Juan Devis named new president of Film Independent, expanding its public media vision

Juan Devis – Photo Credit: Piper Ferguson

Juan Devis named new president of Film Independent, expanding its public media vision

Film Independent, the nonprofit arts organization behind the Film Independent Spirit Awards, has named veteran media executive and producer Juan Devis as its next president, deepening its ties to public-media-driven storytelling and cross-cultural work. He will start on April 20.

The appointment follows the death of longtime president Josh Welsh, under whose leadership Film Independent became a central force in supporting filmmakers outside the studio system. In his honor, the organization recently established the Josh Welsh Legacy Fund, raising $1 million to bolster artist programs that provide grants, labs, and other support throughout the year.

Colombian-born Devis built his career at the intersection of independent film, public television, and community-based media. After studying film at Emerson College and earning an M.F.A. in directing from the California Institute of the Arts, he wrote and directed for film, theater, and television in both the United States and Latin America, gravitating toward projects that blended social issues, regional history, and formally inventive storytelling.

Devis first emerged as a key figure in Los Angeles public media at KCET, later the Public Media Group of Southern California, where he rose to become chief creative (and previously chief content) officer and oversaw what became a major content studio for public television in the city. Under his leadership, KCET and PBS SoCal developed a slate of original arts, culture, and food series — including “Artbound,” “Broken Bread,” “Migrant Kitchen,” “Earth Focus,” and “Studio A” — that together earned more than two dozen Emmy Awards, along with Webby, James Beard, and National Arts and Entertainment Journalism prizes.

In those projects, Devis pushed public television toward more ambitious, community-engaged formats: “Departures,” for instance, unfolded as a hybrid documentary and interactive web project about neighborhoods and borders, while “Broken Bread,” hosted by Roy Choi, approached food as an entry point into questions of equity and urban change. His work consistently brought local voices, immigrant narratives, and artists of color to the foreground, often partnering with grassroots organizations as collaborators rather than subjects.

Over the past two decades, Film Independent has also served as a concrete pipeline for African American filmmakers whose work has moved from its labs and grants to the awards circuit. Writer-director Shaka King — an African American filmmaker whose “Judas and the Black Messiah” was Oscar-nominated and competed for best picture — was an early Film Independent Spirit Awards Someone to Watch honoree for his debut feature “Newlyweeds.” More recently, the organization has launched initiatives like the Netflix-supported Amplifier Fellowship, which supports African American directors such as Zandashé Brown and Mobolaji Olambiwonnu, underscoring Film Independent’s role in sustaining a pipeline of African American talent behind the camera.

In recent years, Devis co-founded Ninety-Three Media (also styled 93 Media), a cross-cultural production company focused on independent film, documentary, and emerging media, aimed at connecting stories across borders and platforms. He has described the company’s mission as building a content studio that treats representation and “our common humanity” as core to its business strategy, not just its branding.

That through line of access, ecosystem-building, and institutional leverage extends into his civic and governance roles as well. Devis has served on the boards of the Snap Foundation and the California Cultural and Historical Endowment, and has been appointed to state arts bodies, positioning him as a bridge figure between artists, philanthropy, and policy. 

Colleagues in public media describe him as a builder of large creative teams and cross-sector partnerships who understands how to translate experimental work into programming that can survive in institutional budgets and broadcast schedules.

At Film Independent, Devis steps into a role shaped by Welsh, whose tenure saw the organization expand its artist development labs, international exchanges, and signature mentorship program Project Involve. Devis has framed his mandate in similarly systemic terms, saying he wants Film Independent to function as “a resilient, globally connected, multi-platform ecosystem” that provides what he calls “a continuous, integrated pathway” from discovery and funding through production, distribution, and public celebration of independent work.

Devis’s appointment comes at a time when independent storytelling faces mounting pressures, from shrinking public media budgets to the rapid consolidation of streaming platforms. His experience in bridging artistic communities and institutional systems positions Film Independent to navigate those shifts with both cultural depth and operational resilience. By doubling down on access and representation, his leadership signals a reaffirmation of the organization’s core belief that diverse, locally rooted stories are essential — not only to the creative economy but to the civic imagination itself.

For more than four decades, Film Independent has supported a global community of artists through its Spirit Awards, artist development labs, education programs, and international exchanges. 

Signature initiatives like Project Involve mentor filmmakers from underrepresented communities, while its year-round Film Independent Presents series offers screenings, conversations, and live events that highlight the breadth of contemporary independent cinema.