Matt Dentler (right) with Elvis Mitchell at this year's Austin Chronicle-sponsored SXSW Film party Credit: Shelley Hiam

Nothing like a Monday noontime bombshell to kick off the week.

South by Southwest Film Festival announced today that SXSW Film Festival Producer Matt Dentler will be moving on to the cement pastures of NYC, where he’ll head the marketing and programming operations of Cinetic Digital Rights Management, a film sales agency founded by indie powerhouse attorney John Sloss, among others.

SXSW didn’t have to look far for his replacement: Local film fixture Janet Pierson takes over the reins. Along with her husband John Pierson, Janet has been an instrumental figure in independent film; more recently, she’s been heavily involved with the Austin Film Society.

Able hands, to be sure, but we’re sorry to see Matt go. A savvy programmer, an artful networker, and a champion of quality films that otherwise might never have found a home, Matt stewarded SXSW Film into a new era – not just of relevance, but of international recognition. We wish him the best of luck.

This article appears in April 11 • 2008.

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A graduate of the Michener Center for Writers at the University of Texas, Kimberley has written about film, books, and pop culture for The Austin Chronicle since 2000. She was named Editor of the Chronicle in 2016; she previously served as the paper’s Managing Editor, Screens Editor, Books Editor, and proofreader. Her work has been awarded by the Association of Alternative Newsmedia for excellence in arts criticism, team reporting, and special section (Best of Austin). The Austin Alliance for Women...