Join Us in Honor of Van McLeod

The relationships that are formed over the course of one weekend at the New Hampshire Film Festival are powerful beyond the borders of Portsmouth. It is a weekend that brings the Seacoast community, sponsors and filmmakers from across the country together for a celebration of the arts that only grows stronger each and every year.

Honoring the power of relationships and friendship, we would like to dedicate the 16th Annual New Hampshire Film Festival to Van McLeod, a close friend and one of the festival’s most passionate allies who passed away this summer.

Join us – Thursday, October 13th, 7pm at The Music Hall

Van was a pioneer and advocate of the arts who dedicated his life to aggressively promoting New Hampshire as a venue for the arts, most recently for television and movie production. He was truly the greatest connector of community and celebration, and our state is a better place because of his accomplishments and efforts. Van will always and forever remain an icon for all things related to the Granite State arts and culture scene.

A New Hampshire native and resident of Concord, Van devoted himself fully to the arts community as Commissioner of the New Hampshire Department of Cultural Resources for the last 24 years. But his list of accolades goes on and on. Van was also the founder and producing director of First Night New Hampshire, an annual New Years Eve celebration; he founded the North Country Center for Arts in Lincoln; he made pancakes with Walt Disney and he toured on the Festival Express with Janis Joplin, the Grateful Dead and the Band.

It’s suffice to say, Van dedicated his life to aggressively promoting New Hampshire as a venue for the arts, most recently for television and movie production. Our state is truly a better place because of his accomplishments and efforts, and he will forever remain an icon for all things related to the Granite State arts and culture scene.In 2008, we were honored to introduce the Van McLeod Award to recognize New Hampshire natives and residents in film and

In 2008, we were honored to introduce the Van McLeod Award to recognize New Hampshire natives and residents in film and television who have made a significant contribution to the industry – much like Van made and will continue to make on our community. Notable past award recipients include Chase Bailey, Ken Burns, Ernest Thompson, Chris Stinson, Mike O’Malley, Lisa Muscat, Paul Lazarus and Gordon Clapp. These recipients truly have big shoes to fill.

We invite you to please join us Oct. 13 at 7 p.m. at The Music Hall as we celebrate Van’s life and his influential contributions to the arts with a tribute video produced by Ron Wyman and Marc Dole. We’ll also be presenting Van’s lovely wife, Joan Goshgarian, and daughter, Chelsea McLeod, as this year’s recipients of the Van McLeod Award.