Georgia Entertainment recently released the names of the 200 Most Influential of Georgia’s Creative Industries. The individuals are highlighted in the bi-annual printed publication – Georgia Entertainment: The Creative Economy Journal. See the digital version. Our 200 Spotlight series showcases many of those that were included.
By Carol Badaracco Padgett, Senior Writer
David Manuel, Fulton County Director of Arts & Culture
David Manuel is an advocate for all things artistic, aesthetically expressive, and authentically creative within the state of Georgia. A graduate of the Atlanta College of Art with a BFA in Advertising and Design, Manuel uses his expertise and extensive network to help bridge diverse cultures — using the arts as his vehicle and strongly contributing to the Creative Economy in the process.
“What I love about the Peach State [is that]we have everything you need to succeed here,” Manuel says. “We have sports, arts and culture, a host of venues, parks, and amazing people with a flare [for]great hospitality.”
The Fulton County Arts & Culture director, it turns out, is a prime example of what it looks like to succeed in Georgia. He was formerly the director of community relations at the Woodruff Arts Center, as well as deputy director of Parks, Recreation & Cultural Affairs for DeKalb County. And in his current position, he oversees an art center, the Public Art Division, Fulton Government TV, a film division, and the Contract for Services Division, which awarded $3 million in arts funding in 2023 and 2024.
Manuel’s continued vision for Fulton County is that it will lead the nation as a place for creatives to explore endless possibilities, ones that positively affect their lives and their family’s livelihoods moving forward. “Our Contracts for Services [Division] grant program, permitting through Fulton Films, and our … Fulton County Arts & Culture (FACE) initiative all [work to help]stimulate the creative economy,” he notes.
A DeKalb county resident, Manuel is the visionary behind the Rainbow Park Amphitheatre there, as well as the recipient of honors such as the Rising in Community Excellence (RICE) Award, NAACP [Image] Award, Arts & Culture Renaissance Award, Tommy Ford Community Award, and others. In addition, he is the founder of the I Am a Father Initiative, which promotes strengthening families. In 2015 he created the I Am a Father 5k Run/Walk, now in its 9th year, an event he has leveraged to help galvanize communities and get them to focus on strengthening families, one mile at a time.
Alongside his achievements and community initiatives, Manuel continues to prioritize the Peach State’s people and to champion Georgia’s Creative Economy, which creates so many jobs to help sustain families – his own among them.
“What makes Georgia’s creative and entertainment industries special [to me]is connecting people and operating in the style of collaboration over competition,” he notes.
Aside from his work in the arts and his role as a husband and father, Manuel is a certified mentor for the Georgia Transplant Foundation. A liver transplant recipient himself, he believes the way to show gratitude for having a second chance is by educating others and, in this case, registering them to become organ donors.
When asked who has influenced him most in learning to watch out for others and provide them with ample opportunity, Manuel states, “For the majority of my life, my mother, Barbara Manuel, has been my greatest influencer. She showed me an amazing example of what a single mother without resources can do to position her family for success.”
Then he adds, “For the last nine-and-a-half years, [another]mentor has been my donor family, Linda and Natalie Mouton, who made the decision to give me a lifesaving organ to continue my journey.”
Georgia Entertainment: The Creative Economy Journal
