Pittsburgh Arts, Regional Theatre, New Work, Producing, Copyright, Labor Unions,
New Products, Coping Skills, J-O-Bs...
Theatre industry news, University & School of Drama Announcements, plus occasional course support for
Carnegie Mellon School of Drama Faculty, Staff, Students, and Alumni.
CMU School of Drama
Wednesday, August 29, 2018
ReFrame, IMDBPro Announce 22 Freshly-Certified Gender-Balanced Films
Variety: ReFrame — a coalition of industry leaders founded by Women in Film and the Sundance Institute — and IMDBPro announced on Tuesday nearly two dozen films to be certified for their gender-balanced productions.
3 comments:
Iana D.
said...
What ReFrame is doing for the film industry is important on a few levels. Firstly, the recognition and praise of gender inclusivity in film – not only on screen, but off as well – is crucial in encouraging others to follow suit. Representation in film and on television is vital in shaping young peoples’ views of the world as well as their own self-worth. Media in general plays a major role in how people view themselves in the modern age, and when there is a lack of actors on screen that minorities can relate to, those groups can feel neglected, unimportant, and unrepresented. I feel a bit weary about the criteria for diversity, however. To say, “you have to hire x number of women in order to meet these standards,” or “x number of Hispanic people,” is kind of beside the point. It’s like affirmative action. At the end of the day, it should be about the work, and how fit for a job a person is, and their gender, race or ethnicity is not a qualification for a job (unless they’re auditioning for the Color Purple or something along those lines). The point is that people should not be discriminated against for attributes which they can not change, but they should not be favored for them either. I hope that positive reinforcement campaigns such as this will send us in the right direction, but I also hope that in the future once these standards are more common practice and everyone is recognized as equal regardless of physical characteristics, we won’t have to rely on quotas in order to have diversity in the workplace, it should just happen.
In today's society, film and television and all other forms of media have a strong effect. These are the quickest ways to make statements and affect the ways people view themselves, others and the world. Today's youth are the primary target audience for media and we have to use to build and encourage them. It is important to see oneself being represented mainstream because it gives validation and inspires growth. I commend ReFrame for the work that is being done and for taking the initiative to change the narrative. I appreciate the effort that is being put in to make sure minorities are being given time and opportunity to excel in mainstream. At the same time, I also want the quality of the work to be exceptional. I believe having a constant reminder that the work has to be exceptional and showcase the diversity of the world will push us to the point that it becomes second nature. I honestly believe that it will get to a point where size, race, sexuality and gender will not be a factor in creating amazing work. Talent and hardwork will be the only determining factor.
I enjoyed this article not only for it's main purpose of promoting women and gender equality, but also because it not only focused on the balance in front of the camera but also the balance behind the camera. Of course there is still work to be done on the non-creative side of the industry, but beginning to recognize this balance at all is a great step in the right direction. The article highlights the way in which ReFrame has marketed their seal of approval. They have made it an honor and recognized each films efforts towards innovation. Inviting directors and producers to challenge their films against this honor makes the stamp of approval something for them to strive toward. Overall, I am glad to see information like this being collected and the results of a balanced project celebrated.
3 comments:
What ReFrame is doing for the film industry is important on a few levels. Firstly, the recognition and praise of gender inclusivity in film – not only on screen, but off as well – is crucial in encouraging others to follow suit. Representation in film and on television is vital in shaping young peoples’ views of the world as well as their own self-worth. Media in general plays a major role in how people view themselves in the modern age, and when there is a lack of actors on screen that minorities can relate to, those groups can feel neglected, unimportant, and unrepresented.
I feel a bit weary about the criteria for diversity, however. To say, “you have to hire x number of women in order to meet these standards,” or “x number of Hispanic people,” is kind of beside the point. It’s like affirmative action. At the end of the day, it should be about the work, and how fit for a job a person is, and their gender, race or ethnicity is not a qualification for a job (unless they’re auditioning for the Color Purple or something along those lines). The point is that people should not be discriminated against for attributes which they can not change, but they should not be favored for them either. I hope that positive reinforcement campaigns such as this will send us in the right direction, but I also hope that in the future once these standards are more common practice and everyone is recognized as equal regardless of physical characteristics, we won’t have to rely on quotas in order to have diversity in the workplace, it should just happen.
In today's society, film and television and all other forms of media have a strong effect. These are the quickest ways to make statements and affect the ways people view themselves, others and the world. Today's youth are the primary target audience for media and we have to use to build and encourage them. It is important to see oneself being represented mainstream because it gives validation and inspires growth. I commend ReFrame for the work that is being done and for taking the initiative to change the narrative. I appreciate the effort that is being put in to make sure minorities are being given time and opportunity to excel in mainstream. At the same time, I also want the quality of the work to be exceptional. I believe having a constant reminder that the work has to be exceptional and showcase the diversity of the world will push us to the point that it becomes second nature. I honestly believe that it will get to a point where size, race, sexuality and gender will not be a factor in creating amazing work. Talent and hardwork will be the only determining factor.
Stephanie Akpapuna
I enjoyed this article not only for it's main purpose of promoting women and gender equality, but also because it not only focused on the balance in front of the camera but also the balance behind the camera. Of course there is still work to be done on the non-creative side of the industry, but beginning to recognize this balance at all is a great step in the right direction. The article highlights the way in which ReFrame has marketed their seal of approval. They have made it an honor and recognized each films efforts towards innovation. Inviting directors and producers to challenge their films against this honor makes the stamp of approval something for them to strive toward. Overall, I am glad to see information like this being collected and the results of a balanced project celebrated.
Post a Comment