MPA Hires White House and State Department Leader as Senior Vice President of Global Strategy and Chief of Staff
WASHINGTON – The Motion Picture Association (MPA) has hired Josh Rubin, a seasoned foreign policy official in the Obama and Biden administrations, as Senior Vice President of Global Strategy and Chief of Staff.
In this role, based out of the MPA’s global headquarters in Washington, D.C., Rubin will help drive strategic planning and work with regional leaders on international government and industry engagement for the association. He will serve as a member of the senior management team, advancing key strategic initiatives and enabling collaboration and alignment of priorities across the organization’s global legal, content protection, policy, and communications teams.
He begins Feb. 28, reporting to MPA Chairman and CEO Charles Rivkin and Executive Vice President and Global Chief Financial Officer Hunter Paletsas. Rubin will assume some of the responsibilities previously held by Urmila Venugopalan, Executive Vice President of Strategy and Global Operations, who was recently appointed President and Managing Director of the MPA’s Asia Pacific region.
“Josh’s exceptional career in diplomacy, policy, and law makes him uniquely suited for his new role at the MPA – as a visionary leader positioned at the intersection of government and the media and entertainment industry,” said Rivkin. “Josh’s global expertise will strengthen our mission to champion creativity, advocate for the workforce behind it, and harness the power of storytelling as a driver of economic growth and a bridge for cultural connection worldwide.”
“I am thrilled to welcome Josh to our world-class team in this pivotal role,” said Paletsas. “This position demands sharp analytical insight and exceptional program management skills — qualities Josh embodies effortlessly. His unique perspective will be invaluable to advancing the MPA’s mission.”
Rubin joins the MPA following nearly a decade of public service. Most recently, as Director for Indo-Pacific Affairs at the National Security Council, he managed execution of the White House’s Indo-Pacific Strategy, led complex negotiations with officials across Asia, engaged private sector companies around President Biden’s summits with leaders from the Indo-Pacific, and tackled issues ranging from security and human rights to trade and investment in the region.
Before his post at the White House, Rubin was Senior Advisor to Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman, where he served as traveling chief of staff during high-stakes diplomatic missions in over 30 countries. Earlier in his career, he worked as a Special Assistant in the Office of Secretary of State John Kerry, among other roles. Over the course of his time in government, he has held a wide range of responsibilities in crisis response, budget planning, personnel management, and policy development around pressing challenges like cyber and digital policy, critical and emerging technology, competition with China, transatlantic relations, and more.
“In an increasingly interconnected world, building ties that transcend borders and cultures is more important than ever,” said Rubin. “That’s true for governments, as I saw firsthand at the State Department and White House. It’s equally true for the American film, TV, and streaming industry as it seeks to expand its global reach. I look forward to joining the MPA, whose mission supports over 2.3 million American workers and connects audiences across the world.”
Rubin holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Global Affairs from Yale University and a Juris Doctor degree from Yale Law School.
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About The Motion Picture Association
The Motion Picture Association (MPA) serves as the leading voice and advocate of the motion picture, home video, and television industries. It works in every corner of the globe to advance the creative industry, protect its members’ content across all screens, defend the creative and artistic freedoms of storytellers, and support innovative distribution models that bring an expansion of viewing choices to audiences around the world. Its member studios are: Netflix, Paramount Pictures, Sony Pictures, Universal Studios, The Walt Disney Studios, Prime Video & Amazon MGM Studios and Warner Bros. Discovery. Charles Rivkin is Chairman and CEO.
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