Academy announces new Board of Governors including Rita Wilson for the Actors Branch

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today announced its newly elected 2021–2022 Board of Governors.  The governors will take office at the first scheduled board meeting of the new term. 

12 branches of the Academy will be under the guidance of new leadership including Rita Wilson for the Actors Branch, Jean Tsien for the Documentary Branch, Brooke Breton for the Visual Effects Branch and Howard A. Rodman for the Writers Branch. The Board of Governors sets the Academy’s strategic vision, preserves the organization’s financial health, and assures the fulfillment of its mission.

Susanne Bier (Directors Branch), Jennifer Todd (Producers Branch), Tom Duffield (Production Design Branch)
and Bonnie Arnold (Short Films and Feature Animation Branch) are the incumbents re-elected to their positions this year.

The number of women Academy governors increases from 26 to 31 and the number of governors from underrepresented racial/ethnic communities increases from 12 to 15. This is the first time in Academy history that women outnumber men in leadership positions on the Board of Governors.

Elected to the Board for the first time:

Rita Wilson, Actors Branch
Kim Taylor-Coleman, Casting Directors Branch
Paul Cameron, Cinematographers Branch
Eduardo Castro, Costume Designers Branch
Jean Tsien, Documentary Branch
Pam Abdy, Executives Branch
Terilyn A. Shropshire, Film Editors Branch
Laura C. Kim, Marketing and Public Relations Branch
Lesley Barber, Music Branch
Gary C. Bourgeois, Sound Branch
Brooke Breton, Visual Effects Branch 
Howard A. Rodman, Writers Branch

Incumbent governors reelected to the Board:

Susanne Bier, Directors Branch
Jennifer Todd, Producers Branch
Tom Duffield, Production Design Branch
Bonnie Arnold, Short Films and Feature Animation Branch

Returning to the Board after a hiatus:

Bill Corso, Makeup Artists and Hairstylists Branch

They will join returning governors Kate Amend, Craig Barron, Howard Berger, Charles Bernstein, Jon Bloom, Rob Bredow, Ruth E. Carter, Kevin Collier, Laura Dern, Teri E. Dorman, Dody J. Dorn, Ava DuVernay, Linda Flowers, DeVon Franklin, Rodrigo García, Donna Gigliotti, Whoopi Goldberg, Lynette Howell Taylor, Mark Johnson, Larry Karaszewski, Laura Karpman, Christina Kounelias, Ellen Kuras, David Linde, Isis Mussenden, Jennifer Yuh Nelson, Jan Pascale, Stephen Rivkin, Eric Roth, David Rubin, Steven Spielberg, Wynn P. Thomas, Nancy Utley, Mandy Walker, Roger Ross Williams, Janet Yang and Debra Zane.

The Academy’s 17 branches are each represented by three governors, who may serve up to two three-year terms (consecutive or non-consecutive), followed by a two-year hiatus, after which eligibility renews for up to two additional three-year terms, for a lifetime maximum of 12 years. 

Photo: Paul Smith/Featureflash/Shutterstock