Out On Screen announces Eli Morris as its new executive director
The trans and nonbinary individual’s experience spans film production, marketing, education, and arts administration
Eli Morris. Photo by Out On Screen
OUT ON SCREEN, which produces the Vancouver Queer Film Festival, has announced Eli Morris as its new executive director. Morris joined Out On Screen in May 2023 as deputy executive director and stepped into the role of interim executive director two months ago following the departure of former executive director Brandon Yan.
Now leading the organization dedicated to 2SLGBTQIA+ media arts, Morris previously served as the executive director of GEMS Vancouver, where they helmed the venture’s name change from Women in Film and Television Vancouver to be more inclusive of trans and nonbinary people and reflect the organization’s mission to foster gender equity in the screen-based media industry.
Morris’s experience spans film production, marketing, education, and arts administration. They served as production manager of the 2022 queer coming-of-age film Golden Delicious directed by Jason Karman. They hold a master of arts degree in public relations and advertising from the University of New South Wales in Australia.
“For the last year, I’ve had the privilege of working with an all-queer and trans team at Out On Screen,” Morris says in a press release. “As a trans and nonbinary person, I have never felt so safe in a workplace. I am humbled to have this opportunity to create more spaces like this for other people in our community.
“To be honest, it is not an easy time to be doing this work,” they say. “The political and economic forecast is bleak. The Out In Schools team, in particular, is facing increasing hostility and reduced funding opportunities. It is even more important that we remain unwavering in our commitment to provide 2SLGBTQIA+ people—especially kids and teens in schools—with the positive representations and affirming messages we all need and deserve.”
The Board of Directors selected Morris after a nationwide search supported by recruitment firm Gerard Search.
“The hiring committee, which consisted of board members and staff, sought a candidate to lead us through our next chapter as we live into our new 2023-2026 Strategic Plan,” board chair Christopher Hallamore says in the release. “We are so fortunate not only to have someone with deep connections to the local filmmaking community and experience in arts and education non-profits, but also to have witnessed firsthand Eli’s collaborative, transparent, and courageous leadership style over the past year. Out On Screen believes in developing and nurturing our people, and it’s a point of pride to be able to promote a member of our team. I am immensely optimistic for Out On Screen’s future with Eli at the helm.”
The 36th annual Vancouver Queer Film Festival takes place from September 11 to 22. 
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