Anthony Minghella appointed bfi Chair

Anthony Minghella, the Oscar and BAFTA-winning British filmmaker and writer has been announced as the new Chair of the British Film Institute (bfi).
The bfi is funded by the Film Council to carry out a range of activities supporting and developing film education and culture in the UK, and Minghella takes up his new role at the bfi for a three-year term.
Minghella said: "As a filmmaker and filmgoer I have long enjoyed the resources and facilities provided by the bfi and so I was delighted and honoured to be approached by the Film Council to succeed Joan Bakewell's excellent tenure as Chair.
"The bfi exists to celebrate the art of film by preserving its past and by providing access to the treasure trove of world cinema. At the heart of its remit is an educational role through which it aims to nourish critically aware, visually literate and more demanding filmgoers and filmmakers. I believe there is a good deal to be said for having a practising filmmaker at the centre of the bfi's policy and future and I will do my best to listen and learn from those working inside the bfi and from those who contribute to its activities. Most of all, I want to promote a bfi whose work is better understood by the public and more accessible to it."
(GB)