Brent M. Buckley Elected to the Greater Cleveland Film Commission's Board of Trustees

Cleveland, OH, May 08, 2015 --(PR.com)-- The Greater Cleveland Film Commission (GCFC), a non-profit developing a global media industry in Northeast Ohio, announced the appointment of four new members to its board of trustees. GCFC Chairman, Michael Jeans, and the current board recently elected: Brent M. Buckley, Timothy Birch, Richard Clark, and Annette Zappala.

Brent M. Buckley is a founder and Managing Partner at Buckley King LPA, a business law firm with offices in Cleveland, Cincinnati, Columbus, Atlanta, and Phoenix. Buckley is Chairman and serves in leadership roles on several Cleveland-area arts and culture institutions and regional development initiatives such as the Cleveland Institute of Music, Cleveland Leadership Center/Leadership Cleveland, Greater Cleveland Sports Commission, and National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE), among many others.

Timothy Birch is the Vice President of PlayhouseSquare's Retail, Sales, Sponsorship and Technology segments and has been involved with sports and live entertainment for over 30 years. He was one of the key team members in the design, install and sales of the District Design project that transformed the district with the GE Chandelier, large video screens and retro signage. Birch also sits on the board of trustees at the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Ohio Buckeye Chapter.

Richard Clark is the Executive Vice President, Trustee and Secretary of the John P. Murphy Foundation and Vice President and Secretary of the Kulas Foundation, which are both private foundations, focused on arts and culture. Clark currently also serves on the board of directors of the Rape Crisis Center. He is a past officer and long-time director of Recovery Resources, a past president and director of the Cleveland International Film Festival and has served on special committees of The Cleveland Orchestra and Greater Cleveland Growth Association.

Annette Zappala is a Regional Sales Manager for United Airlines, a significant partner of GCFC for several years. She has been with United for over 30 years, is a member of the Junior League of Cleveland and is on the Ronald McDonald House Pro-Am Committee.

Ivan Schwarz, President of the GCFC said, "I would like to welcome our newest trustees and look forward to working with them as well as the entire board to continue building a sustainable media industry in Northeast Ohio. So far we have created 1,100 full time equivalent jobs, have had an economic impact of $300 million and a return on investment of $1.84 million."

About the GCFC (www.clevelandfilm.com)

Mission: Promote the increase of media production in Northeast Ohio using effective strategies for attraction and workforce development including building an artistic infrastructure through film.

Vision: Achieve increased economic development in Northeast Ohio by using the artistic and culturally enriching activities of film and other media production to strengthen the workforce, support the media production industry and attract media production to the region.