To ANONYMOUSLY share or read stories of abuse in the film industry click here to go to safe space
OUR GOALs in the film world
telling from the community's perspective
supporting people with diagnoses and mental health awareness
creating safer spaces for survivors of abuse
fighting discrimination
promoting unrepresented and marginalized talent
Learn and unlearn together with transformative Justice educators
WHO ARE WE?
LPS was born from the need of making the film and TV industry a more inclusive and just place. We are a community that aims to bridge the gap between talented but underrepresented creatives and decision-makers of production companies, streamers, public broadcasters and industry stakeholders.
Since 2020, we have been actively connecting creatives with executives and advocating for positive change in the audiovisual storytelling industry. We follow the motto of 'we are each other's motivation, not competition' and for years we have been proving the system wrong by showing that sharing opportunities is multiplying them.
Today, our community includes more than fifty thousand supporters on Instagram who engage in the development, pitching, casting, producing and launching of film and TV projects. From big names in the industry to newcomers and everyone in between.
We invite you to join our collective effort to make the industry more inclusive. We firmly believe that when we work collectively, incredible things can be achieved. We are committed to creating, learning, exchanging, and shifting the narrative every f*****ng day.
WHAT DO WE DO?
We help:
UNDERREPRESENTED TALENT IN FILM TELL STORIES, GET JOBS, COME TOGETHER, BE VISIBLE, CONNECT AND COLLABORATE.
We do this by continuously growing this platform to connect underrepresented creatives with industry stakeholders, and share jobs, experiences and tricks on how to start or advance film careers.
On Instagram is where our community grew into tens of thousands of people. In our Instagram stories, you will find empowering posts, personal stories, job offers, change-making and educational content. Tag us in your posts about shifting the narrative in the audiovisual industry, castings, or job offers and we will share it!
WHAT ARE WE PLANNING?
We are meeting with production companies, underrepresented creatives, other wonderful teams, foundations, agencies and institutions with a similar mission, allies, supporters.
Slowly LPS will publish more and more content on our website, summarising knowledge and practical tips for underrepresented talent and narrative-shifting employers in the audiovisual industry. We are starting interesting collaborations, finding ways to help you monetise your talents, have social impact, spread kindness, respect, positive workflows, getting more people involved, creating connections and recommending talent. To stay up to date follow us on Instagram!
WHY IS CHANGE NEEDED?
The film industry, like any other industry, is not immune to problems and structures that exist in society. Here are some of the injustices and problems that are present in the film industry:
Lack of diversity: The film industry has historically been dominated by white, cisgender, heterosexual men. Women, Black, Indigenous and people of Colour, LGBTQAI+ people, and people with disabilities are underrepresented both on and off-screen. This lack of diversity perpetuates harmful stereotypes and limits opportunities for marginalized groups.
Gender inequality: Women, inter, trans* and non-binary people in the film industry face significant barriers to entry and advancement including unequal pay, limited opportunities for leadership positions and pervasive sexual harassment and assault.
Racism: Black, Indigenous and people of Colour are underrepresented in key positions, portrayed in harmful and stereotypical ways on-screen and experience racist discrimination and violence at the workplace.
Homophobia and transphobia: Queer and trans* people face discrimination and lack of representation in the film industry, with negative and harmful stereotypes perpetuated on-screen.
Ableism: People with disabilities are often underrepresented in the film industry and portrayed in discriminatory and harmful ways if they do appear on-screen at all, perpetuating harmful stereotypes and limiting opportunities for individuals with disabilities. The workplace and film sets are often not accessible to people with disiabilities.
Lack of mental health awareness: This has several negative consequences. The stressful environment of the industry exacerbates mental health issues and can lead to burnout, stress, anxiety and depression. People working in the industry have long and unpredictable working hours, tight deadlines and intense competition, which creates a challenging work environment.
Classism: Entry into the film industry often demands working long shifts on unpaid jobs or investing money into debut projects. This makes it highly exclusive to people from economically unstable backgrounds.
Focus on the Global North: The mainstream industry is dominated by narratives from the Global North perpetuating colonial power structures.
These problems have a significant impact on the stories and perspectives that are portrayed in media, the opportunities and representation available to marginalized groups and their well-being at work. Addressing these social problems is essential to creating a more equitable and inclusive industry that values the contributions and perspectives of all individuals. We need to transform the structures that perpetuate harm at work and on screen.