Hollywood executives held a secret meeting about gender bias and created a plan to solve it
The event was hosted by Women in Film and the Sundance Institute. According to Deadline, which broke news of the gathering, 44 of the biggest players in the industry - including producers Paula Wagner and Mike De Luca, HBO Films president Len Amato, showrunner Jenji Kohan ("Orange is the New Black"), and actress Maria Bello (pictured) - didn't just meet to chat. They came up with a four-point plan to solve the issue.
Here is that plan:
- Advocate "Unconscious Bias" training across the industry. An expert Unconscious Bias educator will be selected to work with executives and creatives across the board.
- Develop and launch a Gender Parity Stamp to recognize films and television shows - as well as production companies, networks, and studios - that show measurable progress to achieving gender equity
- Sponsor/Protégé Program. This high-level pilot program will identify talented early-to-mid career female film and TV directors for a year-long training and fellowship program, and pair them with advocates across the industry who will actively help them move to the next level.
- Ambassadors from the meeting of industry leaders will spread the word about the solutions to studios, networks, and agencies.
"We are at an economic, social, and cultural tipping point and sustainable change is within reach," Cathy Schulman, president of Women in Film Los Angeles, told Deadline. "The time to act is now. Hollywood is surprisingly late in coming to this party and this is the time for conversion."
Here's the list of all the particiapants at the two-day meeting:
Adriana Alberghetti?Agent and partner, WME
Stephanie Allain?Producer and former Senior Vice President of Production, Columbia Pictures
Victoria Alonso?Executive Vice President of Physical Production, Marvel Studios
Len Amato?President, HBO Films
Darla Anderson?Producer, PGA Board of Directors
Chris Andrews?Agent, CAA
Rowena Arguelles?Agent, CAA
Bonnie Arnold?Co-President, Dreamworks Animation
Glen Basner?CEO of FilmNation
Maria Bello?Actor, activist, author and producer
Andrea Berloff?Screenwriter, WGA Board of Directors
Cindy Chupack?Writer-producer
Maha Dahkil?Agent, CAA
Mike De Luca?Producer, former executive at Sony, New Line and Dreamworks
Zanne Devine?Executive Vice President of Film and Television, Miramax
Cassian Elwes?Producer and former agent and Head of William Morris Independent
Erik Feig?Co-President, Lionsgate
Sid Ganis?Former executive at Sony Pictures, Lucasfilm, Warner Bros. and Paramount and former President of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences
Liz Gateley?Executive Vice President, Head of Programming, Lifetime Television
Micah Green?Agent and Co-Head of Film Finance, CAA
Catherine Hardwicke?Director
Nina Jacobson?Producer and former President of Walt Disney Motion Picture Group
Charles King?Founder of MACRO and former agent and partner, WME
Jenji Kohan?TV series creator
Sue Kroll?President of Worldwide Marketing and Distribution, Warner Bros. Pictures
Franklin Leonard?Founder of The Black List, former executive at Universal and at the production companies of Will Smith, Sydney Pollack and Anthony Minghella, Leonardo DiCaprio and John Goldwyn
Linda Lichter?Founding law partner of Lichter, Grossman, Nichols, Adler & Feldman
Alix Madigan?Head of Creative Affairs, Broad Green Pictures
Zola Mashariki?Executive Vice President, Head of Original Programming at BET Networks, former Senior Vice President, Fox Searchlight
Glen Mazzara?TV creator and showrunner, co-chair of the WGA's Diversity Advisory Group
Hannah Minghella?President, Tristar Pictures and former President, Columbia Pictures
Bruna Papandrea?Producer and co-founder of Pacific Standard
Kimberly Peirce?Writer-director, Western Council and National Board Member, DGA
Lydia Dean Pilcher?Producer and Vice President, PGA
Gigi Pritzker?CEO of OddLot Entertainment and Board Trustee, Sundance Institute
Keri Putnam?Executive Director, Sundance Institute
Howard Rodman?President, WGA West
Rena Ronson?Agent, partner and Head of the Independent Film Group, UTA
Michelle Satter?Founding Director, Sundance Institute Feature Film Program
Cathy Schulman?Head of Production, STX Entertainment, President, Women In Film Los Angeles and Board Member, Film Independent
Stacy Smith?Director of Media, Diversity & Social Change Initiative, USC and author of Women In Film/Sundance Institute research
Mimi Steinbauer?President and CEO, Radiant Films International
Robin Swicord?Screenwriter, Governor for the Writers Branch of the Academy and Chair of the Nicholl Fellowship
Paula Wagner?Producer and co-founder ofCruise/Wagner Productions; former CEO, United Artists; Board Member, PGA