Gina Duncan named new president of BAM

February 8, 2022 Brooklyn Eagle Staff

Gina Duncan, new president of BAM. Photo by Rory Mulligan

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Gina Duncan, a former associate vice president at BAM, is returning to the famed Brooklyn performing arts institution as its new president.

“We saw Gina’s extraordinary leadership skills firsthand during her four years steering BAM’s film and strategic programming initiatives. She has the ability to bring people together toward clear goals, and she understands that BAM must always evolve in order to nurture new audiences and champion innovative programming,” reads a statement from the organization.

Gina returns to BAM from the Sundance Institute, where she served as its producing director since September 2021. During her tenure, she was responsible for producing the Sundance Film Festival online and in person, as well as managing the Institute’s year-round operations. As producing director, she was an integral part of fiscal and artistic planning and oversight for the institute.

Prior to Sundance, she joined BAM’s executive team in January 2017 as associate vice president of film — a newly created role overseeing BAM Rose Cinemas’ and the institution’s repertory film program. Under her leadership, its film program flourished, and a revolutionary approach to repertory programming that centered on underrepresented voices in cinema was recognized as a “vital” part of the New York film landscape by The New York Times.

In 2019, she was promoted to vice president of film and strategic planning, adding humanities and archives to her portfolio. Duncan also served as interim head of marketing and communications during the first six months of the pandemic and led BAM’s curatorial team in transitioning to programs online to reach audiences across the nation.

Previously, she was a film and community programmer at Jacob Burns Film Center and has produced film, TV and theater for artists Titus Kaphar, Ja’tovia Gary, and comedian Mike Birbiglia. Duncan started her career at NFL Films, “where she received a 2004 Sports Emmy Award for her work on HBO’s “Inside the NFL.”

She is a member of the Board of SPACE on Ryder Farm, the Advisory Board of Jacob Burns Film Center’s Creative Culture fellowship, and on the Editorial Advisory Board for SEEN, a film and visual culture journal produced by BlackStar Projects.