Heather Croall

Heather Croall (born 1967) is an international arts festival CEO and Artistic Director and documentary producer, best known for leading Sheffield Doc/Fest and Adelaide Fringe, and her work on live music / archive films including The Big Melt, "From the Sea to the Land Beyond, Girt By Sea, From Scotland With Love, Atomic, Living in Dread and Promise" 
In 2020 Heather Croall won the Leadership Award at the SA Woman Awards and in 2021, Croall was nominated as Leader of the Year in the South Australian Woman of the Year Awards. In 2011 Croall was named one of "Realscreen"'s annual trailblazers, and in 2013 the Alliance of Women Film Journalists named Croall Ambassador of Women's Films for the year, for her work "to boost documentary film and open opportunities for women filmmakers". In 2015 she received Sheffield Doc/Fest's Inspiration Award.
In February 2015 she left Sheffield Doc/Fest to take up the position of CEO and Artistic Director of the Adelaide Fringe, with her contract there extended until 2022.
Early life.
Croall was born in Blackpool in 1967 and lived in Sheffield until the age of five, when her family emigrated to South Australia.
Career.
In 1993 Croall set up a production company, Re Angle Pictures, to produce and direct documentaries. In 2020 she Produced and Directed a documentary about her dad and her home town of Whyalla called “Yer Old Faither” it won the audience award at Adelaide Film Festival and was selected for Glasgow Film Festival and others. Her 1999 film "Paradise Bent: Boys will be Girls in Samoa" won the Silver Plaque at the Chicago International Film Festival.
She continued her career at the South Australian Film Corporation, and also produced digital and documentary strands at the Adelaide Fringe. In 2001, she developed Crossover, an organisation which works with technologists, coders, artists, performers, filmmakers, writers and more to create new interdisciplinary projects. 
From 2003 Croall worked for the Australian International Documentary Conference, where she became CEO and Festival Director and developed the MeetMarket pitching event.
Sheffield Doc/Fest.
In 2006 Croall was invited to become CEO and festival director at Sheffield Doc/Fest.
When she joined the festival, it was a two-day event attracting 500 delegates and 2000 public attendees. Croall widened it to a five-day event with 3000 delegates and 25,000 public attendees. She found new funding which tripled the budget in two years, and changed the date of the festival from November to June. She brought in the MeetMarket pitching forum, which in 2011 generated £5.6 million worth of business for producers. She also added year-round training and events alongside the festival.
"Variety" magazine said Croall lifted Doc/Fest "into the premier league of international doc events".
In 2012 Croall sat on the US Documentary jury at the Sundance Film Festival, and she was on the 25th anniversary advisory committee for PBS's "POV" documentary series. In 2015 she was awarded Sheffield Doc/Fest's Inspiration Award.
Adelaide Fringe.
In February 2015 Croall left Doc/Fest to become CEO and festival director of the Adelaide Fringe, with her contract extended to 2020 after two successful festivals. 
In August 2016, under Croall's leadership, the Adelaide Fringe began an official partnership with the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.
Filmography.
Croall has co-produced a number of films, in which directors edit together archive footage on a particular theme, soundtracked by original music.
Accolades.
In 2020 Heather Croall won the Leadership Award at the SA Woman Awards and in 2021, Croall was nominated as Leader of the Year in the South Australian Woman of the Year Awards.  
In 2015 Croall received Sheffield Doc/Fest's Inspiration Award. 
In 2014 Croall was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from Sheffield Hallam University. 
The Alliance of Women Film Journalists named Croall 2013's Ambassador of Women's Films for her work "to boost documentary film and open opportunities for women filmmakers", and in 2011 Croall was named a trailblazer by "Realscreen".
Media appearances.
She has appeared on BBC Two's "The Review Show" and BBC Radio 4's "The Media Show".