Richard Herskowitz has been the Artistic Director of the Virginia Film Festival since 1994. Prior to his recruitment by the University of Virginia (the festival's host institution), Herskowitz directed the Cornell Cinema program, one of the countrys best-known media art centers, for twelve years. As Cornell Cinema Director, he programmed nearly 500 films and special programs annually for the nightly exhibition program. He also served as adjunct curator for film and video at the Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art, where he organized exhibitions by Derek Jarman, Joan Jonas, Bruce and Norman Yonemoto, and other artists. He has authored film commentary for several academic and general publications, delivered talks at the Museum of Modern Art and the New York Video Festival at Lincoln Center, and recently served as trustee and president of the Robert Flaherty Film Seminar (which Herskowitz programmed in 1987 at Wells College, 1991 in Riga, Latvia, and 1999 at Duke University). He received a Master of Arts in film studies from the University of Wisconsin in 1978 and has taught numerous film courses at U.Va., Cornell, Rutgers, and other universities. www.vafilm.com