Kerry Swanson
Chief Executive Officer of the Indigenous Screen Office (ISO)
Kerry Swanson has been leading systemic change in the Indigenous arts and culture sector in Canada for over two decades. She is the Chief Executive Officer of the Indigenous Screen Office (ISO), an independent funding organization serving First Nations, Inuit and Métis screen-based storytellers across Canada. Within five years at ISO, she has built an innovative and responsive Indigenous-led institution from the ground up, securing $13m in permanent annual funding from the federal government plus anticipated annual funding of $24m to be administered by ISO starting in 2025.
Kerry is co-founder of Indigenous Fashion Arts biennial festival in Toronto, where she led fundraising and partnerships for three highly acclaimed multi-platform four-day festivals. For over a decade, she helped build the imagineNATIVE Film and Media Arts Festival, the world’s largest presenter of Indigenous screen content, serving as Executive Director and later Board Chair. Kerry has served in leadership roles at the Ontario Arts Council and the Toronto Arts Council and as a consultant and board member for both grassroots organizations and large institutions. She has a Master’s in Communication and Culture from Toronto Metropolitan University. Kerry was born and raised in northern Ontario in a Cree/Ojibwe/Irish and French family. She is a citizen of Michipicoten First Nation with familial ties to Chapleau Cree First Nation.
