The Location Managers Guild International (LMGI) will present a virtual town hall centered around racial equity, diversity and inclusion in the television, film and commercial production workplace, with a focus on location management, on Tuesday, June 30 from 10am–12pm PST. The town hall aims to educate, empower, and enlighten members of the entertainment community. All industry professionals are invited to join the conversation at no cost. RSVP is required; visit here.
“We must break down the barriers established long ago in order to disrupt the status quo. To do that, we need to have brutally honest, open, and sometimes uncomfortable conversations,” said LMGI town hall committee chair, Miguel Tapia/LMGI. “Many are unaware of the impact of their actions and arguably more importantly, their inaction when it comes to instances of discrimination. This is an opportunity to create an environment where we can all listen, learn and begin to lead in a new, groundbreaking way.”
The LMGI will be joined by keynote speaker and renowned clinical psychologist, Dr. Cheryl Grills, Ph.D., an expert in globally facilitating healing circles surrounding people of African ancestry. Dr. Grills will engage the panelists in dialogue about implicit bias and systemic racism. Prior to the town hall, attendees can anonymously submit workplace experiences, which will be used to spotlight specific issues facing persons of color in the industry.
Moderated by location manager and LMGI Board member Alison Taylor, the town hall panel will consist of international location professionals from the US and the UK, bringing to the discussion more than three-quarters of a century of collective experience. More panelists to be confirmed in the coming week.
Panelists include:
- Dr. Cheryl Grills, Ph.D. – keynote speaker (clinical psychologist, professor at Loyola Marymount University) – Los Angeles
- Kokayi Ampah/LMGI, producer, director, location manager (The Color Purple, The Shawshank Redemption, Million Dollar Baby, Who Are They) – Los Angeles
- Jon Johnson, Sr., parking coordinator (Sex and the City, The Avengers, Independence Day, Men In Black) – New York
- Jason McCauley/LMGI, key assistant location manager (Westworld, Cloverfield, I’m Dying Up Here) – Los Angeles
- Leon Henriques, unit manager, location manager (Man Like Mobeen, The Other One , Das Boot /Hulu, Deep Water) – United Kingdom
- Moderator: Alison Taylor/LMGI, location manager (The Glorias, Insecure, A Wrinkle in Time, Straight Outta Compton) – Los Angeles
Avid completes acquisition of Wolftech
Avid®, known for software solutions for professional media production, has completed the acquisition of Wolftech Broadcast Solutions, a leader in cloud-based multiplatform news planning, production and publishing solutions.
The acquisition enables Avid to combine its digital-first, end-to-end media solution with Wolftech’s expertise in story-centric workflow management. News organizations will be able to increase efficiency and accelerate story delivery through enhanced remote collaboration and multiplatform amplification.
Avid CEO Wellford Dillard stated, “Wolftech is unquestionably on the leading edge of where the industry is going, and this acquisition demonstrates Avid’s commitment to transform news, sports, and live production workflows. We are delighted to welcome Wolftech into the Avid family.”
Wolftech CEO Arne Berven added, “We were focused on finding a partner that could accelerate the adoption of our platform globally. We explored a number of possibilities, but when we talked to Avid, we knew it was the right match.”
The closing of the acquisition follows Avid’s announcement on October 7 that the company had entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Wolftech.
With this acquisition, Avid deepens the integration between the two toolsets while continuing to embrace an open approach in partnering with a wide range of media production tools and newsroom systems. Existing Wolftech customers will benefit from Avid’s global scale for customer support and professional services.
Ian Axton, head of production operations for ITV News, said, “As a customer of both Avid and Wolftech we’re excited about the benefits this acquisition will bring to our users and our business. Wolftech has transformed... Read More