Brenda Coughlin

Biography

Brenda Coughlin joined Sundance Institute in September 2018 as Director of Producing and Impact Strategy, a newly created position designed to drive the Institute’s cross-disciplinary and artist-forward impact strategy, focused on the production of compelling work across documentary, fiction, and emerging media, as well as Sundance’s engagement programs and advocacy for independent art and media. She overseas Creative Partnerships, including Stories of Change, the Institute’s 10+ year partnership with Skoll Foundation, and leads Sundance’s field-building initiatives for non-fiction producing.

Prior to joining Sundance, Brenda’s projects as an independent producer include Academy Award-nominated Dirty Wars (2013) about the US drone program, and director Laura Poitras’ last two features: Academy Award-winning CITIZENFOUR (2014), about NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden, and Cannes premiere Risk (2016), about Julian Assange. She produced Laura Poitras’ 2016 solo exhibition, Astro Noise, at the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York, which featured six new immersive installations. Other producing projects include Kirsten Johnson’s Cameraperson (2016), Steve Maing’s Crime + Punishment (2018), and Nancy Schwartzman’s Roll Red Roll (2018).

With the late historian Howard Zinn, she co-founded the performing arts and education non-profit Voices of a People’s History, and is a producer of the associated The People Speak project, executive produced by Matt Damon.

Brenda has worked as a consultant and on staff with foundations and non-profits for many years, including Bertha Foundation, Compton Foundation, First Look Media, Freedom of the Press Foundation, Wallace Global Fund, and Wellspring Philanthropic Fund. She is on the boards of Lannan Foundation and of Curious Communications, home of The Laura Flanders Show.