HiddenLight Productions has appointed Brenda Robinson as its first Head of Film Finance and Inclusion Strategies.
Robinson, an entertainment attorney, financier and producer with extensive experience in the film, television and music industries, will be responsible for bringing new partners to HiddenLight’s slate of productions, whether film or television.
Robinson’s appointment “signals a number of developments in HiddenLight’s growth plan”, including the use of grant and equity funding to develop and produce projects that the company takes to market later in the production cycle. It also signals HiddenLight’s desire to “elevate voices and tell stories from a wider spectrum of communities in the most authentic way possible.”
Robinson was most recently a financier on the Academy Award-winning documentary Icarus as well as Won’t You Be My Neighbor and Step. She has executive produced projects including the BAFTA-nominated Passing, directed by Rebecca Hall and produced by Nina Yang Bongiovi and Forest Whitaker; the Emmy nominated United Skates, alongside executive producer John Legend; The Great American Lie by director Jennifer Siebel Newsom; Jump Shot: The Kenny Sailors Story, alongside executive producer Steph Curry and Marian Anderson: The Whole World In Her Hands directed by Rita Coburn for PBS’ American Masters series.
Robinson is a member of Impact Partners, a film financing collective dedicated to funding independent documentary storytelling that engages with pressing social issues and propels the art of cinema forward. Currently serving as the Board Chair of Film Independent, she is also on the board of The Representation Project founded by California First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsomand is Chair of the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative.
Johnny Webb, CEO, HiddenLight Productions, says: “As a passionate advocate for a diverse group of filmmakers, Brenda will contribute to HiddenLight in a universe of ways. We feel honoured to have Brenda join the team and be that brilliant bridge between editorial, finance and philanthropy.”
Brenda Robinson, adds: “It is incredibly exciting to be joining a team with aligned values and a shared vision of what is important in the world. HiddenLight’s approach to the stories they want to tell and the inclusive lens through which they want to tell them, is truly inspiring. I am thrilled to have the opportunity to work with the team, to bring new links and collaborations to the table, to help them bring even more important stories to the screen.”
HiddenLight’s next project to air is In Her Hands. Winner of the 18th Camden International Film Festival’s audience award and HiddenLight’s first project for Netflix, it premieres globally on Netflix and in select theatres on 16 November. Produced in association with Propagate and Moondogs and filmed throughout two years, the documentary examines the story of Zarifa Ghafari, who, at 26, became one of Afghanistan’s first female mayors and the youngest to ever hold the position. In Her Hands follows her fight for survival as her country unravels following Western forces retreating and the Taliban returning to power, forcing Ghafari and women across the country to face their new reality.
Robinson, who will report to CEO, Johnny Webb, joins the company with immediate effect.
Jon Creamer
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