Carl Spence began curating films and concerts during the grunge era at the University of Washington. He began his festival career at the Seattle International Film Festival (SIFF) helping grow the Festival to become one of the largest film events in North America over the past two decades. He also spearheaded SIFF’s expansion into year-round exhibition, making SIFF the leading independent exhibitor in Seattle by saving two historic cinemas along with the creation of a flagship Film Center. He most recently held the position of Co-Director and Artistic Director at SIFF prior to starting his own consulting firm, CCS Arts in late 2016. He also held Director of Programming positions with the Palm Springs International Film Festival and with the San Francisco International Film Festival. In 2014, he founded the Orcas Island Film Festival as a Festival co-director and the chief curator. He is also a Senior Programmer for the Miami Film Festival and the Festival Representative for FilmFreeway.