NYWIFT Blog

#Muse40for40: Lisa Nishimura (2018)

We’re counting down the 40 days to NYWIFT’s 40th Anniversary Muse Awards with a look at some of our favorite honorees, all women of vision and achievement who have contributed to the film and television industry. Join us as we look back at #Muse40for40, and buy your tickets for the Muse Awards on Tuesday, December 10th at nywift.org/muse!


#31: Lisa Nishimura

By Kathryn O’Kane

13-year Netflix veteran Lisa Nishimura was the VP of Original Documentary and Comedy Programming when we honored her at 2018; just three months later, she was named the head of Independent Film and Documentary Programming. In 2017, she was named one of the 100 most powerful women in entertainment by The Hollywood Reporter.

Under her leadership, Netflix has provided a global platform for critically acclaimed documentary work including Making a Murderer; Wild Wild Country; Chef’s Table; Icarus; What Happened, Miss Simone?; 13th; White Helmets and Salt Fat Acid Heat. In addition, her team has produced global stand-up comedy specials including Hannah Gadsby’s Nanette and Ali Wong’s Baby Cobra and Hard Knock Wife as well as work from the likes of Jerry Seinfeld, Dave Chappelle, and Amy Schumer, with forthcoming specials from Ellen DeGeneres and Chris Rock. The current slate of films including Reversing Roe, Shirkers and Quincy, showcases Netflix’s commitment to female documentarians and compelling storytelling.

“I think this is the very reason why I absolutely love and feel so privileged to do the work I do. I get to support incredible storytellers — documentarians, comics – true creators who are the brilliant social commentators of our day.” – Lisa Nishimura at the 2018 Muse Awards

PUBLISHED BY

busyk

busyk Kathryn O’Kane is a director and producer with over 20 years of experience in television and advertising. She directed season 2 of the Emmy nominated series The World According to Jeff Goldblum for Disney+. She was the showrunner of the James Beard award-winning Netflix series Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat, and she produced six seasons of the Emmy award-winning series Friday Night Tykes. Her episodes of Iconoclasts for Sundance and Oprah Presents Masterclass for OWN have won NAACP Imagine awards. Kathryn has crafted short form narratives as diverse as Mission Juno for NASA, segments of AMC’s Talking Dead, and commercial assignments for Apple, Meta, United Airlines, and SAP. Kathryn served two terms on the board of New York Women in Film and Television, championing equal pay, diversity and inclusion, and safety in the workplace. She is a member of the Directors Guild of America and Television Academy. Learn more at www.busyk.com.

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