NBCUniversal’s 13th annual Short Film Festival continued as the industry’s major platform for diversity in filmmaking.
Senior Vice President of Programming Talent Development and Inclusion at NBC Universal and Television, Karen Horne, made it clear that diversity was to be main focus of the night and spread across everything that NBC does, “This is what we do, we help expose film makers and talent. This film festival is much more than just about the films, it’s about the filmmakers, and for me this gives us the opportunity to expose and showcase these filmmakers and the wonderful stories that they are telling. You can always tell what our culture is feeling. These films are a great representation about what is going on in our society, and every year that changes. I think we’re doing a good job but, we can always do better and our goal is to reflect the society that we broadcast to, and to tell true and authentic stories of those people”. Karen was absolutely spot on about NBC and their efforts to expand diversity within the entertainment field. Simply taking a look at all the celebrity guests that were invited to present the awards was a mixture of diverse backgrounds and talent.
Joseph Lee, one of the presenters, continued the conversation about diversity that night as we asked him what being at the event meant to him, “Well I just got a chance to catch all the films and it’s fantastic. I think the important thing to recognize is, now you have platforms, such as NBCUniversal Short Film Festival, where these films are finally coming out, and I’m excited to be a part of it and I’m just a fan and I’m excited to be here.” Joseph emphasized the growing momentum that diversity in filmmaking is creating in the industry adding that, “it’s happening and no one can stop it, so everybody just better get use to it”.
It seemed as if the energy and opportunities throughout the night were spread across everyone in attendance, as it truly was an impactful and inspiring event. Bernardo Saracino, also a presenter for the awards, let us in on just a bit of his eagerness and to give the industry some words about the future of diversity in filmmaking. “This is super exciting, I want to let the industry know that there are a lot of diverse people out there and they have a lot of money and they spend their money and they go to watch movies and they want to see diverse crowds and people to look like them”. This is exactly what the short films presented that night did, as well as delivery a promising future for the diversity in characters and stories we will get to see on the big screens sooner rather than later.
There wasn’t a moment throughout the night where diversity was lacking, which is exactly what this festival is about, “I mean this is about storytelling, diversity is a way of the world. It’s almost strange to me that we’re still using “diversity” as a terminology at this point, as if we are not a country of melting pot anyway. So, it almost feels like we should just start recognizing that we’re here, and we’re here to stay, and we aren’t going anywhere. People that are brown, yellow, and all shades of the rainbow are a part of our wonderful world to live in, and they have wonderful stories to tells. So of course, I am supporting diversity, so much so, I want to see the things I have not seen before, that is what we want to see.” shares Kellee Stewart, a presenter at the film festival.
NBCUniversal’s vision for the festival was in full force that night, “focused on discovering the next generation of storytellers and celebrating the importance of diversity in entertainment”.
