Kathy Wolfe

Kathy Wolfe is the founder and CEO of Wolfe Video and Wolfe Releasing. Established in 1985, it is the oldest and largest exclusive distributor of LGBT films in the world.


To those who know her, Kathy Wolfe is an anachronism: a successful business woman, as comfortable with 21st Century DVD technology as she is among the artifacts of the Historic West that is her passion. Kathy Wolfe is also a woman with a vision – the earliest expression of which was a childhood fascination with her mother’s 8mm movie camera. In her pursuit of that vision, Kathy attained Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in art; founded and operated a specialty graphics and advertising company (which, over nearly two decades, encompassed thirteen offices and 150 employees deployed over five states); and, in 1985, established Wolfe Video as a vehicle for community building and social change.

Kathy began Wolfe Video in 1985 as a small mail order distribution outlet serving a largely untapped audience of lesbians and gay men eager for films that spoke to their own lives. Now active in both the film distribution and releasing arenas, Wolfe enjoys a strong presence in the marketplace as the oldest and largest exclusive distributor of gay and lesbian themed films. Each year Wolfe releases 10 to 15 films into film festivals around the world and distributes onto DVD, Blu-ray, broadcast, streaming or digital download an additional 12 titles per year.

In Wolfe Video and Wolfe Releasing, Kathy has created a successful business that reflects her strong belief that the value of a company lies, not only in its “bottom line,” but in the extent to which all of its practices, activities and relationships affirm and enhance the quality of life for its workers, customers, filmmakers, suppliers and the community-at-large. Wolfe is. In every sense, an agent for social change, increasing access to gay and lesbian entertainment—making visible the lives of an entire subculture that has, until recently, been largely invisible.

Kathy has been honored by the National Organization for Women as a recipient of its “Excellence in Media Award,” by Forbes Magazine as an “Up and Comer,” and by The Advocate as a “Hollywood Star Player.” Additional honors include: San Francisco International LGBT Film Festival with the “Frameline Award”, the Philadelphia Cinema Alliance’s “Barbara Gittings Award” and the National Center for Lesbian Rights “Community Partner Award”. In her spare time, Kathy is an avid restorer of historic buildings; an adventurous traveler; and a collector of vintage travel trailers.

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