The major Hollywood studios and streamers have signed on to a diversity initiative spearheaded by Selma filmmaker Ava DuVernay that will promote women and ethnic minority crew members for jobs on TV and movie productions.
DuVernay has officially launched ARRAY Crew, a database for Hollywood’s below-the-line crew members who work behind the scenes to keep sets running and who work in post-production in such jobs as editing, mixing, and visual effects.
Hollywood’s major media companies are supporting the project — WarnerMedia., Disney, Sony, ViacomCBS, and NBCUniversal. In addition, Netflix and Amazon have also thrown their weight behind it.
“Our goal is simply to amplify more professionals in an effort to build inclusive film and television crews,” DuVernay said in a statement.
“The overwhelming support of the studios and streamers has bolstered our belief that our industry can become a more balanced place to work for more kinds and cultures of people, resulting in stronger and more dynamic content for viewers and moviegoers.”
Deadline reported that the database currently covers Los Angeles, New York, Atlanta, New Orleans, Miami, Washington D.C., and Chicago, with plans to expand.
Last year, DuVernay issued a threat to white men who would attempt to criticize her diversity initiatives, saying that she and other powerful black producers may choose not to hire them if they criticize or question diversity in ways that “diminish” people of color.
“Everyone has a right to their opinion. And we — Black producers with hiring power — have the right to not hire those who diminish us,” DuVernay tweeted. “So, to the white men in this thread… if you don’t get that job you were up for, kindly remember… bias can go both ways.”
DuVernay was one of Hollywood’s most outspoken anti-Trump voices. The filmmaker called the president a “white supremacist” and a “disgrace” last year, vowing that she would work to vote him out of office.
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