David Picker hasbeen elected chair of Producers Guild of America East and succeeds Nancy Goldman, who willcontinue to serve the guild on the board of governors.

Lydia DeanPilcher and Harvey Wilson become the new vice chairs, while Robin Berla andSteven Rosenbaum will represent the "members at large".

Under Goldman'sleadership, PGA East's membership has risen nearly threefold to close to 300active members and its expanding range of programmes includes seminars, screeningsand networking events.

"The PGA East isthe cornerstone for the growth of our organisation," PGA executive directorVance Van Petten said in a statement.

"The newleadership that is now in place will ensure that we will have an experienced,strong and unified presence on the east coast."

Picker has runsuch studios as United Artists, Paramount and Columbia and is currentlyproducing a documentary and several feature projects.

Pilcher is an independentproducer and president of independent outfit Cine Mosaic and most recentlyproduced Mira Nair's upcoming Vanity Fair, which Focus Features is due to release in the US on Sept1.

Wilson is anexperienced executive in charge of production and line producer and was one ofthe original participants of the East Coast Steering Committee formed toestablish the PGA East chapter.