#WATCHINCOLOR

Almost 40 percent of Americans come from minority groups – but this isn’t reflected in Hollywood. 

Minorities are underrepresented in feature films by 3:1 in leading roles, 3:1 in directors and 5:1 in writers. Diversity is good for film, as it makes the industry more equitable and opens more doors of opportunity for work. And it’s good for audiences too: more diversity in film means more diverse storytelling, and will give more of us the chance to see ourselves and our experiences on screen.

Short films do much better than feature films in this regard. The Oscar nominated short film categories in 2016 had more ethnic minority nominees than all the other major categories combined for feature films.

As the world’s leading short movie channel, we believe that if we are going to change the film industry it must start in short films, which are the most important and accessible source of new talent for the film and TV industries.

So, we’ve launched #WatchInColor to help get more minority filmmakers on-set, on-air and on-screen. We’re doing this by supporting, celebrating and investing in more diverse film opportunities that give emerging talent from minority backgrounds an opportunity to build a career in TV and film.

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Here are some interesting articles that we’ve read about diversity if film and wanted to share with you:

 

• Metro, Will Smith tells Cannes Film Festival ‘a couple black folks (on screen) wouldn’t hurt’, Rebecca Lewis
• E! News, Jessica Chastain “Disturbed” by Representation of Women in Film at Cannes Film Festival, Zach Johnson
• The Washington Post, How ‘Wonder Woman’ director Patty Jenkins cracked the superhero-movie glass ceiling, Michael Cavna
• Hollywood’s Black Renaissance, Master of None’s Lena Waithe is the LA Film Festival Diversity Speaks Keynote, K. Nicole Mills
• The Wilmington Journal, Cannes Film Fest Flunks The Diversity Test With Few Women, No Blacks
• Bloomberg, ‘Wonder Woman’ Sets Out on Her Quest to Transform Hollywood, Anousha Sakoui
• Nylon, Jessica Chastain Goes Off On The “Disturbing” Way Women Are Portrayed In Film, Sydney Gore
• New Statesman, Before Wonder Woman: a surprising history of women-only film screenings, Anna Leszkiewic
• Salon, What Hollywood needs right now is this film about flawed women, Alexandra Clinton
• National Herald India, National Herald India, Entertainment: Diversity is in demand, says Priyanka
• Los Angeles Times, ‘Wonder Woman’ could be the first female-fronted superhero blockbuster. No pressure, Warner Bros., Ryan Faughnder
• The Washington Post, Hollywood loves selling tiny moments as a big deal for diversity. It’s a scam., Alyssa Rosenberg
• Metro, Will Smith tells Cannes Film Festival ‘a couple black folks [on screen] wouldn’t hurt’, Rebecca Lewis
• Cosmopolitan, Disney films dialogue broken down by gender, Anna Lewis
• The Big Idea, NASA Wants You to Direct a Short Film Using Their Space Footage
• BBC News, Jessica Chastain: 5 ways she wants Hollywood to change, Steven McIntosh
• Atlanta Daily World, Atlanta Daily World, Oprah Winfrey Stars in “Henrietta Lacks” and Commencement at Agnes Scott College, K.D. Whittaker
• The Daily Bruin (UCLA), UCLA Extension students showcase award-winning short films at festival, Alexandra Del Rosario
•  The Mercury, MHS grad shooting short film in Manhattan, Stephanie Casanova
• Haute Living, Geena Davis’ Latest Project With VR Will Change Film Forever, Laura Schreffler
•  LA Times, These black colleges in Atlanta are some of Hollywood’s best kept filming secrets, Tre’vell Anderson
• Vanity Fair, What the Oscars Can Learn from the MTV Movie and TV Awards, Julie Miller
• NBC News, Asian-American Filmmakers to Hollywood: Give Us a Platform to Create Without Compromise, Traci G. Lee
• The Washington Post, Chris Pine’s SNL monologue reminds us how bad Hollywood’s superhero diversity problem is, Amy B. Wan
• Entertainment Weekly, Emma Watson praises Asia Kate Dillon after winning gender-neutral MTV award, Joey Nolfi
• USA Today, The MTV Awards celebrate inclusion and diversity with an inspiring show, Carly Mallenbaum
• Marie Claire, Amandla Stenberg’s New Movie Is Bringing Diversity to the White-Washed World of Teen Romance, Mehera Bonner
• The Huffington Post, Bold New Short Film Puts Gender-Fluid Characters In The Spotlight, Victor Legra
• Los Angeles Times, How family — and diversity — fueled the $4 billion ‘Fast and Furious’ franchise to historic box office heights, Jen Yamato
• Variety, More Arab Women Directors Finding Their Voices Through Film, Nick Vivarelli

• Variety, How Jessica Chastain Negotiates for Equal Pay, Ramin Setoodeh
• The Ithacan (Ithaca College), Commentary: Asian Americans lack representation in the media, Sara Kim
• The Daily Trojan (University of Southern California), Actress Gina Rodriguez speaks on diversity in Hollywood, Elizabeth Kirilova
• USA Today, Voices: Hollywood needs more Latino voices, Rick Jervis
• ABC News, Susan Sarandon and Jessica Lange talk gender equality in Hollywood, Michael Rothman
• Variety, ‘3 Generations’ R Rating Is ‘Dangerous’ for Transgender Community, GLAAD President Says, Sarah Kate Ellis
• Variety, Jessica Chastain on Women in Hollywood and Her Biggest Fear About Trump, Ramin Setoodeh
• The Huffington Post, A Black Woman’s Reflection On (White) ‘Girls’, Zeba Blay
• The Poly Post (Cal Poly Pomona), Hollywood should embrace diversity, Ivan Mateo
• The Huffington Post, Diversity In Hollywood: The Conversation Continues, Sandra Matthews-Sims
• Forbes, Academy President Cheryl Boone Isaacs On Diversity In Film: ‘The Door Must Stay Open’, Natalie Robehmed.
• How diverse is Beauty and the Beast? See what The Daily Bruin says…Reel Representation: Diversity in ‘Beauty and the Beast’ is less radical than Disney claims, Olivia Mazzucato.
• Thandie Newton shares her experiences as an actress facing a lack of roles for black and minority ethnic actors in this BBC News article…Historical dramas ‘limit UK black actors’, BBC News.
• The Boston Globe talks about diversity and Box Office and how Jordan Peele became the first African-American writer-director to pass that threshold with his debut feature film…‘Get Out’ and Jordan Peele make movie history, Elahe Izadi.
• NBC News, Diversity in ‘Power Rangers’ Reboot Film Brings New Layers to Well-Known Series, Traci G. Lee.
• The Huffington Post, I Made A Film About Diversity Because Nobody Else Would, Rohil Aniruth.
• Moviefone, ‘Game of Thrones’ Star Nathalie Emmanuel Explains Why Diversity on TV Matters, Stephanie Topacio Long.
• Los Angeles Times, Filmmaker Nancy Paton: ‘Half the world is female and half male. It needs to be that in our films.’, Soniyia Kelley.