Creative Portland, the city arts organization charged with promoting Portland’s creative economy, has hired an experienced TV and movie producer as its new executive director.

Dinah Minot, who moved to Portland last year, begins her duties Monday. She worked several years as a producer in New York and Los Angeles, and her credits include 73 episodes as associate producer of “Saturday Night Live,” associate producer of the movie “Wayne’s World” and co-producer of “Wayne’s World 2.”

Dinah Minot Courtesy of Creative Portland

Creative Portland organizes the city’s First Friday ArtWalk, among other things, and its primary purpose is growing and sustaining Portland’s creative economy. Minot sees her job as building partnerships among arts groups and private enterprise, and she said the skills she developed as a producer are applicable to that role.

“Being a producer is about being a facilitator,” she said. “It’s about finding the right designers, the right musicians, the writers, the extras. You are overseeing everything, and bringing it all together.”

Minot succeeds Jennifer Hutchins, who left the organization in the spring to direct the Maine Association of Nonprofits.

Minot, who is in her mid-50s, moved to Portland from California last winter. She is from Massachusetts originally. Her husband is Grant “Whip” Hubley, a movie and TV actor best known for his role as Hollywood in “Top Gun.” The couple are in the process of moving to South Portland.

Minot said she wants to take advantage of natural and unexpected partnerships among arts groups and public and private enterprise in Portland, to improve and deepen programming, and to help groups overcome internal organizational challenges.

“I’m pretty psyched about this opportunity,” she said. “It’s going to be fun. It’s going to take a while for me to get to know everybody, but it’s going to be a fun ride.”

Minot moved to Portland late in 2015 after 25 years in the arts and entertainment business in Los Angeles. She is a summer resident of North Haven.

In addition to her work in Hollywood, she was co-producer and head of talent for “Saturday Night Live” from 1985 to 1990, and director and editor of Lorne Michaels Productions from 2006 to 2009.

Aimee Petrin, executive director of Portland Ovations, said she was impressed with Minot’s quick immersion in the community. Since arriving here, Minot has met as many people as possible, Petrin said. “She’s done an amazing job of getting to know this community very quickly. She has shown her commitment from the get-go,” Petrin said. “Dinah strikes me as a dynamo who will bring great things to the position.”

Creative Portland’s role, Petrin said, is to be an effective and nimble advocate for the arts and to “evolve as the needs of the artistic and greater community evolve. It’s their job to be responsive to those needs.”

Stuart Kestenbaum, who was named interim president of Maine College of Art in August, said it’s become obvious during his short time in Portland how many opportunities there are for collaboration among arts groups up and down Congress Street. “It’s plain to see that cultural institutions are an anchor for the heart of the city. Of course each organization can be very busy with its own work, and it seems to me that an organization like Creative Portland can take initiatives that look at a bigger picture,” he said.

In a statement, Creative Portland board President Sondra Bogdonoff cited Minot’s experience as a social media consultant, arts and community advocate, music producer and artist as qualifications for the job. “She has a passion for Portland that we believe will energize and help us grow and sustain our creative community,” Bogdonoff said.

Minot received her undergraduate degree from the University of Vermont in art education and art history.

Bob Keyes can be contacted at 791-6457 or at:

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