Hollywood Creative Forum: Inspiring and Promoting Diversity in Film and Television

Hollywood Creative

The 8th annual Hollywood Creative Forum, hosted by the Walter Kaitz Foundation, kicked off yesterday in Beverly Hills as leading content creators of color in the film and television business congregated to hear about the latest on diversity and inclusion in the industry and to share expertise on how to get ahead in the programming world.

The speakers, moderators and panelists throughout the two-day event, who spoke about topics ranging from storytelling techniques, the viewing patterns of African-American millennials, family and children’s entertainment, to the making of a television show, come from a variety of networks and studios, including: Warner Bros. TV, Universal Television, Nickelodeon, BET, HBO, Viacom, Netflix, VH1, Sony Pictures, NBC, TBS & TNT, TV One, Revolt TV, Disney, A&E, 20th Century Fox, Nielsen, and more.

The Forum began with a conversation with Suzanne dePasse, a television, music and film executive and winner of multiple Emmys who discovered some of the greatest African-American performers of the century, including Michael Jackson. A morning panel led by programming executives also offered advice on how writers can best navigate their way through Hollywood and corporate environments and truly stand out among the competition.

Attendees got a chance to partake in a speed networking activity by visiting and rotating tables led by networks and studio executives. Then later in the morning, attendees received tips from Donna Michelle Anderson (DMA) of Planet DMA, and a veteran of the Forum, that centered around best practices for getting projects funded and launching successful financing campaigns. (DMA spoke to us last week about the impact the Forum has had on people’s careers in the industry).

Showrunners in Hollywood offered their perspectives during a luncheon panel that ranged from the challenges of working for big television shows amid the digital age, as well as weaving in characters and storylines that reflect diverse audiences across the country. The showrunners panel will become a staple for the Forum, and one that attendees benefit from immensely, as Hollywood showrunner Adam Matalon told us last week.

And of course, there was a discussion on the role of virtual and augmented reality in television, how it’s shaping the future of the cinematic world, and what budding producers and content creators need to know as they advance through the film and television business.

One of the highlights of the Forum came with the unveiling of the 2017 Hollywood Diversity Report issued by UCLA’s Ralph J. Bunche Center for African American Studies and led by Professor Darnell Hunt. The findings revealed that while women have made strides in Hollywood over the past year, and several television shows with diverse casts have come to light, women and minorities are still underrepresented in the business, whether on screen or behind the scenes. Minorities have gained some ground in recent years when it comes to succeeding as creators of premium TV scripted shows, or as lead performers in premium TV reality programs or other shows, but there is still work to be done to ensure that diverse perspectives are reflected in the programming world.

Which leads us to the reason that the Forum exists in the first place — to serve as a place where some of the most brilliant and creative minds in the business can congregate and lay the groundwork for a richer and more diverse Hollywood that speaks to the many demographics, cultures, ethnicities and perspectives that make up America’s viewership. We look forward to witnessing the promising partnerships and projects that come out of the Forum as it continues to play an important role in shaping diversity in Hollywood.