GirlsINFocus Summer Filmmaking Intensive

Access to tech and creative industry employment

Expand existing project, program, or initiative (expanding and continuing ongoing, successful work)

We are committed to increasing underrepresented female voices and empowerment in the film industry behind and in front of the camera with the goal of eradicating gender disparity in the industry. Annenberg Institute confirms the problem: “Hollywood movies perpetuate a lack of inclusive representation of those from underrepresented racial/ethnic groups, girls and women, the LGBTQ community, and individuals with disabilities.” In Variety, Dave McNary wrote, “Men comprised 68% and women 32% of all directors, writers, producers, executive producers, editors, and cinematographers working on films in festivals in 2018-19.” He added that on films directed by women 72% of writers and 45% of editors were women as opposed to 11% & 21% on male directed films. To end the gross underrepresentation, we train and support youth early in order to penetrate the odds that are stacked against them. As future content leaders they will inspire more girls, shape the stories told and help define our culture.

We increase the power of women in the film industry by creating a pipeline connecting, educating and preparing our girls and non-binary youth to win jobs that typically go to men in technical positions and leadership roles such as directing, writing, producing and cinematography. As future content leaders these underrepresented and underserved participants will gain access to industry jobs, inspire more girls, shape the stories told and help define our culture. To attain equity, we include diverse groups of girls and non-binary youth ages 10-18 and provide financial hardship scholarships. Our filmmaking intensive is taught by top professionals, some Emmy-winning, who volunteer in all areas of production providing crucial training. Students form groups creating their own production companies in a safe, virtual, collaborative environment and get behind the camera to light and shoot their own films while also participating in the writing, acting, directing, editing, and producing processes. This underserved demographic showcases their films at a red-carpet festival where they participate in a Q&A with the audience. Many of our alumni have used these films to help gain entrance into top universities for film and have gone on to earn top internships with major studios and have secured employment in the film industry. Some have even used these skills to join other GirlsINFocus endeavors such as teaching STEM classes for LAUSD and virtual workshops for the GIF workshop series.

In the short term our summer film intensive where we supply partial and full scholarships impacts girls and non-binary youth from all economic strata giving them a voice and critical filmmaking tools as they create their own festival-ready films. Training in this safe space and receiving professional mentorship early aids in their quest to become employable in the industry, gain entrance into top universities and prepares them for lifelong careers as leaders. Our first in-person summer intensive in 2023 at Radford Studios yielded 3 films made by participants from all over LA. In our 2024 program 4 films were made and took place in San Pedro. Our impact is being felt across LA county. By the end of the grant year, we hope to reach a class of 25 girls and within 2 years we hope to reach 100 with satellite programs. Our growth directly impacts the stories being told throughout LA county with the introduction of new unique female voices boosting their presence in a male-dominated industry.

Our high school alumni, who chose to, are/have attended university film programs and earned internships and/or employment with major studios. Our alumni also finds employment with our other endeavors such as teaching animation and media literacy through the LA STEM Collective for LAUSD and working on productions for our for-profit entity Focus50. We also measure success by our participants who have proclaimed to have grown as individuals as a result of working on their films. Our collaborative process places girls and non-binary who have never met together as they navigate making their own films and are uplifted by not only receiving, but also giving support to their fellow filmmakers as they discover their passion for all or part of the filmmaking process. Learning young to support each other creates a pathway for them to support each other as woman and as cited in question 6, when women are at the helm, they hire other women so creating that network at a young age is imperative.