Interview with AFI Film Artistic Director Festival Programmer Robert Koehler
// October 28th, 2009 // Comments Off // People
by Marla Lewin
I spent almost an hour with Robert Koelher who has gone from a top movie critic for Variety, to Artistic Director, Programmer of the AFI Film Festival and he gave me a look inside how he approached putting together this years festival and where it is going.
Marla: Congratulations, Robert, this is your second year programming the festival, How different is it from being a critic? How is it going?
Robert: I was at the Los Angeles Times, and started in 94 writing for Variety, working for special sections, the Variety sections,and special themes they still do in weekly editions and on their website. In 1999, some folks left the review team, they needed someone out of LA to join, and I had wanted to review, so it worked out well. Going to festivals, here and abroad, the first few years to Cannes with Variety.
