International Advisory Board

Irish film director Jim Sheridan (left) chats with Dave Poland of BIFF's International Advisory Board at BIFF 2005.

The Festival’s International Advisory Board (IAB) was set up in 2001. IAB members are based in several of the world’s major film centres – Los Angeles, New York, London, Toronto – and provide general guidance regarding the strategic positioning of BIFF. They act as ambassadors for BIFF as they travel the world to other festivals, and assist in the development of our film programme by providing, or soliciting, top quality independent films for the festival line-up. They also recommend, and solicit, new IAB members.

International Advisory Board Members

Tom Bernard

Mr. Bernard runs Sony Pictures Classics with partners Michael Barker and Marcie Bloom. An autonomous company within Sony Pictures Entertainment, Sony Pictures Classics was founded in 1992 to distribute, produce and acquire independent films from the United States and around the world. Mr. Bernard formerly served as an executive at Orion Classics and United Artists Classics.

David Poland

Mr. Poland is co-founder, editor-in-chief and publisher of MovieCityNews.com, a movie industry archive that features many of the leading voices in the film industry. He is the author of the widely read, daily entertainment industry column, The Hot Button, and is a former director of the Miami International Film Festival. He has attended BIFF every year since 2000.

Victor Loewy

Mr. Loewy is a consultant to Toronto-based Motion Picture Distribution LP, and Chairman Emeritus of the same organisation. He is a former Chief Executive Officer of the Alliance Atlantis Motion Picture Distribution Group, where he was responsible for all operational aspects of the company’s motion picture distribution division. He is a Board member of the Canadian Film Centre and the Toronto International Film Festival, and is Chairman of the National Association of Canadian Film Distributors.

Valerie Van Galder

Ms. Van Galder is President, Domestic Marketing, at Sony Pictures. She was formerly President of TriStar Pictures, an autonomous marketing and acquisitions company within Sony Pictures Entertainment. She also served as Executive Vice President of Marketing at Sony Screen Gems, where she was responsible for creating marketing campaigns for all Screen Gems releases. Prior to joining Sony, she spent five years at Fox Searchlight Pictures in both publicity and marketing.

Timothy Burrill

Mr. Burrill is an independent producer who has assumed production roles in a number of films spanning some 30 years. He is a former director of the British Film Commission and a former chairman of the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA). He also sits on the Advisory Board for the London-based Script Factory, a leading centre for the development of scriptwriting talent.

Alison Swan