As Co-President of Sundance Selects and IFC Films, Lisa Schwartz serves as a full partner in all of the company’s operations, including oversight of creative and financial success of the film brands. Additionally, she oversees the division’s strategy for creating and identifying strategic partnerships that provide long-term financial stability for the division.
Schwartz’s oversight includes domestic and foreign distribution for IFC Films across all platforms, including theatrical, premium VOD, pay TV, digital, mobile, home video, and all emerging new platforms. Schwartz was a key executive in the creation of the new infrastructure within IFC Films to fully develop and maximize the business model for the division’s day and date distribution initiatives. The day and date distribution model was groundbreaking industry first, distributing independent films to a national audience by releasing them simultaneously in theaters as well as on cable’s On Demand platform and through Pay-Per-View, and has met with great success due to the strong demand for multiplatform content. In 2010, Schwartz also spearheaded the launch of IFC Midnight, a leading U.S. distributor of genre entertainment, including horror, science-fiction, thrillers, erotic art house, action and more, and was one of the key architects behind the launch of Sundance Selects, a leading U.S. distributor of prestige films that focuses on American independents, documentaries and world cinema. In addition, Schwartz led the development of SundanceNow, an online destination where viewers can rent or buy the best in contemporary and classic independent films from all over world.
In 2006, Schwartz joined IFC Films with more than 20 years experience in sales and marketing. Prior to joining the division, she served as senior vice president of national accounts and advanced services for AMC Networks National Affiliate Sales, the national distribution division of IFC Films’ parent company AMC Networks Inc. There, Schwartz played a significant role in pioneering the introduction of IFC In Theaters and developing key strategies that maximized IFC Films’ relationship with filmmakers and MVPDs. She also managed several national accounts including Comcast corporate for AMC Networks’ TV business units AMC, IFC and WE tv and was responsible for distribution and contract negotiations for all distributors for several of AMC Networks’ VOD services, Previously, Schwartz held various key affiliate distribution positions within the Company.
Schwartz earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in English and Communications from Cabrini College. She has been named to CableFAX‘s Most Powerful Women, Multichannel News/WICT Wonder Woman in 2011 and Woman to Watch in 2010. Schwartz is an alumna of CTAM University, the Cable & Telecommunications Association for Marketing’s executive management program at Harvard Business School. She is a member of the Television Academy, New York Women in Film and Television (NYWIF), Women in Cable Telecommunications (WICT) and has served as board President for The Country Day School of the Sacred Heart, an all girl’s Catholic Private School in Bryn Mawr, PA.
