Sandi Fullerton

Sandi Fullerton was a director whose career spanned more than 30 years and included such programs as Rock Concert and The Arsenio Hall Show.

A highly intelligent and precocious youth, Fullerton entered college at Scripps Institute of Oceanography when most of her peers were starting high school. During breaks from school the 6' 1" beauty traveled abroad to work as a runway model for fashion houses in Milan and Paris. But the call of the music business lured her from academia.

Fullerton started working in a variety of administrative posts before landing a position as a production assistant for the iconic weekly program Rock Concert, hosted by Don Kirshner. She ascended to the role of assistant director on the show before venturing into other music and variety television opportunities. 

In the years that followed, she directed the Michael Jackson Victory Tour, 12 primetime specials of the US Festival, six primetime specials of the Rolling Stones World Music Festival, the Marlboro Country Music Tour and a variety of TV specials spotlighting country, jazz, R & B, rock ’n’ roll and hip-hop music.

One of her career highlights came in 1985, when she was asked to be part of the directorial team for the Live Aid concert at JFK Stadium in Philadelphia. She also directed the Soul Train Awards and videos for David Bowie, Sting, Michael Jackson, Whitney Houston and other stars.

In 1989 her career expanded into late-night television when she was tapped to direct The Arsenio Hall Show. When Hall asked for video playbacks on-air, he would say, "Kick it, Sandi.” After the show ended its run in 1994, she directed the Vibe talk show hosted by Sinbad. She also directed The Stephanie Miller Show, the Video Music Awards for MTV and the Prism Awards, among other projects. In the early 2000s, she directed various other variety shows and music shows for Spanish-language television.

Along the way, Fullerton was a devoted mentor to many of her crew and interns who went on to become successful directors, assistant directors, producers, stage managers, camera operators and other production positions.

In addition, she was a devoted equestrian who trained and competed with prize thoroughbreds. She competed in jumping and dressage events for hunters throughout the U.S., and she and her thoroughbred Panda competed in and won many national events.

Fullerton died on May 18, 2014, following a battle with cancer.