The International Documentary Association has named Rachel Denny deputy executive director of the nonprofit organization, reporting directly to IDA executive director Dominic Asmall Willsdon.
Denny, who has served in leadership roles at the Sundance Institute, Film at Lincoln Center, and United States Artists, began her new role this week. She will be based in New York, where more than a quarter of IDA members live. The IDA, which supports the documentary community through year-round programs and grants, and presents the annual IDA Documentary Awards, is based in Los Angeles.
Denny has served “as an external affairs consultant to IDA for nearly a year through her firm, Media Philanthropy Advisory,” the IDA said in a release, noting that Media Philanthropy Advisory “has also worked with Brooklyn Academy of Music, Cinereach, Peace is Loud, and Wavelength Productions on fundraising, strategic planning, and audience development.”
Ina Fichman, board president of the IDA, said in a statement, “Rachel has shown, through her consulting work with IDA, that she truly understands this organization and the community it serves. The board is delighted to see that relationship become a permanent one, and confident it strengthens IDA at a consequential moment for the field.”
Dominic Asmall Willsdon, executive director of the IDA
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Executive Director Dominic Asmall Willsdon commented, “Rachel is a rigorous thinker who understands both the art form and the field. She has been a close collaborator through a time when IDA is building real momentum, and this appointment formalizes a partnership that’s already producing results. I couldn’t be more pleased to have her in this role.”
International Documentary Association
The IDA currently boasts more than 3,600 members across 50 states and 80-plus countries, the most in the organization’s history, the IDA notes.
“Over the last year as a consultant, I have seen how critical IDA’s role is in the field, the strength and clarity of the vision Dominic and the board have laid out, and the commitment of the staff to bringing this to life,” Denny said. “Having spent much of my career supporting filmmakers and the organizations that serve them, I know well the pivotal role IDA is positioned to play. I’m honored to step into this role and committed to solidifying and expanding the impact IDA makes for documentary storytellers and the field.”
The IDA says Denny “will work with Willsdon to lead the organization into its next chapter, advancing IDA’s mission to provide advocacy, community, and services for documentary makers around the world and foster a thriving, inclusive documentary culture.”
In addition to her work with nonprofits and philanthropy, Dennys is a film producer. Her credits include Sister Senators and Arrest the Midwife, the latter premiering at SXSW in 2025.