Virginia Film Festival

Glenn Williamson

President and Producer, Back Lot Pictures

Glenn Williamson is an independent film producer and former studio executive with more than 25 years of experience in the entertainment industry. Through his Los Angeles- based production company Back Lot Pictures, he has produced Focus Features’ “Hollywoodland,”; Overture Films’ “Sunshine Cleaning,”; Summit Entertainment’s “Push; Magnolia Pictures’ “Wonderful World”; the 2010 Sundance Film Festival Audience Award winning film “Happythankyoumoreplease,” and “The Runner”.

In addition, Mr. Williamson is co-head of the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television Producers Program where he’s been a professor and lecturer over the past five years. After receiving his Bachelor of Arts degree in English Literature from the University of Virginia, Williamson moved to Los Angeles to start his film career at Castle Rock Entertainment. During this time, he also worked in production on Tim Burton’s “Edward Scissorhands” and Cameron Crowe’s “Singles.” Two years later, Williamson joined Parkes and MacDonald at Amblin Entertainment when Steven Spielberg hired them to run his production company and he soon oversaw “Men in Black” for Amblin & Columbia Pictures. From 1994 to 2002, Williamson was a senior production executive at DreamWorks SKG. He supervised Sam Mendes’ Academy Award-winning “American Beauty” and “Road to Perdition”; Crowe’s “Almost Famous” (best original screenplay Oscar winner in 2001); Gore Verbinski’s “The Mexican”; Todd Phillip’s Road Trip, and Bronwen Hughes’ “Forces of Nature.” When Focus Features was formed in 2002, Williamson became the specialty label’s president of production. He supervised Michelle Gondry’s “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind”; Todd Hayne’s “Far From Heaven”; Mira Nair’s “Vanity Fair”; and Christine Jeff’s “Sylvia.” In 2005, Williamson executive produced Harold Ramis’ “The Ice Harvest,” starring John Cusack and Billy Bob Thornton; and in 2006, he produced the hit remake of “The Omen,” starring Live Schreiber and Julia Stiles. Williamson is a member of the Producers Branch of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science and sits on the Foreign Language Film Executive Committee.