WIFT Australia Raising Films Australia Screen Industry Survey report, “Honey, I Hid the Kids!: Experiences of Parents and Carers in the Australian Screen Industry” was released at the 2018 Adelaide Film Festival. The report reveals significant challenges to being a working parent or carer in the screen industry, with 74% of respondents reporting the impact of caring work on their role in the industry as negative. Experiences reported include people hiding the fact that they have children, people taking on more than a full-time load in order to survive, through to those who have had to leave the industry altogether, resulting in an industry-wide loss of knowledge and expertise.

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NYWIFT member Juliet Werner has made her directorial debut on her first feature film, The Laughter Life. This documentary goes behind the scenes with a Mormon sketch comedy group as they craft their weekly television show, Studio C, and struggle to find the balance between living their faith and creating funny material. The film is available on iTunes starting October 22nd – you can pre-order now!

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The percentage of TV episodes directed by women and people of color increased oh-so-slightly vs. last year, according to an annual study released in early October 2018 by the Directors Guild of America.

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NYWIFT member Elle Kamihira has launched a crowdfunding campaign for Jennifer, 42, an animated documentary feature film which tells the true story of Jennifer Magnano, a suburban mom of three, whose family’s battle to escape the coercive control and violence of an abusive husband and father, sheds light on the brutal realities of domestic violence. Directed by Kamihira, Jennifer, 42 hopes to demystify the veil of domestic violence households, yet make it accessible to all through beautiful animation drawn by award-winning Animation Director Yulia Ruditskaya.

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NYWIFT Executive Director Terry Lawler will lead panel discussion about representation following a screening of Caroline Berler’s documentary Dykes, Camera, Action! at NewFest on Saturday, October 27th.

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Now in its 21st year, the Boxed In study, sponsored by the Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film at San Diego State University and headed up by executive director Dr. Martha M. Lauzen, provides the most comprehensive historical record of women’s representation and employment in television available. The 2017-2018 report show little to no improvement for female representation.

Read more about the study.

Terry Lawler and the Board of Directors of New York Women in Film & Television announced today that Terry will conclude her tenure as Executive Director on December 31, 2018.

Strategic planning has been underway for an Executive Director transition for the past two years as part of NYWIFT’s five-year strategic plan.

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The DGA recently released a study sharing that the pool of first-time episodic TV directors ‘is more inclusive than ever.’ This pool, which includes women and minorities, shows an encouraging employment gain, setting record highs for the second year in a row.

Learn more about the study.