Sarah Blankfort Clothier

Sarah Blankfort Clothier is the Manager of the AFI Catalog, the world’s most authoritative and comprehensive database of the first 100 years of American cinema, 1893-1993. She is also Project Director of now two NEH-funded initiatives at the AFI Catalog that document films from the silent era in an effort to provide new information about the cinematic contributions of women and filmmakers of color—these storytellers have long been omitted from the historical narrative until now. Sarah studied film history and English as an undergrad at UC Berkeley and went on to earn a master's degree in Information Science from SJSU, but she also has a professional background in the visual arts, working for noted artists and in film production. Aside from years wrangling film data, illustrious artists, and wardrobe department garment bags, Sarah spent the past few decades playing drums in several obscure but sometimes-touring rock bands.