Check Out Susan Gorrell’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Susan Gorrell.

Susan, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
My story really begins with my family. I grew up helping my mother with her Christian distribution and recording company, Heartbeat Distribution. My father was a dentist by trade, but also helped develop Heartbeat. Through working with them, I learned great working ethics, how to respect others and build relationships. I also learned how to create and grow events. After leaving home, getting married and starting my own family, I became very interested in the film industry, with a big push from my husband, who was already deeply involved in filming as a Special FX coordinator. By the time our children graduated from school and moved on, he had already been in the industry for over 30 years, working on projects such as FOREREST GUMP, TRANSFORMERS, DIVERGENT, SAMARITAN, SWEET GIRL, won a Primetime Emmy for JOHN ADAMS mini-series and worked on many TV series, such as his current work, 911 NASHVILLE and SCARPETTA. Both our boys also went on to working in the film industry, so it was only natural that I would take an interest. I produced a documentary called A MILLION SPOKES, about the famous bike ride across Iowa called RAGBRAI. From there, the original 2 co-founders of the Julien Dubuque International Film Festival (JDIFF) saw me speak about the industry and the documentary and asked to show it at their first year of the festival. I agreed and was invited to attend the festival, which I went. I loved Dubuque. At that time I lived 3 hours south of Dubuque, in a much flatter part of Iowa. So it was nice to see such beautiful cliffs and scenery right next to the Mississippi River. I loved the city and the people so much, that I offered to help grow their festival as I was very familiar with the “film world” due to my husbands involvement. After attending the first year as a filmmaker, the 2nd year I was brought on as a Board member and volunteered my time to help grow the submissions, filmmaker attendance, panels, etc. By the 3rd year, one of the co-founders left the festival and I was promoted to Senior Manager, to work alongside the co-founder that was still involved. By the 4th year, the co-founder left and I was hired as the Executive Director. I have been in this position ever since. From my first year as the Executive Director of JDIFF (13 years ago), our submissions, attendance and ticket sales have grown tremendously. We are listed as one of the top 12 North American film festivals (Destination Film Guide 2025), as well as listed consistently on the Top 50 Film Festivals worth the submission fee (MovieMaker Magazine) and for 2026, we have just been named one of the Coolest Film Festivals (MovieMaker Magazine). I’m very proud of how JDIFF has grown under my leadership, but also under the JDIFF Board directives, our wonderful volunteers and of course, the community.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Nothing is ever smooth when growing. We’ve definitely had some hiccups along the way, but nothing that can’t be solved. Most issues were minor. I’m very lucky to have such a supportive volunteer base (over 100 volunteers), so everyone works together to make the festival week perfect! Honestly, I never really member any of the issues, other than being exhausted when the festival is over.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
My most important job is being the Executive Director of the Julien Dubuque International Film Festival (JDIFF). This is an annual festival that just celebrated 15 years in 2026. 2026 was also my 12th year as the ED. I’m most proud of the community of Dubuque, Iowa that welcomes the festival every April. The people, especially our volunteers, are so helpful, welcoming and do whatever needs to be done to make any attendees (who come from all over the World) feel comfortable and welcomed in Dubuque. I would say my greatest asset is the ability to handle any obstacle that comes my way with grace and respect. I am very assessable to everyone, including the filmmakers and audience that attend. I think it’s really important for people to feel welcomed and loved by everyone at the festival. Work ethic, happiness and kindness starts from the top, so I would hope I represent all these things. I have great respect for the volunteers who help throughout the festival week, as they do it free and because they love the festival! I’m so lucky to have them all. I’m also very lucky to have our Board of Directors who love the festival and the community! Another compliment I hear from filmmakers specifically is the communication. I truly believe communication is SO IMPORTANT, from every email, call or text. It’s so important that everyone has all the important information needed, especially when submitting and attending a large festival such as JDIFF. I truly love what I do.

Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc?
Oh boy – I’m definitely not a book reader (my mom will hate me saying that. LOL). As for blogs, unfortunately I’m not a big blog person either. I’m pretty boring. I do listen to the CVMK Show podcast with Cody Kelly, as he’s great and has some wonderful film personalities on. Mostly I watch films submitted to JDIFF and walk my sweet dog Tucker. He is a mini-bernedoodle that is chubby and short. Don’t tell him I said that.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.julienfilmfest.com
• Instagram: @julienfilmfest
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JulienFilmFest
• Twitter: @julienfilmfest
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@JDIFFOfficial

Image Credits
JDIFF staff (myself and Board member Beth Gilbreath).