnea Beyer. Currently The Light Factory is the only venue in Charlotte that screens year-round independent film. Ms. Beyer has outlined an ambitious roster of programming designed to elevate The Light Factory as a leading institution for independent film in the region. To equal The Light Factory’s national reputation as a photography museum, she will broaden the reach of the Film program, establishing its brand on a nation-wide scale. More information on The Light Factory’s Film Program and offerings can be found at www.lightfactory.org.
Ms. Beyer plans to show current and topical “first run” independent films, continuing the popularity of the “extended run” film nights in the Duke Energy Theatre in Spirit Square. She will implement a “Filmmakers Lab” for local and regional filmmakers, providing them with necessary feedback, skills and other support to advance their careers as professional filmmakers. She will expand the film series associated with exhibitions curated by Chief Curator Dennis Kiel, and will continue current partnerships and cultivate new ones with other cultural and community organizations.
Ms. Beyer is The Light Factory’s first full-time film director, succeeding Wendy Fishman, having already served The Light Factory as a contracted teaching artist in the field of film. Ms. Beyer is a film scholar and practitioner having directed and edited her own narrative and animated short films. She formerly worked at Levine Museum of the New South, and has worked as a volunteer consultant and publicist to the NODA Film Festival and Charlotte Film Festival locally, and the Virginia Film Festival and Offscreen (in association with the University of Virginia).
Ms. Beyer attended the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, where she graduated Magna Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Art Interdisciplinary Degree in Film Theory and Production. She designed a unique major incorporating the English, Drama, and Fine Arts departments where she created a thesis in animated film.
In 1999, The Light Factory added film to its mission as the sister lens-based medium of photography. In the same vein as its mission, The Light Factory specializes in exhibiting independent film and nurturing emerging video-based storytelling. Year-round screenings include documentaries, narrative films, experimental films, animation and the Annual Carolinas Media Showcase of shorts.
The Light Factory gives free screening space to independent filmmakers from around the world, with special support for local and regional artists, many of whom have gone one to pursue full-time moviemaking careers. The Light Factory also hosts masters of the indie film world like Charles Burnett and George A. Romero, to share the secrets of making film outside Hollywood and expose their work to a greater audience.
The Light Factory is supported by Basic Operating Grants from the Arts and Science Council of Charlotte-Mecklenburg and North Carolina Arts Council. Films-specific programming is supported by the North Carolina Film Office and the National Endowment for the Arts.
The Light Factory is one of only four museums in the United States that promote the power of image through photography and film. For more than 30 years, The Light Factory has served students, artists and the public at large by offering film screenings, photography exhibits, classes and outreach programs that promote media literacy and self expression using the most powerful mediums of our time. The Light Factory is a 501c3, non-profit organization. To find out more about The Light Factory or make a donation visit www.lightfactory.org.
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