Interview with Maikiko James on Women in Film, Gender Parity and the Issues of Sexual Harassment in Hollywood

Rebel Hearts with Kristie Reeves

This week on "Rebel Hearts": Kristie speaks with Maikiko James, Manager of Operations and Public Programs of "Women In Film". "Women In Film" advocates for and advances the careers of women working in the screen industries to achieve parity and transform culture. Founded in 1973, "Women In Film" supports all women working in film, TV, and digital media, from emerging to advanced career. WIF advocates for gender parity through research, media campaigns and "ReFrame", a collaboration with Sundance Institute. "Women In Film" honors the achievements of women in Hollywood through their legacy series, annual Emmy and Oscar parties and their signature events, the Crystal + Lucy Awards. In this interview, Maikiko shares about the initial inspiration behind the founding of "Women in Film" that continues through to today: creating a space for women to come together in order to have community and thereby advance opportunity and achievements in the film industry. She talks about the different programs that WIF offers, from mentoring, speaker & screening series, production training program, writing labs, film finishing funds, legal aid and an annual financing intensive, all geared towards generating empowerment for women and developing gender parity in a male dominated industry. We talk about designing a new way of the "Hero's Journey", one that overcomes the patriarchal paradigm and illustrates the importance of an equal contribution of both genders, may it be as the hero of the story itself or in the way of job opportunities, equal wages and film funding. Also, find out about our call to action with #52FilmsByWomen. We also address the continuous surfacing issues of sexual harassment in Hollywood and provide solutions on how to attend to them. WIF is currently offering a hotline for anyone who needs support in stepping forward. Find out about the arbitration clause in company's NDAs, how it takes away your right to the 7th amendment and what to do to protect yourself. Now more than ever, it is time for people to come together in order to create the change we need in this world!