Kristen Pepe named Outfest Director of Programming
(Los Angeles, CA) Outfest, the world's leading organization that promotesequality by creating, sharing and protecting LGBT stories on the screen, has announced that Kristin Pepe (KP) has been named Director of Programming of the organization. She will oversee all of the programs of Outfest to include: Outfest Los Angeles LGBT Film Festival, Outfest Fusion LGBT People of Color Film Festival, Outfest UCLA Legacy Project and Outfest Forward, as well as NewFest in New York.
Pepe succeeds Kim Yutani, who has been named the Outfest Los Angeles Artistic Director and is a Sundance Film Festival Programmer. In addition to Pepe and Yutani, the Outfest programming team consists of Senior Programmer Alonso Duralde, Outfest Fusion Programmer Jennifer DeClue and Outfest Forward Coordinator Shari Greicar. The 10th anniversary of Outfest Fusion will be held March 22-23, 2013 and Outfest Los Angeles runs July 11-21, 2013.
In making the announcement, Executive Director Kirsten Schaffer said, “KP brings a fresh, exciting voice to her programming selections and a keen understanding of filmmakers and audiences. She has demonstrated great initiative in expanding the Legacy Project and Platinum section and will continue to bring new ideas and opportunities to Outfest programs.”
Pepe has worked as a film archivist, film programmer, art curator and educator. Since 2008, she has managed the Outfest UCLA Legacy Project, a partnership between Outfest and the UCLA Film & Television Archive, to preserve LGBT moving images. Under her tenure the collection quickly grew from 5,000 to over 20,000 items and the preservationists restored over 18 films and 150 videos.
More recently, she has championed Platinum,the experimental, avant-garde and live performance section of Outfest. Pepe has an MFA from the California Institute of the Arts, a BS from Cornell University and, in addition to her post at Outfest, has worked in Los Angeles as an educator for fifteen years.