Event

Peter Kujawski is Chairman of Focus Features, which acquires and produces specialty films for the global market, and is a premier label with a library of iconic movies from fearless filmmakers. Kujawski was previously Managing Director of Universal Pictures International Productions (UPIP), which was absorbed into Focus’ operations in early 2016. At UPIP, he was responsible for expanding Universal Pictures’ worldwide presence through local production, financing partnerships, and acquisitions. There he oversaw acquisitions for both Universal and Focus. In this capacity, he acquired key international rights for commercially successful and critically-acclaimed films including Martin Scorsese’s The Wolf of Wall Street, Kathryn Bigelow’s Zero Dark Thirty, and Richard Linklater’s Boyhood. He was instrumental in the acquisition of domestic rights for Universal on Jaume Collet-Serra’s Non-Stop and Focus on Jean-Marc Vallée’s Dallas Buyers Club, which won three Academy Awards.

Kujawski had previously worked at Focus since the company’s formation in 2002. He sold international rights on such celebrated films as Michel Gondry’s Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind; Joel and Ethan Coen’s Burn After Reading and A Serious Man; Jet Li’s Fearless, directed by Ronny Yu, on which he was also a production executive; Sofia Coppola’s Lost In Translation; Gus Van Sant’s Milk; Fernando Meirelles’ The Constant Gardener; David Cronenberg’s Eastern Promises; and Ang Lee’s Lust, Caution and Brokeback Mountain.

He received his Bachelor of Arts Degree in Film Studies from Columbia University. Kujawski’s industry career began at the independent film production company Good Machine, which was later absorbed into Focus Features.

Zoom link here on Thursday, October 15, 2020 @ 3pm ET.