Shira MacLeod was born in Scotland and moved to London aged seventeen. She studied at Roehampton Institute obtaining a BA Hons in Dance and English Literature from Surrey University before working as a professional dancer for ten years. Shira supplemented her income as a box office assistant at Riverside Studios, before working alongside Riverside’s Cinema Director Ed Lewis. Following Ed’s death in 2003, Shira succeeded him, successfully continuing Riverside’s tradition of screening an exciting and enticing programme of double double-bills, film festivals and Q&As. Following Riverside’s closure for redevelopment in 2014, Shira became Director of Regent Street Cinema and later Managing Director of the London Short Film Festival. She has also worked for the Umbria Film Festival and programmed the cinema at Bristol’s Arnolfini.
