The San Francisco Film Society announces the appointment of Carla Emil, James H. Herbert II, Celeste Meier and Suzie Reider to its board of directors as it continues to expand its annual calendar of film programs, including the acclaimed SFFS Education Program, and prepares to present the 51st edition of the San Francisco International Film Festival, the longest-running film festival in the Americas.

The four new SFFS board members bring a wealth of experience from their professional and philanthropic work in the arts, finance and new media in support of the San Francisco Film Society's mission to embrace the artistry and innovation of the world's most imaginative storytellers and to educate, entertain and enrich a wide and diverse range of audiences.

The Film Society currently presents more than 125 days of programs and events each year, concentrated in four core areas: Celebrating Internationalism and Cross-Cultural Exchange; Educating and Inspiring Bay Area Youth; Showcasing Bay Area Film Culture; and Exploring New Digital Media.

"We are deeply pleased to be able to add the immense talents and expertise of these four exceptional individuals to our board as the Film Society enters its second half-century. They will contribute greatly to our deepening efforts to bring visionary and progressive programming to Bay Area audiences," said George Gund III, chairman of the Film Society's board of directors.

Carla Emil worked in Chicago and San Francisco in account management for advertising agencies including Ogilvy and Mather and Ketchum Advertising before becoming an executive producer at Colossal Pictures, a film production company in San Francisco that specialized in animation and special effects. For many years, since leaving her professional career, she has been involved with nonprofit organizations that focus on the arts, education and medicine. Emil currently serves on the boards of the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, the Bard College Center for Curatorial Studies and 2nd Stage Theater. Past board experience includes the Dia Art Foundation, the California Pacific Medical Center Foundation and California College of the Arts, where she is a Trustee Emerita. She received a B.S. in Communications from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; a Masters in Social Work from the University of Illinois at Chicago; and a Masters in Education from Dominican University in San Rafael, California. Emil is married to Rich Silverstein, the founder and cochairman of Goodby, Silverstein & Partners Advertising in San Francisco.

James H. Herbert II was founding president, chief executive officer and a director of San Francisco Bancorp from 1980 to June 1985. Since July 1985, Herbert has been the founding CEO and now is chairman and CEO of First Republic Bank, an independent division of Merrill Lynch Bank and Trust. Herbert, a senior vice president of Merrill Lynch, is cochair of the San Francisco Ballet Association, a director of the Joyce Theater Association in New York, a director of the National Foundation for Teaching Entrepreneurship (Northern California), a member of Babson's Board of Overseers and a director of The BASIC Fund. He received a B.S. from Babson College, an MBA from New York University and graduated from the President's Leadership Program at Harvard Business School. He and Cecilia, his wife of 31 years, have three grown children.

Celeste Meier studied film at UCLA and worked as a film editor in Los Angeles. She works with her husband in his art gallery in San Francisco, Anthony Meier Fine Arts. She has served as president on the boards of the Performing Arts Workshop, the California Arts Education Program, Parents Place and the Zen Hospice. The Meiers are the chairs of the Film Society Awards Night committee for this year's fund-raising gala. Meier lives in San Francisco with her husband and their two children.

Suzie Reider, head of advertising at YouTube, was hired as CMO of YouTube in the summer of 2006. She took on the role of heading up monetization and advertising after the company was acquired by Google. Prior to joining YouTube, Reider was senior vice president and general manager of the Games and Entertainment Division at CNET Networks-including GameSpot, TV.com and MP3.com-where she oversaw all aspects of the business. Before joining CNET Networks, Reider spent 14 years with Ziff-Davis publishing where she leveraged her expertise in advertising sales, promotions, events, research and marketing for various computer and video gaming publications. She received a B.A. in English from Middlebury College. A native of Cambridge, Massachusetts, she now lives in San Francisco with her husband and two YouTube fan daughters.