Media Through the Lens Inclusion

@brandbuzz @TowsonU

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MEDIA THROUGH THE LENS OF INCLUSION:CHALLENGES, OPPORTUNITIES & ACTION STEPSAMY DELOUISE, DIRECTOR/PRODUCER

Agenda2

Diversity Status Report Where we stand behind and before the lens

Real World Challenges and Solutions Making a Difference on Campus

Best Practices & Real World Impact Report Outs, Debrief, Action Steps

STATUS REPORT: ARE WE THERE YET?

Visible Champions4

Raised Awareness5

#oscarssowhite

The Academy Got the Message?

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Oscar Nominees 2017

Not So Fast7

Oscar voting pool still more than 70% male.

2,718 performances were submitted to the Academy for consideration in Best Actor/Actress Categories 57% (1,553) by men, 43% (1,165) by

women. (The Wrap, 12/22/16)

Women Behind the Lens8

Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film: 9% of all narrative film directors 19% of all directors, writers, producers, executive producers, editors

and cinematographers working on the top 250 grossing films 20% of all executive producers Producers (26%), editors (22%), executive producers (20%), writers

(11%), directors (9%) and cinematographers (6%) Documentary: 36% Comedy genres: 34% Action genres: 9% Horror genres: 11%

OTT: A (More) Diverse View?9

OTT: A (More) Diverse View?

Women: 28% speaking rolesMinorities: 26.7% speaking rolesLGBTQ: 35 regularly appearing characters

Women: 38% speaking roles

Minorities: 29.4%* speaking roles

LGBTQ: 43 regularly appearing characters

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Film/TV Streaming Content

Sources: Annenberg/USC Media, Diversity and Social Change Initiative Report 2016; GLAAD Report on Queer Representation 2016

*majority don’t pass the “DuVernay Test” of fully realized lives

Cited by researchers at the University of Southern California, who analyzed more than 21,000 characters and behind-the-scenes workers on more than 400 films and TV shows released from September 2014 through August 2015.

An An “epidemic of invisibility”

http://annenberg.usc.edu/pages/~/media/MDSCI/CARDReport%20FINAL%2022216.ashx

What Gets Measured Gets Done

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http://annenberg.usc.edu/pages/DrStacyLSmithMDSCI http

://www.sundance.org/initiatives/womenatsundance/resource-map

http://www.bunchecenter.ucla.edu/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/2015-Hollywood-Diversity-Report-2-25-15.pdf

http://seejane.org/research-informs-empowers/ http://polygraph.cool/films/ http://womenintvfilm.sdsu.edu/research/

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THE ROAD AHEAD: CHALLENGES, SOLUTIONS

Getting more diverse voices into the writers room, the development process, and film financing

CHALLENGE

CBS Diversity Writers Program

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https://www.cbscorporation.com/diversity/diversity-institute/writers-mentoring-program/

Founded by Carole Kirschner 700 applicants, 5 selected 70 participants in 12 years 30 television careers launched

CBS Diversity Writers Program Paired with executive

mentor Once a week evening

workshops with showrunners and other pros

Time in writer’s room and development department

6-month program

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Other Initiatives17

WIF-LA/Sundance Institute Film Financing Intensive (with Morgan Stanley) Result of their landmark study Exploring Barriers

and Opportunities for Women Filmmakers The Writer’s Lab

Meryl Streep Fund for women writers over 40 In partnership w/NYWIFTV

Minority Film Financing18

Oprah (Selma) Sheila Johnson (The Butler) Crowdfunding

Justin Simien – Indiegogo for “Dear White People” Even Spike Lee has used Kickstarter to finance

his films This line has been left blank intentionally

Economic diversity behind the lens and in post

CHALLENGE

Blue Collar Post Collective Supporting emerging

talent in post Monthly meetups- east

and west coast Leveling the economic

playing field for careers in post

Professional Development Accessiblity Program

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Creating productions by and about the differently-abled community

CHALLENGE

Superfest http://www.superfestfilm.com/ 30th anniversary International Disability Film

Festival San Francisco area Accessible films, realistic

characters, promotes acceptance

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Disability Visibility Project https://disabilityvisibil

ityproject.com/tag/filmmakers/

Partnered with StoryCorps for oral histories

Instagram #365dayswithdisability photography

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Veterans in Film and Television http://vftla.org Sara Serrano Mentoring Training Scholarships “Hire a Vet”

program

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Empowering black voices in television leadership, journalism and production

CHALLENGE

NABJ26

http://www.nabj.org Student Multimedia Project Mentoring programs Scholarships Media Institute on Education SEED High School Outreach Cover convention, produce TV newscasts, run social

media and full convention website

Giving women in technical careers more visibility, ensuring technical education and opportunities for women filmmakers

CHALLENGE

#GalsNGear28

#GalsNGear29

#GalsNGear Las Vegas Mexico City New York Shanghai

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THE PERCEPTION GAP: WORK TO DO

What People (Still) Believe32

Minority-focused stories can’t be internationally viable (they are)

Women/People of Color/Differently Abled lack ambition (uh-uh) Minority producers can’t handle large budgets or crews (they

can) Female directors don’t reach lucrative markets (they do) Women can’t direct men (they sure can) There aren’t enough women directors (there are – 45 different

women helmed one of the 100 top grossing movies of the last 13 years)

Source: http://www.sundance.org/pdf/artist-programs/wfi/phase-iii-research---female-filmmakers-initiative.pdf

Overcoming Perception (Newbies) Grab the Gear! Ask questions on set (when the time is

right) Find a mentor or two Snapchat fellow crew – stay in touch Shoot BTS Invest in yourself

Join industry organizations Attend industry events and workshops Take CE for software/hardware

(Lynda.com etc) Share your work

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Where Diverse Mediamakers Can Excel OTT Overseas markets VR/AR

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MAKING A DIFFERENCE ON CAMPUS

WORKSHOP Break into groups of 3-5 people each Designate one writer and one person to report out As you grapple with the questions, define:

Challenges? (inside and outside the classroom) Opportunities? (program-wide, campus-wide or

beyond) What Happens if We Don’t Pay Attention? Actionable Steps (Who? When? How?)

DISCUSS: By what metric(s) beyond overall number of students of color/women/LGBTQ can we measure our success as a diverse program?

Q1: METRICS OF DIVERSITY

DISCUSS: How can we ensure that diverse students tackle the “hands on” technical and leadership positions in production and post?

Q2: PARTICIPATION

DISCUSS: How can we share our progress and actionable ideas with colleagues across other film/media programs?

Q3: COMMUNICATION

WORKSHOP REPORT-OUTS/DEBRIEF Name the Question and Share Your

Discussion Challenges – inside and outside the classroom Opportunities What Happens if We Don’t Pay Attention? Actionable Steps (Who? When? How?)

ACTION STEPS

Wrapping Up Final questions or

thoughts? Resources amy@amydelouise.c

om

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Slide deck at amydelouise.comJoin me on Twitter @brandbuzz #GalsNGearPlease check out The Producer’s Playbook: Real People on

Camera (Routledge/Focal Press)

Thank you!