Steve Gilula and Nancy Utley, senior executives at Searchlight Pictures for 21 of its 27 years, who shaped global culture with Oscar-winning hits like Nomadland, 12 Years a Slave, Black Swan, The Grand Budapest Hotel, and Slumdog Millionaire, announced their surprise retirement on 20 April. “When I started in the American film industry in ’93-’96, I heard often the word …