Sarah Dawson is a programmer for the International Documentary Film Festival of Amsterdam (IDFA). Her previous roles have included Associate Programmer at Sheffield Doc/Fest and Festival Manager at the Durban International Film Festival in her home country of South Africa. Prior to this, she spent a number of years with the Centre for Creative Arts, presenting festivals such as Poetry Africa and Time of the Writer, as well as writing and lecturing on film on film for various African institutions and publications. She has an MA in Film Studies from the University of KwaZulu-Natal.