Cate Blanchett, Coco Francini, Stacy L. Smith | Women in Motion Talk - Cannes Film Festival 2024
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00:00Well, thank you to everyone for joining us. This is essentially the one-year anniversary party
00:06of Proof of Concept. Well, what is it like? We are bringing this full circle. Proof of Concept
00:12was actually born here during a Caring Women in Motion conversation. Tell us a little bit
00:18about that. Take us back to 2023. Yeah, a year ago, Coco and I were here in this forum,
00:25which is a wonderful forum, and thanks for having us again. Dr. Stacey was in the audience and came
00:32up immediately afterwards, someone who couldn't be more engaged in women in film and in motion.
00:40Because our conversational gambit was that I'd name-checked the Annenberg Inclusion Initiative,
00:47which, of course, Dr. Stacey heads up, in tar. It went from there. Then Coco and Stacey have
00:55cooked up this amazing program, which Dirty Film's supporting. Absolutely. Tell me about
01:00those early conversations. Sure. Basically, when you stood up and you asked a question
01:07in our panel last year, it was like, you're a celebrity to us. Yes. After the mention in tar,
01:13and also our work on Mrs. America, where we had all of our episodes directed by women,
01:20except for Ryan Fleck, who comes along with Anna Boden, and we love him.
01:26We also used the inclusion writer. When she stood up, we were like, oh my God, she's here.
01:33The conversation that day was really about how hard it is for women, trans and non-binary
01:39directors, to get their start, find financing. We started talking about it, and she was like,
01:45why don't you do something? You're complaining. Why don't you do something? We came up with this,
01:51which we feel has a really actionable step towards elevating those filmmakers.
01:56A year on, we're getting ready to announce the winners of the program. It's really,
02:02really exciting. Yes, the big reveals tomorrow. Yes. A lot's happened in a year. We can't thank
02:07women in motion enough. I know they've been doing this for 15 years, but the fruit of our labor
02:12with them partnering, tomorrow we'll see the dividends of really what Caring has put in motion,
02:20giving us the forum to meet, and now, hopefully, transforming 11 folks behind the camera to move
02:28in their careers in a way that perhaps they wouldn't without the resources that
02:32they're going to be awarded. Stacey, let's talk about that, because you just mentioned 11.
02:3711 filmmakers are going to be selected for this program, but you had more than 1,200 applicants.
02:44100%. A lot of folks were interested. Over 167,000 interactions with our website.
02:51There's an appetite, and what's really amazing is that if you look at the landscape of entertainment,
02:58the top 100 films over the last 16 years, only 6% of directors, but if you go to independent,
03:04it's 58% are women. If you go to TV, it's about 40%. If you go to Netflix films, it's about 25%,
03:13but 6% of top grossing films are women, and we like to talk about the fiscal cliff.
03:19I'm getting a tattoo. My most important accomplishment will be a
03:24pleasure with a tattoo, a fiscal cliff that will get matching ones, but what's really important here is
03:31that when we put out the call, over 40%, actually over 50% of our submissions were from people of
03:38color that were women, trans, and non-binary. 10% of the submissions, almost 10% were trans,
03:44and almost 10% were non-binary directors, so when companies or folks in the industry say it can't be
03:51done, we actually have data to say that there is a very, very interested talent pool. They will apply,
03:58and they will lean into telling marketable stories to make an impact.
04:04Well, Kate, since you're willing to get fiscal cliff tattooed on your body,
04:07would you mind sharing people what that means? I think you should. You do the best description
04:11of the fiscal cliff. Absolutely. Yeah, the tear that goes along with it, so that drop in statistics
04:19really illuminates that there's a gendered marketplace for historically marginalized
04:24individuals when they try to move from one to multiple features, and for women, trans, and non-binary
04:30folks, it's the one and done. They get one at bat, right, and so this program, right, led by these
04:37artists to my right and left, I'm learning to be an artist through this experience, really is going
04:43to help change and shapeshift, I think, the top 100 films. So they get access to larger budgets.
04:49I mean, there is a real, what we identified is part of the problem is there's a failure of
04:53imagination. So you might have a small percentage of your cast, very small percentage of your cast
05:01being trans or non-binary in front of the camera, but what about behind the camera, and what about
05:06those people who are actually authoring the stories? So when we talk about diversity and,
05:11you know, breaking down the homogeneity of the types of stories that we get to see as audience
05:17members, but also make as cinema artists or working in television, you know, like it's got
05:23to be more dynamic. You know, there's so much talent there, and that's what we wanted to harness,
05:28and I think part of the program of Proof of Concept is that it's giving money to these
05:35recipients to make a short film, which can live in and of itself, but also sits as proof for those
05:42people who cannot imagine the worlds that they are trying to describe, what their feature would
05:46be. So it's a well-resourced document that is unassailably excellent, and undeniably fundable
05:55for those organizations and institutions that they go in to try and pitch to.
06:00And I'll add, I think that the thing that we're trying to address is that
06:04films directed by women, trans, and non-binary people are seen as risky. All films are risky,
06:08but these films are seen as niche or risky, and what this does is it kind of, it's an
06:15experimentation with a new model that we allow people to, you know, have something that they can
06:21say, look, I can do this. I can do this type of movie. I don't have to do a movie that's,
06:26you know, a small independent, you know, film that, you know, doesn't have a lot of commercial
06:31potential. So we just want to help build those artists up to be able to to show that to the
06:36marketplace. Well, Coco, I'm so glad you mentioned the word risky, and the idea that, you know,
06:41female-fronted, and obviously also women behind the camera are also deemed risky. And I want to
06:48ask you specifically as a producer as well, that is kind of your job, is to find ways to eliminate
06:54risk. So how do you kind of balance in that paradox, and what are you sharing with these
07:01filmmakers to kind of help them along that way of navigating this idea of women's stories being
07:08risky? Yeah, I mean, I think that we're addressing it in several different ways. First, the financing,
07:13and this is kind of coming from the Annenberg Inclusion Initiative's research that the three
07:18barriers they find is these directors don't have financing, they don't have exposure, and they
07:22don't have mentorship. So those are the three areas that the program focuses on, and I mean,
07:26it started with this incredible selection committee that we put together for the program,
07:31and we've just, we've only gotten yes when we've gone to filmmakers and said, can you help us?
07:38Would you talk to these filmmakers and give them some advice? I mean, it's really about creating
07:43that fellowship, and that's a word that kind of grew most out of the program and the feedback
07:49we were getting, and it's interesting because in a way, this thing, Women in Motion is a fellowship
07:54that created this. So what we want to create for these filmmakers is like a real community and
07:58fellowship that's not only among them, among the emerging filmmakers, but also the really
08:03experienced ones like Greta Gerwig and Janicza and Jane Campion and Lula Wachowski, all these
08:09people that are part of our selection committee. But can I just talk about risk for a minute?
08:13Because it's, I think the industry, the more it embraces being risk averse, the more it's deemed
08:20to being full of banal failures. And I think any time that I personally have advanced
08:28creatively in my career is when I have taken risks. And so it's just that a lot of our male
08:34counterparts in the industry are applauded for their risk and their bravery, and they're given
08:40a hundred million dollars more than all the actors, male actors are taking incredible risks.
08:45It may not have worked, but God, that's interesting to see them do that. And I think, you know, that we
08:50still talk about the female directors who are working with the big budgets, one of whom is
08:54heading up the jury this year, bra, bra, bra, bra, so great. You know, but we don't give them the
09:01bigger budgets and they have to, there's so much pressure then if they succeed as to what they do
09:07next. And I think it's really important in any creative life. It is not, once you hit a peak,
09:15there will be a trough. That is part of what you do in that trough and the support you get in that
09:21trough to come and make something fresh and new. I mean, you know, there's the Michael Bays of this
09:26world who do the same thing all the time and do it incredibly well. And that's what he, that's
09:31where he likes to live. But not all artists do that. And I think that, I think it's the death
09:37of the industry if we don't take risks on anybody, let alone women, trans and non-binary filmmakers.
09:43Well, let's talk about that selection committee. We've mentioned a few names, but
09:46Lily Gladstone, Chloe Zhao, Emma Corrin, Eva Longoria, Greta Gerwig, Jane Campion, Janicza
09:52Bravo, Lily Polsky. Yeah, you know, I mean, you know, we tried. Yeah, exactly. Really, that was
09:59tough, I'm sure. It's casual. It's casual. What is it like to assemble so many people who have
10:05such varied experiences, such varied sensibilities, but also so much success in being risky and taking
10:13chances in so many different genres, so many different budget levels as well? I mean, this
10:18feels like the perfect people to evaluate these films, these 1200 applicants, and to be able to
10:27see, you know, what is there for these films. Well, I mean, this is a bunch of women who are
10:34undeniably at the, you know, the pinnacle of the industry and incredibly talented and diversely so
10:44individuals, but they are also individuals who have really understand struggle. They really
10:49understand how difficult it is to have had found the producers and the organizations who believe
10:54in them and for them to keep developing in the way that they have as artists. So they are totally
11:01alive to the challenges that these filmmakers that we're talking about supporting, you know,
11:08will face. And I think it was really important to us to have a selection committee, because often
11:12you see a work that is perhaps about a subject matter that we don't normally see in mainstream
11:19cinema or on a mainstream platform, that someone will come on board to exec produce something. And
11:24it's like saying, I believe in this. I have a platform. I am a recognizable entity. I am behind
11:30this. And it really helps the filmmaker open doors for them. And so we felt by that selection
11:36committee, A, we'd get their perspective, which has been totally invaluable and really helpful,
11:44you know, as the program develops. But it's also, we get the imprimatur that they support the idea,
11:50you know. And I think that that's the thing is when you reach a certain point in the industry,
11:53we do understand how difficult it has been and continues to be. You know, we talk about the pay
12:00gap, but, you know, we haven't got, we haven't got two hours to talk about that. We can make two
12:04hours. But I think it's really important that, you know, to give back and to mentor. And so by
12:10their involvement, there's a mentorship, even in their involvement at this level.
12:14I think it was really important to signal, too, to who we wanted to submit that we were serious,
12:19right? There are only two transgender directors across 1600 movies. One of them is on our
12:24selection committee, right? And she reached out when she heard our announcement and asked to be
12:30a part of the program. So I think that these, you know, these people are invigorated by what we're
12:34doing and want to support it. Well, I was just going to say, if we want indigenous filmmakers,
12:41somebody like Lily Gladstone is incredibly important. Emma, we want non-binary creators.
12:48We need to let people know this is a place for community. This is a place for fellowship. This
12:53is a place to belong. And our numbers, I mean, with over 50% of submissions, people of color,
13:00I think we really communicated we want a variety of perspectives in this submission pool. And then
13:10our recipients reflect that submission pool in a way that I think is very thrilling,
13:16and we'll see novelty and imagination as a function of that. So it's really exciting.
13:22Well, tell me a little bit about the recipients, because I know we can't, you know, reveal who
13:26anybody is right now or what the films are, but something that stood out to me from the beginning
13:30of this program is it's not just for first-time filmmakers. As we, it's part of the reason why
13:35we're discussing the fiscal cliff here is it is so difficult for people to make number two or number
13:39three. So what did you see within the range of those applications and then who you selected
13:45in terms of that? I mean, a lot of the selections were made based on like, does this need a proof
13:50of concept? And do we feel like this is going to help elevate these people in their career? So,
13:55you know, we're looking for, we say, audaciously authored work. We want things that can only come
14:00from these artists and that really feel like they need the scaffolding of this group and the support
14:07of this group to make it happen. So, you know, for us, our goal isn't just to make a short film,
14:11it's to create an ecosystem of change where these people can go on and make these larger scale
14:18projects. So every single person, I mean, it was so hard and thank God we had the selection
14:22committee because that allowed us to have a little perspective because we wanted to give this,
14:28you know, the support to every filmmaker that applied. And which is, you know, why we were
14:35really excited about R11 and we won't say much more, you'll see more when we release it, but
14:40a really wide array of genres and types of films and coming from, you know, each of their unique
14:49gazes, but I think a little bit different and a little bit more broad than what's in the marketplace
14:55that you see kind of being directed by, you know, gender marginalized people. Well, and I do this
15:00year in and year out. I could almost not write our top 100 grossing film study every year. It'll be
15:05the 18th time with my eyes closed. I could guess at what the trends are almost. So to see these
15:12storylines, right, I'll say one that I won't, I'll obscure it a bit, but there's an animated
15:19short. Unbelievable. Brilliant. Unbelievable. Heist. Unbelievable. So this idea of imagination
15:27that Kate talks about, we see it in these storylines in such a compelling way and it deviates
15:34so notably from what we see every year when we analyze. Gen Z is going to go crazy. These
15:41films will resonate with audiences of all ages, but in particular, that young demographic.
15:47And we do have first-time filmmakers, like you said, it's not built for them because it's really
15:52built for people and, you know, at all levels who just say, I don't know how to take the next step.
15:58So we're trying to address that for people that maybe come from a world that's a little bit
16:03over here and are moving into feature filmmaking or that have directed a bunch of episodic and
16:07moving to features or have directed a film and it's been lauded internationally, but now they
16:13have to take this next step like we were talking about with the peaks and the valleys. So we really
16:18want to put everyone in the position to succeed with their next project, you know, no matter what
16:23their level is. It's just about moving up, bigger budgets, bigger scope. Well, I would love to talk
16:29about the launch in a moment, but I love what you were just mentioning about the bigger scope,
16:32because it feels also as if women do, well, women, people of color, really all marginalized folks,
16:38do seem to get pigeonholed into telling identity narratives and it seems as if these projects
16:45are going beyond that and, you know, while it's important that we share our stories, it's also
16:50important that we get the opportunity to share a wide array of stories. I just came from a forum
16:56with the EFTA, which is an organization that supports emerging filmmakers, but, you know,
17:01in the Middle East and North African region predominantly, with a couple of refugee filmmakers
17:08and the thing is, it's like, you know, one was a woman who actually wants to, she missed the
17:12proof of concept deadline, so hope you're next, but she was saying it's really hard because I
17:19have two labels that I have to get to before I can get to filmmaker and that's I'm female
17:27and I'm a refugee, so it's like you have to sort of, when can I just tell a story and it
17:31was interesting, a lot of the submissions, say by trans or non-binary filmmakers, didn't speak
17:38directly to that experience, but because they have a lived experience, their point of view
17:44in whatever story, in whatever genre they tell, will be different from somebody who, you know, has
17:51grown up and white middle-class male and it's a different perspective, they'll put the camera
17:56in a different place in the room and I think that's really, that's really exciting, that's when
18:00you see different, really different types of filmmaking, I think. Yeah, that's truly the point,
18:05that is the point of all of this. Kate, I am curious for you as the actor on our panel, you
18:12know, what have the experiences been when you're working with a woman, a trans and non-binary
18:18filmmaker, how have you seen that perspective shift and seeing that camera in another part of
18:25the room? Well, unfortunately, I haven't worked with as many as I would have liked, you know, and
18:33you know, I do do the head count, I think I've talked about that last year, you know, that I,
18:38and I'm back in the same place, you know, working with men that I love, love working with and
18:44respect, but I'm walking on set and, you know, if there's 50 people on set and there's three women
18:51and I, it's like, when is this going to deeply, profoundly shift, you know, it's, it's, so I feel
18:58like it's Groundhog Day all the time and I think that's where this feels like it gets, this space
19:02gets politicized because the more you talk about it, there seems to be in the media, you know,
19:08in particular, there's a, there's a sense of, oh, haven't we discussed that? And it's like, I feel
19:13the same way, like the amount of times that women are in press conferences, say at a festival like
19:19this and they get asked about women's representation in film and it's like, there are
19:24two men sitting on this panel, I would love you to ask them that question, why, why do I always,
19:30is it my problem? It's my, it's a, it's my reality, but it's why, why are you asking me to solve this?
19:37Do you know what I mean? And so we have to obviously mentor, it's really, it's super,
19:40super important, but the change is, it's slow and it's also, it's like two steps forward, you know,
19:47two steps back sometimes, you know. Yeah, right now we're at 2010 levels, right? We shifted on
19:53screen in terms of women's representation, leading narratives, we're back to 2010. So
19:59a program like this is incredibly important to really be thinking about narratives that
20:04are needed, people need to be seen and heard, compelling stories need to be told and people
20:09need to have career sustainability and generational wealth, right? As women,
20:14trans and non-binary individuals, and that's not what we're seeing coming out of the Legacy
20:18Studios right now. So this is a nice countervailing influence. And I think what, sorry to interrupt,
20:24what's something that Coco identified with, which I thought was really interesting,
20:28having spoken to a lot of women who had been through, and trans and non-binary people,
20:35who had been through programs and, you know, script development programs or mentorship programs,
20:42but there hadn't been the, they'd grown through the program, but then there were no opportunities
20:48there. Yeah, and I think that the push towards inclusion in film and television has been
20:55incredible, but I think that the next frontier is growing that and also making sure that we don't
21:03get pigeonholed into just telling stories about our own identities. I mean, I think that that's
21:08where that fiscal cliff really comes into effect, is if you're making a story about something
21:13really niche and small and specific, you know, there's a ceiling to that. And I think if you
21:19can bring that gaze into stories that are more broadly commercial and bigger in scope and deal
21:25with genres that are, you know, wide ranging, then that's where you solve this issue of these
21:31filmmakers not, you know, being able to bring home as much money. And that's really what we're,
21:37you know, yes, the Annenberg Inclusion Initiative isn't a wonderful non-profit, but
21:42this is all built to kind of level the playing field financially for these people. 100 percent.
21:47And we have to pay a nod to Netflix, right? They generously gave the resources from their
21:54Fund for Creative Equity. And what's great about working with Netflix is that we evaluate Netflix
21:59along with just about everyone else in the industry, and they're really leading in many ways.
22:04There's places where they need to improve, just like everyone else, but to go to a company that's
22:08been leading on screen and behind the camera, right, to have resources and the support,
22:14you know, we started with eight and... Yeah, we were going to pick eight people,
22:20and we picked 11 people, and that was with Netflix giving us some additional support,
22:24because part of that is we ended up picking a few documentary filmmakers that we felt their
22:29projects were fabulous, and we felt like they needed their own unique fellowship as well.
22:33And Netflix has been nothing but supportive in every possible way for this program and
22:39really exciting to work with. Well, I just wanted to add a footnote,
22:43because it is... The whole purpose of this is once you have women, trans, and non-binary
22:48filmmakers behind the camera, it's a trickle-down effect. Everything becomes more representative.
22:53And Stacey mentioned that we're at 2010 numbers, so that then means that there were 30 movies with
22:59women and girls in co-leading roles, 30 out of 100 of those top-grossing films. Just, you know,
23:06one-third came out. Co-leading roles.
23:08Yeah. And yes, co-leading roles,
23:10so that doesn't even mean the lead. Single, that's right.
23:12So to speak to that point of how much change this initiative looks to make, you know, can you kind
23:21of encapsulate how broad this is by beginning from behind the camera?
23:27Well, sure. Let's talk about, if you have a woman behind the camera, we can't say the same
23:32about trans and non-binary because there's not enough data to even make this argument. But if
23:36you have a woman behind the camera, you have more women leads. You have more women on screen and
23:42girls. You have more women behind the camera. You have more women over 40, which is good news for,
23:48I think, Kate and I. Right, right, right. And then you also have more women working behind the
23:55camera. So you're creating the ecosystem that Kate was just speaking about. We see that, right?
24:00And we also see that those films make just as much, if not more money. It's not the leading
24:06character that drives financial performance. It's the executive support behind the films, right?
24:11Because films with women leads get less money. Films with male leads get more money. When you
24:16hold the money constant, actually women and people of color over-perform domestically and
24:22internationally. So we're excited to not only replicate that with women behind the camera, but
24:28with trans and non-binary directors as well. And I think that's what's really exciting because that's
24:33where we're at as a society, right? That's where we're at if you go to campuses, you go to high
24:38schools. The types of stories that we have in this group of 11 really reflect the reality of the
24:47world that we now live in. And that, to me, is why I'm so excited about this opportunity because it's
24:53going to resonate not only with the filmmakers, but with the audience. Absolutely. I mean, I'm glad
25:00that we're able to kind of give like a larger context to this because we are in this time of
25:05kind of great contraction as an industry and you all are building a new model. What is the
25:11challenge to basically doing those two things simultaneously? Is it a contraction or is it an
25:19expansion? There seems to be, you know, there's so many different ways to make films. It seems that
25:26because that is the case, it seems that there should be so many different faces and voices
25:34included in that diverse array that people are consuming filmed content.
25:41I mean, I think, and what you're speaking to, like Kate and I have a project in the immersive
25:45competition. There's so many other mediums to play in, but in the traditional entertainment industry,
25:51I mean, you're going to see less of those kind of scale deals that get writers and directors
25:57started on their career. So, this is really about how do we fill a gap to create new talent? And we
26:02feel like it's, you know, it's about the future of our entire business. We don't have ways to
26:08scaffold these talents at the beginning of the career, like where are we going to find the
26:12Greta Gerwigs in the future? So, you know, the contraction, you know, this is the natural
26:19life cycle of things in some respects and there's other forms of media that are exciting to play in,
26:25but we want to be a part of the support system at the beginning of these careers.
26:30Yeah. I mean, it feels really more important than ever to kind of bolster it now,
26:34because if you don't, then we do have more regression and we can't afford that. Tell me
26:40a little bit about that idea of the launch, because this is not just a program that ends
26:46with the showcase. That is something that's very specific with the mentorship and how we,
26:50especially with women, trans and non-binary people, making sure that people know how to
26:55pitch themselves in the room and show, you know, what their vision is and keep an eye on what it
27:02will look like when we get into distribution and marketing and things along those lines.
27:06You know, Coco, what has been important for you to impart? Yeah, I mean, like Kate was saying,
27:10I did kind of a deep dive on what these programs provide and they're fantastic and they're
27:14necessary, especially in the United States where there's no public arts funding, you know. So,
27:19if you're at the beginning of your career, you're really scraping together pennies,
27:22maybe doing a crowdfunding campaign or getting admitted to one of these programs. But,
27:27you know, they're about making short film and they're incredible support for that. But
27:31what you do next, how you navigate the industry, that's really the part that we're trying to
27:35address. The short film should come, you know, everyone in our program is so talented, we know
27:39they can make a great short film. But how do they package it? How do they take it to the next step?
27:43How do they actually turn it into a financially viable product? That's the area that we want to
27:48address really clearly. So, after our showcase, there's going to be a whole kind of, I call them
27:54a module, a module about addressing how you get into festivals, how you do your own marketing
28:00publicity. I mean, this becomes a full-time job for filmmakers. Not, I mean, at every level,
28:04as Kate can tell you. You really need to look holistically and everyone needs to be producorial
28:10at this point in time. You know, you don't have the luxury of just being a director and
28:16working with the actors. You have to understand how to monetize the thing that you're doing. You
28:20have to understand how to get to your audience. And, you know, those are things that can be
28:26quite hard to understand if you're coming from kind of outside the system.
28:30Yeah.
28:31Yeah. Kate, what are those lessons that you've learned as you've become more
28:34producorial throughout your career that you wanted to impart?
28:38Yeah, I think a lot of producers are great at getting money, but then they're not particularly
28:44good at understanding that there's not a cookie-cutter approach to development,
28:48that every filmmaker requires different things. And I think the level of
28:53what's traditionally been called creative producing is as equal because the journey is long.
28:59And I think it's, as Coco's referring to, I think it's getting a sense of how do you
29:06create an environment in the zeitgeist in order to drop these things. So you have to
29:11start thinking about that as you're developing it, you know, because those things sometimes take
29:15a year or two to put together. How can you start allowing an audience to be open to those ideas?
29:26So I think that that sort of stuff's really important. It's not hand-holding with the
29:30filmmaker because these are really robust filmmakers, but they're about to make a leap
29:38there. And so that's very exposing for them. So I think it's making sure, and a lot of teams
29:43applied too, like some of the directors came, you know, already with a producing partner and
29:49already with a DP and a production designer. And so that's great, they have an armature,
29:54but some of them did not. And so they can't all be developed in the same way. And that's what I've
30:00found in these conversations is filmmakers often need quite different,
30:04help in quite different or support in quite different areas.
30:08I feel very powerful now. I don't know why I have this microphone.
30:13I think it's about really practical feedback and advice because that's the thing that's gonna,
30:19you know, allow you to succeed. You really need to think practically about how you're gonna,
30:23you know, deal with all these elements that are, you know, not the art. And, you know, we know
30:31there's so many people that are deserving just based on their ability as an artist, but it's
30:35about all the other elements that come into play when you're trying to find success.
30:39And I think trust is hugely important. I think, you know, of course, no matter what your gender
30:45or sexual orientation is, this industry is rife with rejection. That just goes with the territory.
30:52But we're talking about people who have been rejected in profound, you know, base levels,
30:59forget themselves as cinema artists. And so they, you know, it's earning their trust
31:04to say that you want to make, you want to help them make the best film possible,
31:08but you need to have robust discussions to, you know, because the best producers are able to push
31:13back and say, I think you're compromising here, or I think you don't need that there.
31:17And so making sure they have those partners throughout the process.
31:21What was the best piece of advice that the two of you were ever given
31:25as you started on this journey as producers?
31:28Oh, gosh.
31:32I think, I don't know if it's a piece of advice, but I think you have to be willing
31:38to do everything from like getting someone a coffee to making a distribution deal.
31:45Yeah.
31:45And the best producers are our Swiss army knives, you know, and I think that that's,
31:54you know, you have to just be able to look holistically at a project and figure out what
31:58it needs. And if you don't know, you have to be willing to learn.
32:01Yeah.
32:02I think I just got the best piece of it.
32:06Be a Swiss army knife as a producer. Just don't stab anyone's back with it.
32:11Exactly. You keep it sharp, but not, not use it for good, not evil.
32:15When you think about the future of this initiative, of this accelerator,
32:21what are you most excited about knowing just, again, how far you've come in only a year?
32:26This is, this is honestly quite remarkable to have met here in Cannes last year,
32:33already have finalists selected and be preparing to, you know, send them out into the world.
32:39I feel like it usually does take longer than that.
32:42I might be wrong, but I feel like it usually does.
32:46We have a tendency to work quickly.
32:48I mean, we were selling a film here in 2022, and then it was done by 2023 Cannes,
32:54film fingernails that Kate and I produced. I think, you know, it's just about,
33:02I mean, we kind of say it's so fun to make dreams come true, you know, to get the responses to
33:08people when we've chosen them and to feel like we're going to make a meaningful impact.
33:13I mean, that's everything. So I hope by next, I mean, by next year, the films will be done
33:17and I hope they'll all be on their own journeys and ready to scale up and make their long form
33:23projects.
33:23And look, I mean, while we're here, we may as well say that festivals are extraordinary platforms,
33:28you know, in an unstable time in the industry. And how amazing if one of these films got realized
33:34and ended up at a festival like Cannes. That would be a dream.
33:37And imagine it's 11 people, right? 11 people. Each of those filmmakers turn this into a feature,
33:44and let's say they work with a hundred. And then those hundred people go on and work on
33:48another project that they've never worked in that capacity. At a very short amount of time,
33:53you're amortizing an entire groundswell of people that would have never had the opportunity,
33:59but it started with 11, right? And exponentially, that's how you create change.
34:04The Amber Inclusion Initiative started with 12. Now we are hundreds. And from what I understand,
34:09there's a student, one of my former students is in this room somewhere.
34:13So, but it's that idea. We're bringing hope where doors closed. Our filmmakers will carry that hope,
34:21amortize it across so many different individuals, and they'll hire people like them and give them
34:28opportunities that perhaps they weren't going to receive. And so in a very short amount of time,
34:34we metastasize goodness and employment. And when somebody comes back and says,
34:40my whole life changed because of Proof of Concept. I get those stories all the time as an educator,
34:46right? As an academic, we hear this all the time. But to be able to see that with this program,
34:51I can't wait. And I'm not getting any younger. So it's got to come fast. It's got to come really
34:56fast because I'm impatient for change. An economy of change. That's what we call it.
35:02It's about creating an economy of change, creating opportunities, empowering the people that we bring
35:07in to create opportunities for others, and working with other organizations doing the same.
35:11Sure. Yeah. Let's talk about that idea of allyship real quick, because I wanted to go back to the
35:17point that you made, Kate, about, you know, we ask the women how you can make it better,
35:21but we never look to the left and right at the men. So how can people be more supportive in
35:27general of the, you know, fight towards representation, but also of this accelerator,
35:32of this initiative as well? You're talking about blokes?
35:39Yes. Yes. I'm talking about the men in this room and beyond.
35:43Oh, look, I think it is really, it benefits everybody. An inclusive, diverse set is a far
35:51more interesting set to be on. Suddenly you find different jokes are told, different risks are
35:57taken in front of the camera and behind, you know, what you get from a visual perspective
36:02is entirely different. I think it's making sure that the creative individuals and their
36:07representatives are alive to that, you know. But I think still, I mean, we're still struggling with
36:14the equal pay for equal work, you know, quadrant of this discussion. So, you know, I think we've
36:21still got to keep plugging away at that because, you know, in a kind of a capitalist economy,
36:28what you're paid is what you're perceived to be worth. So that's still a huge thing for me. But
36:33that's obviously not what we're talking about. We're talking about bigger budgets.
36:36Yeah. And I think allies write checks. The CEOs can write checks, right? Brands can write checks.
36:43They can support these filmmakers, their marketing distribution, right? Like what they need to get
36:48out there. There's a lot of practical support that can be given by simply writing a check,
36:54right? And that's really important. Second, it's catching language, right? We often talk
36:58about muscular directors. Why in the hell are we calling them muscular? Do they pick up heavy
37:03objects on set? I don't see that is not what a film director does. Coffee cups are heavy.
37:12But the second we move to muscular language, we then now are masculine. We think director,
37:17we think male. In particular, we think white male. And so it's catching that language and saying,
37:22oh, I'm uncomfortable. And if I'm uncomfortable, I must be making a good choice because it's when
37:29I'm not, when I am comfortable, I hire the person that's like me. We want people to be
37:35uncomfortable, experience cognitive dissonance and understand that that means you might actually
37:40be onto something and write a check because the more people can write checks for support
37:45of these filmmakers, right, the more they get to actualize their dreams. So resources and
37:50understanding your own biases, many of them in the entertainment industry are explicit.
37:55They are not implicit. There are things people say out loud that reinforce a patriarchy that's
38:02far too problematic and has lasted far too long. And I think when they're putting a project
38:06together, as we did with Mrs. America, you know, just say, look, as an exercise, let's just write
38:13a list of 20 female, trans and non-binary directors, you know, or actors, wherever you're
38:21at in the process, just see what we come up with. And it will be far easier than you think. And when
38:27you look at their, bother to look at their films, then you get a far more interesting and innovative
38:33approach to the thing that you're making. It's so much easier than we tell ourselves it is. But,
38:38you know, change is doing things differently is terrifying. And I do think if you're not
38:42slightly terrified when you're making a movie, you're an idiot. Because, I mean,
38:48you have to be outside your comfort zone every time you work. Otherwise, you don't,
38:52you have to risk failure. You have to, otherwise you don't push through to something fresh.
38:58And you just get the same old, same old, you know. I'm not into content. I'm not filling
39:03holes in someone else's contents. I don't know. I'm not technical. I don't know what it is.
39:08I'm interested in making things that are interesting. Yeah.
39:11Well, Coco, bring us home.
39:15Come on, mama.
39:18I mean, I think that, I'll just say, echoing everything that these two of them said so
39:25eloquently. But we're coming for you men. And I don't mean that in terms of your money. I mean,
39:32we need men to support this program. We need men to be mentors in this program. Because
39:38men are the ones that hold the keys to getting these films made, for the most part. And they're
39:45the people that have more experience working at these budget levels. I mean, that's just the truth.
39:49So we all need to come together to create this change. This isn't going to be an ecosystem
39:55solely of gender marginalized people. Men need to enter this and lift everyone up as well.
40:01So we're coming for you. But also for them to see the benefit.
40:07It's not an attack. It really is an incredible opportunity. An incredible opportunity, I think.
40:15Well, we look forward to having this as just like our yearly summit,
40:19checking on Proof of Concept. Thank you so much for joining us for this,
40:23for yet another Caring Women in Motion talk. Thanks for bringing us together.
40:27Thank you. And for more information, please go to tocaccelerator.org.