Black Entertainment Executives Program
Diverse Representation Presents
The Black Entertainment Executives Pipeline Program
According to the 2020 UCLA Hollywood Diversity Report, 92% of CEOs of television studios are white and 91% of CEOs of film studios are white. Similarly, 84% of senior television executives are white and 93% of senior film executives are white. In an effort to close the racial gap at the C-suite level in Hollywood, Diverse Representation launched the Black Entertainment Executives Pipeline Program. The goal of the program is to increase the number of Black executives in the television and film industries. This unique and unprecedented program serves as a framework and roadmap to identify qualified candidates across the country and provide them with the tools to build successful and thriving careers as executives in the industry. The four month program (March - June 2021) paired participants with production companies and mentors as well as allowed them to take part in a comprehensive speaker and lecture series. Read the full announcement here.
INAUGURAL COHORT
Congratulations to our inaugural cohort: Mark Solomon (Filmmaker), Keith Lovely Jr. (Producer, HLN Headline News), Ashley Sheppard Quince (Coordinator, CBS Television), Ayana Barber (Coordinating Producer, The Desus & Mero Show), Carlina Williams (Production and Development Coordinator, Nickelodeon), and Shanell Boyd (Director of Business Development and Marketing, MRC Entertainment/Dick Clark Productions).
MENTORS
Thank you to our mentors.
SPEAKERS
Thank you to all of our program speakers: Josh Feldman (Head of Film and Television, ALTAR ROCK PICTURES), Jon Wu (Vice President, TV and Film, HELLO SUNSHINE), Daria Overby (Executive Director, Creative Diversity and Inclusion, STARZ), Karen Bailey (EVP, Original Programming, STARZ), Jamila Daniel (Chief Diversity Officer and SVP, Human Resources, LIONSGATE), Nathan Kahane (President, LIONSGATE MOTION PICTURE GROUP), Erin Westerman (President, Production, LIONSGATE MOTION PICTURE GROUP), Aaron Edmonds (VP, Production and Development, LIONSGATE MOTION PICTURE GROUP), Syrinthia Studer (EVP, Live Action Films, NICKELODEON AWESOMENESS LIVE ACTION STUDIO), and Jonathan Harris (Vice President, Drama Development, WARNER BROS. TELEVISION).
