Harris Named Editor-in-Chief at indieWIRE

by Brian Brooks 

  indieWIRE's newly named Editor-in-Chief, Dana Harris.

Veteran film journalist Dana Harris has been named as indieWIRE‘s new editor-in-chief. Harris has worked for the last decade at Variety, where she most recently served as editor, strategic projects. She replaces Eugene Hernandez, who left the position in late October nearly 15 years after he co-founded the online publication.

Harris will serve as indieWIRE‘s leader from Los Angeles effective January 1, 2011, while iW managing editor Brian Brooks will spearhead iW‘s day-to-day operations from New York. He has served as the publication's acting editor-in-chief during the search for Hernandez's replacement.

Harris, who joined Variety in 2000, spent three years as the editor of Variety.com and also created the entertainment publication's lifestyle section, Variety Weekend. Prior to that, she covered all aspects of the independent film industry in addition to covering Hollywood's major studios and talent agencies as a film reporter and feature writer. Harris' career also includes stints as a film reporter for The Hollywood Reporter in Los Angeles and as managing editor for The Independent Film and Video Monthly in New York. Prior to that, Harris served as a film critic and feature writer at the Star-Ledger in Newark, NJ.

In her most recent role at Variety, Harris developed content strategies for paid editorial products under the brand Variety Ultimate. She also contributed to the launch of Variety Archives, a searchable database of more than 20,000 issues over the last 105 years.

As a freelancer, Harris' work has appeared in Premiere, Entertainment Weekly and the Los Angeles Times Magazine, among other publications. She has also provided film-industry commentary for programs including Marketplace, The Lehrer Report, KCRW's The Business and the BBC and is a frequent panelist and moderator at film festivals, conferences and other industry events.

"I have always admired indieWIRE," said Harris. "Eugene co-founded and guided the first online publication dedicated to the independent film community and it's become a touchstone for the industry, filmmakers and fans. I'm looking forward to working with Rick, Brian and the team in building on that tradition and overseeing indieWIRE‘s expansion to the West Coast."

"We are delighted to welcome Dana Harris as the new editor-in-chief of indieWIRE," said Rick Allen, CEO of SnagFilms. "Dana brings a passion for independent film, great chops as a journalist and significant experience building and managing an online site. Her decade at Variety and nearly 15 years covering the film industry in Hollywood gives her an incredible perspective on how to make indieWIRE an even stronger institution. After indieWIRE co-founder Eugene Hernandez left to join the Film Society of Lincoln Center, we were gratified to have been able to speak to so many first-rate editors, writers and industry executives who were interested in becoming editor-in-chief; in that stellar field, Dana brought an exceptional combination of experiences that made her the standout candidate and we are confident that she will be able to continue the momentum indieWIRE has been building over the past two years."