100 creative schemes helping to diversify the industry
In an industry that often imposes barriers to those from underrepresented backgrounds, gaining access to certain networks can change career trajectories. While knowing the right people can seem impossible to those who don’t float in the same circles, there are a growing number of initiatives that exist to open those closed doors to minorities. After the audience at one of their recent events requested a resource featuring diverse and inclusive organisations, magazines and more, networking company Shiny set about collating links together. The result is a pretty impressive list of over 100 activists working in the creative industries. From VFX societies to diverse crews and collectives, we’re re-sharing it here, so get scrolling!
Animation
Animated Women, London, UK
Supporting women in VFX and animation.
animatedwomenuk.com/awuk-ed
Panimation, Worldwide
Panimation brings together over 2,000 ladies, trans and non-binary animators worldwide. A directory and a community.
panimation.tv
Creatives
Chicks in Advertising, Manchester, UK
A casual occasion for women in advertising to get together and hear from inspiring guest speakers.
meetup.com/CIA-Chicks-in-Advertising-Manchester/events
Creative Equals, UK
Diverse teams = diverse work = diverse audiences.
creativeequals.org
Good Girls Eat Dinner, UK
Providing inspirational, kick-ass, female role models across the creative industries.
goodgirlseatdinner.com
Project Noir Hub, London, UK
Arts network for creatives from Black and Asian heritage; working to make the creative industries more culturally diverse.
projectnoirhub.com
She Says
SheSays is an award-winning organisation running free mentorship and events to women in the creative industry.
weareshesays.com
ThisAbility
ThisAbility is designed to serve disabled creatives and those who work in fields where the talent of these creatives is missing.
thisability.co
Unstereotype Alliance, New York, USA
An industry-led initiative convened by UN Women to unite leaders across business, technology and creative industries to tackle the widespread prevalence of stereotypes.
unstereotypealliance.org/en/contact
We Are Stripes
Championing ethnic diversity within the creative industries.
wearestripes.org.uk
Crew
Alliance of Women Directors, USA
Founded in 1997 by alumnae of the American Film Institute’s Directing. Workshop for Women as a community of peers to share information and support one another’s career advancement.
allianceofwomendirectors.org
Cinesisters, UK
A collective of award-winning female directors dedicated to the creation of more films by and about women.
cinesisters.com
FilmPro, UK
Our mission is to extend the ways of making and experiencing film and digital art, while enhancing the diversity of the UK and worldwide arts sector, including disability diversity.
filmpro.net
Free The Bid/Work, Worldwide
Advocating on behalf of women directors for equal opportunities to bid on commercial jobs in the global advertising industry.
freethebid.com
Girls in Film, Worldwide
Girls in Film represents, champions and connects the new generation of female-identified creatives in the film industry.
girlsinfilm.net
Grow Your Circle, USA
A digital tool for the entire US advertising industry that allows agencies and producers to find underrepresented talent from disciplines across all types of production.
forsman.co/work/grow-your-circle/growyourcircleorg
Illuminatrix
Illuminatrix is a collective of female cinematographers based in the UK and working internationally.
illuminatrixdops.com
Int Collective of Female Cinematographers, USA
A collective of professional female cinematographers from around the US and the world.
icfcfilm.com
Lights, Camera, Power, London, UK
To equip directors with the technical skillset to achieve their vision and to nurture a collaborative relationship with the Director of Photography.
facebook.com/groups/LCP.workshops
Pro-quote Film
The perspectives of women in film must occur!/ Die Perspektiven von Frauen müssen vorkommen!
proquote-film.de
Raising Films, UK
One social barrier particularly affects women, although it applies to everyone: Family vs. Film.
raisingfilms.com
Roaring Girl Productions
Bringing to light marginalised and misrepresented stories, both contemporary and historical.
roaring-girl.com
ScreenSkills, UK
ScreenSkills is the industry-led skills charity for the screen industries, working across the UK to ensure that film, television (including children’s and high-end drama), VFX (visual effects), animation and games have the skills and diverse talent they need.
screenskills.com
Sisterhood / David Reviews, UK
Celebrating work from female filmmakers in the advertising industry.
davidreviews.tv/Sisterhood
The GirlGaze Network, New York, USA, Worldwide
An innovative platform that connects brands with our global community of female identifying creatives to create content that mobilises, engages, and inspires.
girlgaze.com/agency-creative
Together! Photographers and Filmmakers Club, London, UK
Free photography and filmmakers club for all disabled people.
together2012.org.uk/activities-programme/together-clubs/photographers-filmmakers-club/
UndrLndn, London, UK
A London based film platform and collective aiming to support emerging filmmakers and creative talent in our city.
undrlndn.com/what-we-do
Voice Of a Woman / Made By Her, Worldwide
Celebrates creativity with a bold and innovative program featuring the works of creative women globally.
thevoiceofawoman.com
We Direct Music Videos
Pushing for improvements in the music video process to be more respectful, transparent, and minimise free work on behalf of the thousands of music video directors our organisation represents.
wedirectmusicvideos.com
WiFTi international, Worldwide
A global network for women and non binary people working in all areas of film, video, and other screen-based media.
wifti.net
Women Behind the Camera, UK
A showcase for the many women working behind the camera in the UK feature film and TV drama sectors of the industry.
womenbehindthecamera.co.uk
Women in Film, USA
Advocates for and advances the careers of women working in the screen industries—to achieve parity and transform culture.
womeninfilm.org
Women in Film and TV, UK
Women in Film and TV (UK) is the leading membership organisation for women working in creative media in the UK.
wftv.org.uk
Women on Docs
Celebrating the contribution of women in documentary making.
facebook.com/WomenOnDocs
Crew and Creatives
British Blacklist, UK
The online global home for African Caribbean British creative professionals on the Screen and Stage, in Sound and Literature – both up front and behind the scenes.
thebritishblacklist.co.uk/about
British East Asian Media, UK
To connect and support those who are of East Asian and Southeast Asian heritage working in the media industry in UK.
facebook.com/groups/britisheastasianmedia
Female Muslim Creatives
Non-profit arts organisation seeking to support Muslim Women Artists.
femalemuslimcreatives.com
InVisible Creatives, Worldwide
An initiative to help fix the gender ratio in the advertising industry by creating the largest female creative database.
invisiblecreatives.co/mission
NABS
NABS improves the wellbeing of everyone in the advertising and media industry.
nabs.org.uk
Owned by Women
A global coalition of united women business owners helping shape the future of equality and diversity within the advertising production industry.
ownedbywomen.tv
POCC
Positively changing the experiences of people of colour in the creative industries, and beyond.
wearepocc.com
Social Fixt, UK
Sharing job opportunities to a wider network.
facebook.com/groups/socialfixt
The Fawcett Society, UK
The Fawcett Society is the UK’s leading membership charity campaigning for gender equality and women’s rights at work, at home and in public life.
fawcettsociety.org.uk
The Female Quotient, USA, Worldwide
Advancing equality in the workplace through collaboration, activating solutions for change, and creating measurements for accountability.
thefemalequotient.com
The Future is Neurodiverse
Championing neurodversity in the creative and tech industries.
thefutureisnd.com
The Kusp, London, UK
The Kusp provides a gateway for diverse creatives from underrepresented backgrounds to excel within the fashion and film and television industries.
thekusp.co.uk
The Other Box
An award-winning organisation, empowering and enlightening people to work and live more inclusively.
theotherbox.org
Women in Advertising Production
A Network for ALL women involved in making TV, cinema, online commercials, branded content, marketing at all stages, from creatives to crew, receptionists to reps, producers to post supervisors!
facebook.com/groups/143522175718616/about
Women of Color Unite
Women of Color Unite (WOCU) is a social action non-profit organisation
focusing on fair access, fair treatment and fair pay for women of colour
in all aspects of the entertainment and media industries.
wocunite.com
Environment
Albert, London, UK
An authority on environmental sustainability for film and TV – a place to share, learn and act.
wearealbert.org
Julie’s Bicycle
A London based charity that supports the creative community to act on climate change and environmental sustainability.
juliesbicycle.com
Fashion
Pepper Your Talk, London, UK
An access-all-areas platform working 24/7 to support the career needs of fashion's next generation.
pepperyourtalk.co.uk
Funding
Breaking Through the Lens, UK
A pioneering initiative connecting female-identifying directors to top tier financiers.
breakingthroughthelens.co.uk
Marketing
BAME20/20, London, UK
Our Vision is for 20% of all marketing and communication professionals to come from a BAME background by 2020.
bame2020.org/who-we-are
Bloom, London, UK
Bloom is a professional network for women in communications.
bloomuk.org
Madland Hack, UK
For BAME marketeers to connect, support and create a nepotic community.
facebook.com/groups/madlandhack
Media
A Female Lens, LA, USA
A podcast that aims to both spotlight women in film through thoughtful discussion and cultivate a community of women dedicated to excellence in the film industry.
afemalelens.com
APA Good Karma
a-p-a.net/good-karma
Best Girl Grip Podcast, Worldwide
A weekly podcast interviewing women behind-the-scenes and below-the-line of the British film industry.
bestgirlgrip.podbean.com
Cinegirl Magazine
A magazine for women in the film and tv industry.
cinegirl.net
gal-dem, Worldwide
A new media publication, committed to telling the stories of women and non-binary people of colour.
gal-dem.com
In Other News
An online collection of positive Black British stories.
inothernews.uk
Kanaiza, Worldwide
A global community of Diaspora artists and art lovers.
mailchi.mp/b6d6e5974332/kanaiza
Pitch
Challenges inequality, discrimination and the lack of diversity in the creative industry, and showcasing outstanding talent.
thepitchfanzine.com
TrailblazingMuslimWomen, UK
A list of trailblazing muslim women.
zainabk.com/trailblazers2018
THIIIRD
An independent magazine and inclusive platform amplifying the voices and visibility of talent from underrepresented backgrounds.
thiiirdmagazine.co.uk
Music
LoveMusicHateRacism, UK
Uses the energy and vibrancy of the music scene to promote unity and celebrate diversity through education and events.
lovemusichateracism.com
She Said So
shesaid.so is a network of women who work in the music industry.
facebook.com/shesaids0
Urban Development, London, UK
Playing an integral role in the growth of urban music in the UK.
urbandevelopment.co.uk
We Are Listening! / Toolroom, UK
To encourage and develop new female talent in electronic music.
toolroomrecords.com/news/we-are-listening
Young Guns Network, UK
Our network are entrepreneurs, young executives and ambitious young people working in media with a ‘positive hustle’ mindset.
readymag.com/u22872616/496860
Young Urban Arts Foundation, UK
Helping vulnerable and disadvantaged young people fulfil their potential by engaging them with music and other arts.
yuaf.org.uk
Post and VFX
Access VFX, London, UK
Pursuing inclusion, diversity, awareness and opportunity within the VFX, animation and games industries.
accessvfx.org
Blue Collar Post, London, New York, LA
Over 80% of our revenue supports a program that sends low income post production workers to industry events that would otherwise be out of reach.
bluecollarpostcollective.com
Edit Collective, London
London-based edit collective and support network for female, non-binary and trans identifying, editors.
editcollective.co.uk
Edit Girls, UK
Championing women in Post.
instagram.com/editgirlslondon
Screening
Black Ballad, UK
Elevating the voices of black British women through content, community and commerce.
blackballad.co.uk
Black Femme Film, London, UK
Our film club creates a safe space for otherwise marginalised and forgotten movie-lovers to come together, enjoy great film and even greater company.
blackfemmefilm.com
Black Girl Fest, London, UK
The UK’s first arts and cultural festival celebrating black British women and girls.
blackgirlfest.com
Bounce Cinema, UK
Superb and properly diverse film screenings with Q&As in London.
bouncecinema.com
Illuminatrix and IX Rising, UK
illuminatrix rising, an offshoot of illuminatrix, showcases emerging and developing talent on a monthly basis.
illuminatrixdops.com
Ladies with Lenses, NYC, Worldwide
Vimeo Staff Picked films made by women.
vimeo.com/channels/ladieswithlenses
New Filmmakers, LA
Spotlights Black cinema with a selection of short films from Black filmmakers.
newfilmmakersla.com
The Film Bunch, London, UK
London's first monthly subtitled pop-up cinema.
thefilmbunch.com
YourCinema, UK
Your Cinema is a platform dedicated to showcasing films, documentaries and talent from diverse communities in the UK.
yourcinemafilms.com
Young Creatives
RoutesIn, New York, Amsterdam
Routes In is designed to open up the creative industry, making it more inclusive and diverse by supporting every route to success.
routesin.com
Tower Hamlets EBP and Inspire!, London, UK
EBP and Inspire! Let young people know that there are opportunities for them in the advertising production industry.
inspire-ebp.org.uk
Young Creative Council, UK
Helping bridge the gap between young talent and the creative industries.
youngcreativecouncil.com
Fuse, Manchester UK
A directory, championing Manchester’s ethnic minority creatives, working towards a racially diverse creative industry.
fuse.directory
Do That Thing
A new kind of mentorship for black and ethnic minority creatives in the UK.
instagram.com/dothat_thing
Young Crew
Into Film, UK
Into Film puts film at the heart of children and young people’s learning, aiding their educational, cultural and personal development.
intofilm.org
Just Runners, UK
An inclusive agency providing runners for UK film industry. Over 60% of film crew started as a runner. Invest in diverse futures.
justrunners.uk
You Make It, UK
Offers a creative and inspiring programme for young women to access tools, networks, experiences and the confidence to transform their lives through personal empowerment.
you-make-it.org
Young Crew and Creatives
BAD, London, UK
The British Arrows Doorway connects the advertising industry - who are actively looking to hire the next generation of talent - with fresh voices that represent our multicultural nation.
wearebad.org.uk
Break Communications, UK
Delivering campaigns for young people by young people.
break-comms.com
Creative Access, UK
Our vision: Working towards a day when Britain’s society is truly reflected in our creative industries.
creativeaccess.org.uk
Creative Mentor Network, UK
Our mission is to make the creative world of work more diverse and inclusive through mentoring.
creativementornetwork.org
Eric Fest and Mag, London, UK
Empowering young creatives by providing relevant and interesting careers advice about the creative and digital industries.
ericfestival.com
Iconic Steps, London UK
To develop a growth mindset in young people so they can overcome barriers and take their first steps towards a fulfilling career.
iconicsteps.co.uk
Ideas Foundation, UK
Last year 92% of creative jobs in the UK were held by the most ‘advantaged’ in society. Ideas Foundation are here to help move the creative, tech and communications industries in a more diverse direction.
ideasfoundation.org.uk
Livity, London, UK
Bringing brands together with diverse, next gen talent to make the world a better place.
livity.co.uk
Los Angeles Urban League Young Professionals, LA, USA
A commitment to corporate, social, and community contributions to enhance the African-American business climate in Los Angeles.
laulyp.com
Mama Youth, London, UK
The misrepresentation of people from under-represented groups in the media negatively affects society. Mama Youth want to change this.
mamayouth.org.uk
Media Trust, London, UK
Encouraging the media and creative industry to share their time, knowledge and creativity to benefit charities, under-represented communities and young people.
mediatrust.org/news-and-blogs
Modern Tales
Professional development and career opportunities for diverse filmmakers.
moderntales.co.uk
Talk2Dan, UK
A recruitment and consultancy agency which helps young people aged 16-25 break into the media industry.
talk2dan.co.uk
The Creative Society, UK
Striving to find the best possible outcomes for young people.
thecreativesociety.co.uk/Pages/Category/what-we-do
...
SHINY connects diverse, emerging directors to the commercial video industry
via annual awards, feedback and regular events. Find out more here.
Mention Shiny
