Lisa Nishimura
Lisa Nishimura | |
---|---|
Born | 1971/1972 (age 49–50)[1] |
Nationality | American |
Education | University of California at San Diego |
Employer | Netflix |
Title | Vice president, independent film and documentary features |
Children | 1 |
Lisa Nishimura is an American entertainment executive, working for Netflix mainly on documentary films, stand-up comedy, and independent films. Her productions include 13th, American Factory, Chef's Table, Making a Murderer, Tiger King, and Wild Wild Country.[2][3][4]
Nishimura focuses on original, ambitious programming and unknown filmmakers.[4][5] She has played a major role in expanding the range of documentaries on Netflix.[3][6] Vanity Fair called her "queen of the docu-series".[3]
Early life and education[]
Nishimura was born to Japanese immigrants who moved to the United States after World War II.[7] She grew up bilingual, in a "very academic" household in Silicon Valley.[3][8][9][10] Her father was a chemist who went to UC Berkeley on a Fulbright scholarship, and her mother was a classical violinist.[3][7]
She attended the University of California at San Diego.[11] She planned to go to medical school, but an internship at a record label, Windham Hill Records in Palo Alto, led her to start pursuing a career in the music industry instead.[3][10][7]
Career[]
From 1998 to 2001, Nishimura was head of sales and marketing at Six Degrees Records.[12] From 2002 to 2007, she worked at Chris Blackwell's studio Palm Pictures, where she was general manager.[12][13] She also worked at Chris Blackwell's Island Records.[7]
She left Palm Pictures in 2007 to join Netflix as vice president of independent content acquisition, reporting to Ted Sarandos.[12][14] Her role was focused on acquiring content for Netflix, including digital content; 2007 was also the year that Netflix launched its streaming service, having previously focused on DVDs.[3]
In 2013, Nishimura started Netflix's original documentary and original stand-up comedy initiatives.[15] Documentary and comedy are her favorite genres. She has said that they are "similar because both are extremely observant of human conditions, cultures and the world around us"[6] and both give the viewer "immersion in another person’s experience, almost firsthand".[5]
In March 2019, Nishimura moved from being vice president of original documentary and comedy programming, reporting to , to being vice president of independent film and documentary features, reporting to Scott Stuber. Stuber wrote that Nishimura "blazed a trail within Netflix" working on documentaries and comedy.[14][16]
Honors[]
In November 2017, she was one of five leading women in business honored by Girls, Inc.[17]
In November 2018, she was honored by New York Women in Film & Television.[18]
In 2020, Time magazine identified her as one of the 100 most influential people of the year.[2]
Personal life[]
Nishimura lives in Mar Vista, Los Angeles.[8] She is married and has a son.[8][19]
References[]
- ^ Flint, Joe (May 10, 2020). "Meet the Woman Who Made Netflix's 'Tiger King' Must-See Quarantine TV". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
- ^ a b "Lisa Nishimura: The 100 Most Influential People of 2020". Time. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
- ^ a b c d e f g Press, Joy. "This Is the Netflix Exec to Thank for Your Wild Wild Country Binge". Vanity Fair. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
- ^ a b Weissman, Cale Guthrie (March 21, 2019). "What Lisa Nishimura's promotion means for indie films on Netflix". Fast Company. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
- ^ a b "12 Leaders Who Are Shaping the Next Generation of Artists". Time. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
- ^ a b Chatterjee, Anamika. "Meet the woman behind Netflix's growing influence in documentaries and comedies". Khaleej Times. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
- ^ a b c d "Our Diverse 100: Meet Lisa Nishimura, the executive finding audiences (and Oscars) for Netflix comedies and documentaries". Los Angeles Times. June 2, 2016. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
- ^ a b c "Lisa Nishimura". Magzter. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
- ^ Kim, Serena (November 28, 2018). "Netflix's Lisa Nishimura is One of the Most Powerful Asian Americans in Hollywood". Character Media. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
- ^ a b "Our Women In Hollywood 2018 issue is here". NET-A-PORTER. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
- ^ "Lisa Nishimura". Variety. December 22, 2020. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
- ^ a b c Kay, Jeremy (October 29, 2007). "Netflix hires Nishimura-Seese for new indie buying role". Screen. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
- ^ "Biography of Lisa Nishimura for Appearances, Speaking Engagements". All American Speakers Bureau. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
- ^ a b Andreeva, Nellie (March 21, 2019). "Netflix's Lisa Nishimura Moves To Film Group; Brandon Riegg Gets Comedy Oversight In Restructuring". Deadline. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
- ^ "Lisa Nishimura #IJF21". Festival Internazionale del Giornalismo. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
- ^ Low, Elaine (March 21, 2019). "Netflix's Lisa Nishimura Named Indie Film, Documentary Features Head". Variety. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
- ^ Fernandez, Matt (November 16, 2017). "Warner Bros. TV Exec Calls for End to Sexual Harassment: 'Enough Is Enough'". Variety. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
- ^ Sippell, Margeaux (November 19, 2018). "Sarah Jessica Parker, Ellen Burstyn to Be Honored by New York Women in Film and Television". Variety. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
- ^ Britten, Fleur (April 7, 2019). "What she said: Netflix vice president Lisa Nishimura answers your workplace dilemma". The Sunday Times. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
External links[]
- Netflix people
- American women film producers
- American people of Japanese descent
- Entertainment industry businesspeople
- Living people
- University of California, San Diego alumni
- Film producers from California
- Time 100
- 21st-century American women