Various questions were posed to ethnic minorities who have established themselves in different sectors of our industry. The feedback comes from strong voices articulating thoughts on the state of minorities in business today as well as personal reflections and observations. Here is the full list of questions that were asked:
Professional:• Do you own the company? If so, what year did you launch it? • If your business model has changed over time, please briefly tell us about it. • How did you get your start in the business? • What was the biggest challenge or obstacle you faced as you made your ascent in the industry?
Opinion:• What do you think would be the biggest challenge or obstacle if you were just starting out today? Would it be easier or more difficult (and why?) to establish yourself professionally and to attain your current role as an executive, creative exec or artist? • Why is there a shortage of ethnic minorities in the advertising and entertainment production community? In what roles is the shortage most profound? Directors? Producers? Executives? Creatives? DPs? Editors? Post artisans? Music/sound? Other? Or do you not agree that there is a shortage? • And if so, how can the industry improve the situation? What steps can be taken to rectify such a shortage? • Do ethnic minorities already established in the business have a responsibility to help create opportunities for other ethnic minorities? • What are the advantages (from a business perspective and/or a creative perspective and/or moral perspective) to the industry being more inclusive?
Personal:• Are you married? • Do you have kids – how many, how old? • Can you share a poignant or funny career story? • What’s the biggest challenge in balancing your professional and personal life? • If you could have a do-over, what career would you pick for yourself? • We all hope to retire some day. What do you want to do in retirement/where would you live?
Bernadette Rivero, president, The Cortez BrothersPrimary Business: Full-service broadcast production + strategic storytelling
1. Do you own the company? If so, what year did you launch it? Yes! We are certified as both a Women’s Business Enterprise (WBE) by WBENC, and as a Minority Business Enterprise (MBE). 2005.
2. If your business model has changed over time, please briefly tell us about it. Initially, The Cortez Brothers was 100% focused on broadcast production in the U.S. and overseas. Slowly, through the years, we’ve added more storytelling capabilities. We now frequently help clients tell their stories on multiple platforms — feature films, TV series, overall strategy and (most recently) as apps and gaming, all centered on a specific collection of classical storytelling and literary tools.
3. How did you get your start in the business? A brilliant marketing and advertising executive at the end of a very long career took me under her wing as an intern and then an assistant when I was 14.
4. What was the biggest challenge or obstacle you faced as you made your ascent in the industry? My biggest challenge has been helping my company make the transition from the Hispanic market into the U.S. general market (where I actually started my advertising career). It’s a daily struggle to understand why international agencies and brands and clients see us as simply a Hollywood-based company, and allow us to shoot large campaigns and work on enormous jobs in a variety of languages, but agencies in the U.S. picture us as only capable of doing Spanish-language jobs. Spanish-language work does not easily beget English-language work in America.
5. What do you think would be the biggest challenge or obstacle if you were just starting out today? Would it be easier or more difficult (and why?) to establish yourself professionally and to attain your current role as an executive, creative exec or artist? I think it would be a struggle to stay focused on doing one or two things well (like physical production and storytelling, as The Cortez Brothers does) rather than dipping a toe into a million small things. The world, and interests, change so fast today, that I can see how it’s tempting to try and do it all… EPKs! Transmedia! Infomercials! Corporate video! Post-production! Viral videos! Web design! Branding! Turnip farming! Equipment rentals! I like that we’ve settled into a place, as a company, where we know that our strengths are bringing agencies’ creative ideas to life, and helping other quirky clients tell stories in unique ways.
6. Why is there a shortage of ethnic minorities in the advertising and entertainment production community? In what roles is the shortage most profound? Directors? Producers? Executives? Creatives? DPs? Editors? Post artisans? Music/sound? Other? Or do you not agree that there is a shortage? I’ve spent the bulk of my adult career in multicultural markets, and I’m surrounded on a daily basis by brilliant Latino directors, agency producers, line producers, creatives, DPs, post artisans and executives. The issue is, few (if any) of those professionals get the opportunity to cross over into the U.S. General Market. I see a lot of GM and European directors and executives who are allowed to shoot Hispanic work, but never the other way around. It always surprises me to hear, “Well, there are no good Latin directors or production companies in the U.S. to choose from,” and I think, “Really? Because I’m one of those companies. And I have over 30 Latin directors on my roster, almost all of them Cannes award-winners or just incredibly fun, creative pros. I see plenty of good options from where I’m standing…” So I know I have to work harder to make us visible, because if ad agencies can’t see us or get to know us, they can’t look to us as a resource.
7. And if so, how can the industry improve the situation? What steps can be taken to rectify such a shortage? It would take a sea change, I think. In our case, it would require brands and agencies, in tandem, choosing to create English-language broadcast spots that fit our individual Cortez Brothers directors’ visual styles rather than us continuing to bid against enormous general market production companies that have deeper resources than we do. Every time a GM company asks us to bid on a job just so they can tell their clients they considered a diverse vendor, they actually chip away at our company’s stability. It’s very difficult to throw resources into the wind repeatedly, with no discernible success. The more jobs we actually shoot, the stronger our team and our company becomes, and that puts us in a better position to grow and expand into the General Market — and grow and expand our company, and our vitally important personal relationships with ad agencies. Advertising is FUN! This is such a blast to do for a living, and it’s a joy to share that with other people who do it full-time.
8. Do ethnic minorities already established in the business have a responsibility to help create opportunities for other ethnic minorities? We mentor a lot of minority directors and writers, and have for years. A lot of mainstream talent interested in advertising, too. Not because it’s our responsibility, but because we feel so grateful for the opportunities and insight we ourselves have been given by our own mentors. I owe so much of who I am to a female advertising executive who took time to teach me, as a teenager, what she knew. If I mentor a hundred people (and trust me, I’m trying), I don’t think I could repay that. At the same time, I can’t fault ethnic minorities from not extending that same hand to other minorities. You can’t save the person on the plane sitting behind you if you don’t put the airbag on your own face first, and I see a lot of minorities in advertising who barely have the resources necessary to get themselves into a semi-secure position, much less offer a hand up to anyone else. I think that’s why I’m so determined for my company to break past that General Market barrier. If we land just one GM campaign in a single year, that offers us enough breathing room to more formally start training more diverse people like us.
9. What are the advantages (from a business perspective and/or a creative perspective and/or moral perspective) to the industry being more inclusive? There’s ethnic diversity, and then there’s diversity of thought. When you let smaller companies with an outlying point of view into the fold, you expand your own capabilities — you pick up their insight, too. That’s important with the rise of millennial, multicultural consumers. One out of six people standing around any crowded room these days is, like myself and like my team, Latino. We don’t have to spin wheels or waste much time studying that market trying to get things right because we are that market, and have been for a really long time. We instinctively know how productions and stories should look and sound and feel in order to be authentic and better reach modern audiences. That’s because we’re a part of it.
10. Are you married? Yes!
11. Do you have kids – how many, how old? A 6-year-old, a 3-year-old, and a 1-year-old baby.
12. Can you share a poignant or funny career story? About a year ago, the culmination of an enormous multinational project we worked on coincided with my due date. I couldn’t travel, but I did have to address a room filled with broadcast and production executives. Thank goodness for SKYPE. That room saw my talking head; if my laptop screen had tilted any lower, it would have revealed me nursing a 1-day-old baby while I attended the meeting digitally and then gave my closing presentation.
13. What’s the biggest challenge in balancing your professional and personal life? I wish I had three more hours a day with my family, and three more hours for work, so that I could enjoy and accomplish both things I love at a much slower pace.
14. If you could have a do-over, what career would you pick for yourself? Adjunct Professor of Storytelling, and the Intersection of Advertising and Art History.
15. We all hope to retire some day. What do you want to do in retirement/where would you live? I want to live on a tropical beach and run an open-air bar-slash-library near the water. There will be no shushing of anyone, but I will encourage finger painting and mixology.
Elena Robinson, executive producer, R/GA ChicagoPrimary Business: Marketing and advertising.
1. Do you own the company? No
2. How did you get your start in the business? I went to Northwestern University and did a lot of backstage production; I was the artistic director of the Black theater company. I then did an internship at WMAQ a local NBC affiliate. My first job came after cold calling about 20 production companies for PA work. An NU alum finally gave me a break. She ran her business out of her home, way up in the Northern suburbs. She ran corporate meetings and had too much work to handle on her own. I was her PA, I did all the manual tasks for her, as well as ran errands like dropping of dry cleaning . She worked for a large corporate events company, so many days we worked out of their offices. It was in those offices that I got my first real taste of advertising as a career and my first real resume points.
3. What was the biggest challenge or obstacle you faced as you made your ascent in the industry? Understanding corporate culture. There’s a competitiveness that is not personal in corporate America. As a kid growing up I was taught we are all in this together but in the corporate world that’s not really true and it’s not personal, at least not until you fail. Some things happen to you, like you get a crappy assignment and you think it’s personal but it’s usually just the pecking order. Then you realize that there is a little bit of a game to it, and that if you want to get paid, you have to participate. Finding that place where it is not a compromise is key. Finally there is an absolute expectation of excellence. The corporate world is not very forgiving if you’re not willing to put in the time and effort to be good.
4. What do you think would be the biggest challenge or obstacle if you were just starting out today? Would it be easier or more difficult (and why?) to establish yourself professionally and to attain your current role as an executive, creative exec or artist? I think the issues are basically the same. Most minority kids don’t really understand the level or personal perseverance required to succeed. I think it is harder today only because there are more people trying to enter the field, so it is more competitive. I met a white kid, who did six unpaid or low paid internships with top agencies before he landed a full time job, and he is talented! He always got great reviews. He moved between four cities. Most kids couldn’t afford that, nor would they have the drive to keep at it.
5. Why is there a shortage of ethnic minorities in the advertising and entertainment production community? In what roles is the shortage most profound? Directors? Producers? Executives? Creatives? DPs? Editors? Post artisans? Music/sound? Other? Or do you not agree that there is a shortage? Most minority kids don’t know of the various opportunities in advertising, and a lot of the entry-level jobs go to family members or well-connected family friends. There is definitely a shortage of minorities of all stripes in advertising, but it is getting better. I was the first black producer at Leo Burnett Chicago and for many years the only one. Now that never happens. Every office I walk into has minorities of all kinds, which is good. R/GA in particular has really impressed me with the large mix of minorities in positions at all levels, it’s quite refreshing really.
6. And if so, how can the industry improve the situation? What steps can be taken to rectify such a shortage? Keep reaching out to the kids in school. Go to college fairs, scour art programs. I think R/GA does this really well, they bring the kids in and put them to work. Real work real hours but it pays off because they get valuable experience in the field.
7. Do ethnic minorities already established in the business have a responsibility to help create opportunities for other ethnic minorities? I think so, a little bit. Everybody has an obligation to help everyone as much as they can to move forward, right? It’s really not that complicated.
8. What are the advantages (from a business perspective and/or a creative perspective and/or moral perspective) to the industry being more inclusive? That’s like a book isn’t it? Increased diversity is good for us all on so many levels it’s hard to quantify. At first there’s the obvious – it makes us better people. It’s harder to hate or fear a group of people once you’ve gotten to know them. Secondly, increased diversity helps challenge and inspire teams by looking at the things from a different perspective, which is always a good thing.
9. Are you married? Partnered
10. Do you have kids – how many, how old? Three kids – who are awesome! Ages 11, 9 and 6
11. Can you share a poignant or funny career story? Really there are millions but one of the best was my first creative review for my first spot. I was junior so I was shadowing the producer. We get to the CD’s door and the creative team is scared. They are shaking in their boots and I am thinking “what’s with them?” We go in and they give the CD a long speech about how many frames they’ve cut from which scenes and why. Halfway through the review, which is :15 seconds into a :30, the CD jumps up, ejects the tape, and throws it across the room. It crashes into the wall and he yells, “This is shit! Total shit! Can’t you guys do anything? It sucks! Get out! ” . :15 seconds in and he threw us out of his office. I was speechless
12. What’s the biggest challenge in balancing your professional and personal life? Time. There is never enough time. I don’t get as much sleep as I would like and sometimes it’s hard to switch off the work stream, but I think everybody feels that way.
13. If you could have a do-over, what career would you pick for yourself? Fiction. I would write fiction. But really I am not good at sitting around, so not sure how that would play out.
14. We all hope to retire some day. What do you want to do in retirement/where would you live? I would like to live somewhere warmer than Chicago, and do some work for education. Maybe volunteer to build schools or teach kids to read. I think the key to self-reliance is a good education.
Erika A. Salter, president/executive producer, Salter Entertainment Group LLCPrimary Business: A multimedia production company specializing in corporate communications, commercials, and online video.
1. Do you own the company? If so, what year did you launch it? Yes. 2007
2. If your business model has changed over time, please briefly tell us about it. When I opened the doors to SEG, I envisioned my company producing independent feature films. It was a bold vision that I still hold as a goal for my company but shortly after starting the company, I soon realized that I needed to produce projects with an accessible audience in mind. Independent films are very challenging to sell just as they are to make. I transitioned our focus to broadcast commercials and web video about a year into the business.
3. How did you get your start in the business? I started as a Broadcast Journalism major at the Scripps Howard School of Journalism at Hampton University. I had amazing professors who challenged me to write and produce news packages under extreme deadlines. This took my producing game to the next level I feel. I worked as a Production Intern at CNN/Turner Broadcasting in Atlanta and moved to New York City upon graduating to work full-time in film/television production. I worked lots of long hours and lots of different types of productions to get where I am now.
4. What was the biggest challenge or obstacle you faced as you made your ascent in the industry? The biggest challenge I faced as a young producer growing in the industry was a lack of personal references and connections in the industry. When I first started out, I didn’t know anyone and I had to work hard to build a name for myself. Relationships are essential in business.
5. What do you think would be the biggest challenge or obstacle if you were just starting out today? Would it be easier or more difficult (and why?) to establish yourself professionally and to attain your current role as an executive, creative exec or artist?) Wow, if I were just starting out today I think my biggest challenge would be the same. Relationships are very important when you are first starting out. Everyone is looking for their “big break” and sometimes all it takes is for a person to notice your work and hire you. I think it would be a bit easier if I were just starting out considering all the advances in technology and social media. It’s a lot easier now to gain access to and get information about influential people/companies in the industry.
6. Why is there a shortage of ethnic minorities in the advertising and entertainment production community? In what roles is the shortage most profound? Directors? Producers? Executives? Creatives? DPs? Editors? Post artisans? Music/sound? Other? Or do you not agree that there is a shortage? I am proud to see the gap in ethnic minorities in advertising and entertainment production closing tremendously. Industry executives such as Sheldon Levy, Beny Ashburn, Reginald Christian, Caroline Onikute, and Xiu Liang have opened doors for women and minorities in this business. It’s wonderful to see how the industry is growing and embracing diversity both behind and in front of the camera. I think those of us who are in the business have to continue to offer opportunities to all ethnic and gender groups to truly see the diversity of our world in our work.
7. And if so, how can the industry improve the situation? What steps can be taken to rectify such a shortage? Organizations such as AdColor, AWNY, NYWIFT, NAMIC, and SHOOT Magazine do a great job of encouraging diversity in the field and creating programs that showcase work from diverse professionals. It’s important for production folks who are just starting out to align themselves with organizations that are doing more to foster diversity in the field.
8. Do ethnic minorities already established in the business have a responsibility to help create opportunities for other ethnic minorities? Yes. We all do. If there’s a disparity among us, it’s our responsibility to reach back and close the gap. Someone did it for me and I make it my business to do it for the next person. Pay it forward.
9. What are the advantages (from a business perspective and/or a creative perspective and/or moral perspective) to the industry being more inclusive? The advantage is shown in the work. Inclusion creates an environment where diverse points of view are expressed from the boardroom to the cutting room. A diverse perspective reflects the complex beauty of our world.
10. Are you married? I am currently single and dating.
11. Do you have kids – how many, how old? No little ones yet just my baby NeNe (my 7-year-old Pekingese).
12. Can you share a poignant or funny career story? A funny story is once I was asked to do a location scout in a really nice neighborhood. The yards were very well manicured, and it was in an area where there were a lot of stay-at-home moms. I approached this one house to request a location release to shoot there and out from the garage came a huge charging German Sheppard. I’m a dog lover but this dog was HUGE and he was barking at me. I froze in my tracks and said in mind “Hey buddy… I’m your friend” over and over again really slowly. The dog eventually calmed down and did not bite me. It was crazy! The ambiance of the neighborhood totally through me off guard. I got out of there fast. (P.S.. Producers are expected to accomplish the impossible.)
13. What’s the biggest challenge in balancing your professional and personal life? The biggest challenges are the hours and the demands of my career. I work crazy long hours… on average 12-14 hour days when shooting a project and I travel a lot for work. It’s exciting and I enjoy what I do but I have to try to stay balanced. I make sure to carve out family time, community service, and attending church. I also enjoy running, climbing, and other outdoor activities.
14. If you could have a do-over, what career would you pick for yourself? Maybe something in science or medicine. We always joke around my office that we are not doing heart surgery when things become really stressful. My field is important and we make a difference in society with what we produce but I think I would try to become a neurosurgeon or something even more challenging if I could do it all again.
15. We all hope to retire some day. What do you want to do in retirement/where would you live? When I retire I want to live in a hammock (smiles), watch sunsets everyday, in any place that’s near the ocean and warm. Happy feelings.
Paula Walker, president/director, Strato FilmsPrimary Business: Commercial production
1. Do you own the company? If so, what year did you launch it? Yes, I own the company with my husband Rolf and we work with executive producer Mark Conley. We launched the company in 1995.
2. If your business model has changed over time, please briefly tell us about it. We’ve always paid a lot of attention to international business. We still want to expand internationally. Now the business model is to be as nimble as possible and be able to work in as many markets as we can. One of my partners is European so we’ve always had an international presence. Being small and adaptable and having a fluid structure has helped us expand into different places and work with clients who might be targeting spots for certain world markets.
3. How did you get your start in the business? I started by directing music videos and from that segued into commercials.
4. What was the biggest challenge or obstacle you faced as you made your ascent in the industry? The biggest challenge was that no one was interested or believed that I could direct. There was definitely more skepticism because I was female and black. It was hard to get people to take me seriously. I think that’s melted away but at the time if felt like they wouldn’t seriously consider me.
5. What do you think would be the biggest challenge or obstacle if you were just starting out today? Would it be easier or more difficult (and why?) to establish yourself professionally and to attain your current role as an executive, creative exec or artist? I think today there’s a lot more fluidity in the business and it’s easier to establish yourself. There isn’t the same buttoned-down infrastructure as there was when I was first starting. At the same time that makes it a little more confusing. The possibilities are endless but it’s hard to break through all the clutter.
6. Why is there a shortage of ethnic minorities in the advertising and entertainment production community? In what roles is the shortage most profound? Directors? Producers? Executives? Creatives? DPs? Editors? Post artisans? Music/sound? Other? Or do you not agree that there is a shortage? I think it’s better than it was, but there probably is a shortage of all roles. It’s traditionally not a path that minorities were able to take because there was less security in their lives. It’s a less secure profession so you were encouraged to be a teacher or lawyer. So people who tended to go into it were either people who had a foothold in it from their families or were wealthy enough to be able to get trained and deal with the lack of security. It also just takes a certain level of dedication – not that minorities didn’t have that – but they just didn’t have the history or the support of earlier generations helping them go through it.
7. And if so, how can the industry improve the situation? What steps can be taken to rectify such a shortage? I feel like the way to rectify the shortage is to make minorities more aware of the jobs that are available. Mentoring and speaking to young people about potential career paths is a way to bring people in.
8. Do ethnic minorities already established in the business have a responsibility to help create opportunities for other ethnic minorities? Yes. From day one I’ve always tried to bring in other women and especially minority women into the business. I’ve always pushed for that – mentorships, partnerships in formal and informal ways is the way to go.
9. What are the advantages (from a business perspective and/or a creative perspective and/or moral perspective) to the industry being more inclusive? The more inclusive you are the more interesting you are. Being open to other races and cultures creates a more eclectic, interesting mix. That is the world that we want to see – a global world. It’s wise for our industry to reflect that.
10. Can you share a poignant or funny career story? I was doing a job a few years ago and we were casting. A very beautiful striking black woman came in and a client turned to me and said “you know, she’s so attractive, you wouldn’t really know that she was black.”
11. What’s the biggest challenge in balancing your professional and personal life? I think the biggest challenge is trying to keep an open attitude and be open to different experiences so that your work continues to grow.
12. If you could have a do-over, what career would you pick for yourself? I really like my career and being a director – the way it allows you to have a taste of everything, getting in touch with all facets of the industry – editors, designers, DPs. I would stick with what I do, but would try to be better at it, exploring more of the different areas.
Click here to go to part 1 of this surveywith responses from Carlos Guiterrez of Magnet Filmworks, Wendell Hanes of Volition Sound Branding, Malcolm Hardiman of Hack Studios, Eric Johnson of Trailblazer Studios, Jackie Lee of Company 3, Dora Medrano of Carbo Films, Jo Muse of Muse Communications, and Juan Pablo Oubina of Grupo Gallegos.
For Women and Minorities in Production, Part III, click here.
For Women and Minorities in Production, Part I, click here.
For Women In Production, Part 1 of Survey responses, click here for respondents Cristina Anderlini, Shannon Barnes, Elizabeth Cogswell Baskin, Laura Belsey, Fay Dattner, Madeline Di Nonno, Nicole Dionne, and Lesli Linka Glatter.
For Women in Production, Part 2 of Survey responses, click here for Bonnie Goldfarb, Jennifer Golub, Samantha Hart, Phyllis Koenig, Leslie LaPage, Kathrin Lausch, Terry Lawler, and Lola Lott.
For Women in Production, Part 3 of Survey responses, click here for Stacey Mokotoff, Ramaa Mosley, Mardrie Mullen, Liza Near, Valerie Petrusson, Susanne Preissler, Michelle Ross, and Ethel Rubinstein.
For Women in Production, Part 4 of Survey responses, click here for Lauren Schwartz, Rhea Scott, Shari L. Shankewitz, Liz Silver, Jo Steele, Cami Taylor, Monica Victor, and Jessica Yu.
Hard as it may be to believe, changing the future of cinema was not on Mike Cheslik's mind when he was making "Hundreds of Beavers." Cheslik was in the Northwoods of Wisconsin with a crew of four, sometimes six, standing in snow and making his friend, Ryland Tews, fall down funny.
"When we were shooting, I kept thinking: It would be so stupid if this got mythologized," says Cheslik.
And yet, "Hundreds of Beavers" has accrued the stuff of, if not quite myth, then certainly lo-fi legend. Cheslik's film, made for just $150,000 and self-distributed in theaters, has managed to gnaw its way into a movie culture largely dominated by big-budget sequels.
"Hundreds of Beavers" is a wordless black-and-white bonanza of slapstick antics about a stranded 19th century applejack salesman (Tews) at war with a bevy of beavers, all of whom are played by actors in mascot costumes.
No one would call "Hundreds of Beavers" expensive looking, but it's far more inventive than much of what Hollywood produces. With some 1,500 effects shots Cheslik slaved over on his home computer, he crafted something like the human version of Donald Duck's snowball fight, and a low-budget heir to the waning tradition of Buster Keaton and "Naked Gun."
At a time when independent filmmaking is more challenged than ever, "Hundreds of Beavers" has, maybe, suggested a new path forward, albeit a particularly beaver-festooned path.
After no major distributor stepped forward, the filmmakers opted to launch the movie themselves, beginning with carnivalesque roadshow screenings. Since opening in January, "Hundreds of Beavers" has played in at least one theater every week of the year, though never more than 33 at once. (Blockbusters typically play in around 4,000 locations.)... Read More
Bernadette Rivero, president, 
Elena Robinson, executive producer, 
Erika A. Salter, president/executive producer, 
Paula Walker, president/director, 