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BAFTA CEO Amanda Berry OBE to step down in 2023 after a 25 year tenure, BAFTA COO and colleague of 20 years Kevin Price to leave the arts organisation in 2022

14 December 2021

BAFTA Chief Executive Amanda Berry OBE has today announced that she intends to step down from her role in the autumn of 2023 – after 25 years at the arts charity.  BAFTA Chief Operating Officer Kevin Price will leave in September 2022, after 20 years working alongside Amanda.

BAFTA/Jonny Birch/Debra Hurford Brown

London, Tuesday 14 December 2021: BAFTA Chief Executive Amanda Berry OBE has today announced that she intends to step down from her role in the autumn of 2023 – after 25 years at the arts charity.  BAFTA Chief Operating Officer Kevin Price will leave in September 2022, after 20 years working alongside Amanda.

Amanda Berry OBE, BAFTA Chief Executive said: “In 2023 I will have been at BAFTA for 25 years. When I first joined BAFTA I honestly thought I would stay for three or four years, but my passion, dreams and ambition for the organisation just kept growing.  As we approach BAFTA’s 75th anniversary next year I have reflected on what I, Kevin and the truly brilliant team at BAFTA have achieved, and it feels like the right time to plan to pass on the mask.

It has been an absolute honour to have led BAFTA.  We are the only global arts charity representing film, games and television, and I am incredibly proud of our work enabling talented people from all backgrounds to progress their careers in these industries, as well as our ability to reach and inspire global audiences with our awards ceremonies, events and content.

The formal re-opening of our redeveloped HQ at 195 Piccadilly next year is a landmark moment, and one of the biggest in BAFTA’s history. This new creative hub and centre of excellence will enable a further dramatic expansion of our learning and talent programme, pivotal to BAFTA’s charitable remit.

I would like to sincerely thank all the amazing people who have tirelessly supported us over many years, including the BAFTA team, Chairs, Boards, and Committees past and present, our members, the film, games and television industries, and our partners and donors who have believed in us and our vision.

All this couldn’t have been possible without Kevin Price who, as COO, has been on the BAFTA journey with me for 20 years and has helped me realise all those ambitions for the organisation. Over the coming months I will oversee the recruitment process to replace Kevin when he leaves next autumn, and the Board will begin their process to appoint my successor the following year.”

Krishnendu Majumdar, BAFTA Chair said: “Amanda has been a loyal and outstanding Chief Executive of BAFTA for over 23 years.  Under her leadership she has cemented BAFTA’s annual Film Awards ceremony as one of the most important and credible film industry occasions in the world.  Her passion for supporting talent and her steadfast belief that ‘talent is everywhere but opportunity is not’ is evident in the huge expansion of BAFTA’s year-round global learning and talent development programme. From creating the ‘Brits to Watch’ in 2011 which has gone on to become the globally recognised talent initiative Breakthrough, to the well over 200 learning and new talent events that BAFTA delivers every year, Amanda has ensured BAFTA’s purpose has stayed at the heart of the organisation. When she steps down in 2023 she will leave a very different organisation to the one she joined in 1998 and when the time comes I will be the first to wish her continued success.”

“Kevin has been BAFTA’s Chief Operating Officer for the past 20 years, working closely with Amanda and more recently myself. He has been instrumental in overseeing the business, governance and operational strategies that enable BAFTA to deliver against its charitable remit. Kevin has provided essential strategic oversight for the £34m redevelopment of 195 Piccadilly, a project that spans 12 years from inception to delivery, expertly stewarding and ensuring on-time delivery of an incredibly complex project that also took place during the worldwide pandemic. He was also responsible for bringing albert into BAFTA in 2011 and he has been Chair of the BAFTA albert consortium for the past 10 years, making environmental sustainability a key part of BAFTA’s industry activity. He will leave BAFTA in an excellent position for future growth and I want to thank him for his loyal contribution to BAFTA’s success.

Amanda and Kevin restructured the senior team earlier this year, putting in place a strong and experienced executive team.  I'd like to thank them both for sharing their plans this far in advance, enabling the Board and me to undertake a comprehensive recruitment process in a timely way.”

Kevin Price, BAFTA Chief Operating Officer said: “With the reopening of a new 195 Piccadilly next year, I believe we are beginning a new phase in BAFTA’s historical journey.  We shall look back at the 2000s, 2010s and the early 2020s as the ‘Berry years’ and I feel privileged to have been part of that journey.  After 20 years working with Amanda, I believe now is the right time for me to pursue other interests across the arts and cultural sector.  I will be incredibly proud to leave BAFTA in a strong position with great potential for further growth, and to allow a successor to help lead this Great British Institution through its next era.”

Barbara Broccoli OBE, BAFTA Vice President for Film, said: “Throughout her tenure, Amanda has ensured BAFTA has continued to evolve and reflect the many changes in the screen industries.  She will leave BAFTA with an incredible legacy, having successfully delivered its most ambitious project to date, the redevelopment of 195 Piccadilly and the dramatic expansion of BAFTA’s learning and talent programme.  Those who know Amanda will attest to her determination in spearheading the fundraising campaign to make this happen.  This investment in the next generation of talent is pivotal to BAFTA’s charitable remit and will continue Amanda’s legacy for years to come.”

Dame Pippa Harris, BAFTA Vice President for Television added: “Amanda has grown BAFTA into a unique and world-leading arts organisation that supports thousands of talented individuals at the start of their careers in film, games and television.  Kevin has been responsible for many of BAFTA’s successes too, from the turnaround of the hospitality business at 195 Piccadilly as a vital income generator for BAFTA’s charitable activity, to most recently creating a single BAFTA operation in North America and paving the way for future growth opportunities.  BAFTA’s 75th year will be a fitting moment to reflect on all that they have both achieved.”

Ends/

Press contact:  Donna Mathews, BAFTA Executive Director of PR and Communications, [email protected]

Notes to eds

Kevin Price will step up as Acting CEO for three months prior to him leaving in September 2022 when Amanda Berry takes planned extended leave.

Photography is available from https://bafta.thirdlight.com/link/BAFTAPressImages/@/folder/9

 

Biographies

Amanda Berry OBE

Amanda joined the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) in October 1998 and in December 2000 became its Chief Executive. She is also a Director of BAFTA Enterprises, BAFTA Media Technology, albert - the leading organisation promoting and supporting environmental sustainability for Film and Television Production - and 195 Piccadilly, BAFTA’s hospitality and corporate hire business which brings in vital revenues to fund BAFTA’s charitable activity.

Under her leadership, the annual BAFTA Film Awards ceremony is now recognised as one of the most important industry occasions of its kind in the world.  BAFTA’s charitable purpose – to inspire and support creative talent in the UK and internationally, and to identify and celebrate excellence across film, games and television -  is now central to the organisation’s culture and activity.

With branches in Los Angeles, New York, Glasgow and Cardiff, BAFTA’s learning and new talent programmes reach industry and public audiences worldwide.  From creating the ‘Brits to Watch’ event in 2011, Amanda has ensured that initiatives to recognise and remove barriers for emerging talent to succeed – including ‘Breakthrough’ which has launched in the UK, USA, China and India – remain at the heart of BAFTA’s activity.

Amanda has been instrumental in the redevelopment of BAFTA’s London headquarters at 195 Piccadilly, having overseen the £34m fundraising campaign that will enable BAFTA to dramatically increase its UK-wide and global learning and talent development programmes.

Amanda has worked closely with BAFTA’s President HRH The Duke of Cambridge to extend recognition of and support for the creative arts oversees, with projects such as The GREAT Festival of Creativity in Shanghai, when The Duke presented the Shanghai Film Museum with a BAFTA award in honour of the Chinese film director Zhang Yimou.

Throughout her tenure, Amanda has ensured that BAFTA has evolved.  She was at the forefront of adopting the industry Diversity Standards into the Film Awards rules in 2019 and wholeheartedly supported the screen industries cross-industry work resulting in the introduction of BFI and BAFTA principles and guidance to tackle bullying and harassment in the workplace. Following the film nominations in 2020 and a lack of diversity within key categories, Amanda immediately led on the announcement of a Review.  The ensuing BAFTA Review resulted in far-reaching changes to BAFTA’s Awards, identified specific groups facing barriers to accessing the screen industries, ensured a level playing field for all awards entrants and challenged the industry to address the serious lack of opportunity, diversity and equality.  In 2021, these measures resulted in the most diverse and inclusive nominations in BAFTA’s history, and set a new standard for the future.

During the global pandemic, BAFTA continued to support the industry, enabling it to stay connected and engaged by implementing online delivery of events and Awards ceremonies and raising funds to support industry freelancers who were struggling during lockdown. 

Amanda has received a number of honours and accolades during her tenure at BAFTA. In 2009, she was awarded an OBE for services to the film industry and has also received recognition in The Times’ British Film Power 100, the Women in Film and Television Power List, Women: Inspiration & Enterprise’s Power 50 and the Variety 500. Amanda sits on the GREAT Private Sector Council which oversees the work of the GREAT Campaign to promote the UK to the World, creating jobs and growth for the UK. Amanda also supports and volunteers for a London-based homeless charity.

Prior to joining BAFTA, Amanda worked as a theatrical agent and in television production. She was a company director at talent agency Duncan Heath Associates (part of the ICM group) between 1982 and 1988.  Her television career began in 1989 when she worked at LWT.  From 1990, Amanda worked extensively as a producer and development executive for Scottish Television Enterprises, both in Glasgow and in London, where her credits included three BAFTA ceremonies.

 

Kevin Price

Kevin Price is a creative and business leader in the arts and has been BAFTA’s Chief Operating Officer for the past 20 years. During that period, Kevin has overseen all operations, resources, business strategy, finances, governance and charity outreach for BAFTA. Under Kevin’s operational leadership, BAFTA has evolved from a small loss-making charity with less than £0.5m of assets into an Academy with a global outreach and extensive professional education programmes which support thousands of individuals at the start of their careers in film, games and television. Kevin has overseen the recent re-development of 195 Piccadilly, a project spanning 12 years and has chaired the cross television industry environmental consortium, albert, for the past ten years.

Kevin sits on the Boards of BAFTA Enterprises, 195 Piccadilly, BAFTA Media Technology and BAFTA albert all of which provide the funding and resources to allow BAFTA to deliver its charitable remit. He also sits on the Board of the Creative Diversity Network and is a former Board Member of Film London.

Kevin established BAFTA Media Technology which has evolved into a core tech division of BAFTA and has been the Chair of the BAFTA albert consortium for the past 10 years after bringing the industry’s ground-breaking carbon-reduction initiative into BAFTA in 2011. He recently led on the merger of BAFTA LA and BAFTA NY into BAFTA North America paving the way for a global BAFTA branded presence and impact.

Before joining BAFTA, Kevin was Commercial Director for the international examinations board Trinity College London. Kevin joined Trinity in the early 1990s as its first ever Director of Finance and helped transform it into a commercially astute and successful global examinations board working across the full range of communicative and performing arts. Kevin qualified as a chartered accountant in 1990 and has a degree in Music, studying at Cardiff University under Alun Hoddinott.

Kevin has been a singer since the age of seven, singing in church and cathedral choirs, the William Byrd Singers with Stephen Wilkinson, the LPO Chorus and as a performer in various musical theatre and opera productions. He is also a pianist and collector of original paintings.

About BAFTA

The British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) is a world-leading independent arts charity that brings the very best work in film, games and television to public attention and supports the growth of creative talent in the UK and internationally. Through its Awards ceremonies and year-round programme of learning events and initiatives – which includes workshops, masterclasses, scholarships, lectures and mentoring schemes in the UK, USA and Asia – BAFTA identifies and celebrates excellence, discovers, inspires and nurtures new talent, and enables learning and creative collaboration. For advice and inspiration from the best creative minds in working in film, games and television, visit www.bafta.org/guru. For more, visit www.bafta.org.

BAFTA is a UK registered charity number 216726.