The Woman Behind Star Wars' Increased Diversity

I finally saw The Last Jedi last night and it was well worth the wait. So thrilling and fun with thoughtful, compelling storylines. And, best of all, so rich in diversity.  And that's thanks in no small part to Kiri Hart, head of the Lucasfilm story group. Formed by Kathleen Kennedy in 2012, the group has overseen an increase in strong, diverse leading and supporting roles within the franchise. In a recent New York Times interview, Hart said: "The characters that end up on screen are there because there is a groundswell of energy around this idea of creating a more honest reflection of the world around us.” So true. And given Star Wars' massive influence and reach, the impact of Hart's input cannot be underestimated. 

Kelly Marie Tran, John Boyega/Credit: Lucasfilm

The Woman We All Go To For Self Care

Self care is a much bandied about word. But as every day brings fresh political insanity, the only way to keep focused is to stay emotionally and physically centered. Enter wellness and lifestyle guru Latham Thomas, who has been such a positive grounding influence in my life and the lives of so many. I plan to spend the holidays thinking about how best to apply the principles of her beautiful new book, "Own Your Glow: A Soulful Guide to Luminous Living and Crowning the Queen Within", to my own life.  #MamaGlow #selfcare #wcw

And The Word Of The Year Is Feminism

Merriam Webster just announced that feminism is its word of the year. It was the most looked up term on its online dictionary, generating 70% more searches than 2016. In the year of the Women's March, Wonder Woman and the #MeToo movement, it's no surprise that interest in the word spiked. Women are speaking up and speaking out in greater numbers than ever in a quest to create equity for all.

We are still hugely marginalized across all areas of society - socially and economically - making up pitiful percentages of leadership positions, receiving less pay than our male counterparts and on the receiving end of constant harassment. Globally, we're seeing an increased use of systematic rape as a weapon of war in modern conflicts. 

The Webster dictionary defines feminism as "the theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes" and as the "organized activity on behalf of women's rights and interests." After a year where many of society ills and injustices against the female population were laid bare for all to see, lets hope 2018 marks the beginning of real and lasting change

Thank You To The Silence Breakers

Time's Person of the Year goes to all the courageous women who stood up and spoke out against sexual harassment in 2017.  This movement has been so cathartic for so many. Lets hope this signals the beginning of lasting change.

Why You Need To Manage Your Personal Brand

I've spent most of my career in the film business and care so passionately about the advancement of women filmmakers, so it was a thrill to be asked to host a workshop on personal branding and mission statements for the women selected to join the Sundance Institute fellowship program. 

Personal branding is the practice of people marketing themselves and their careers as brands and establishing a prescribed image or impression in the mind of others about an individual. It's how you’re perceived. Everyone has a unique personal brand, whether they know it or not. And ideally you control it - it's the image you project to the world that aligns with your mission.

The world likes to put people in boxes and project ideas onto us, so if you don't have a strong sense of self, then you're just a passive bystander in your own career.

Katie Doering, Lauren Wolkstein, Su Kim, Lana Wilson, Dee Poku, Yoruba Richen, Sabrina Gordon, Elisabeth Holm

Glamour's Women of the Year

Every year Glamour Magazine's Cindi Leive brings together the most inspiring change-makers, to shine a light on the important work they do to move the needle on key issues for women and for all marginalized communities. For her last awards as Editor in Chief of the magazine, Cindi assembled a veritable roll call of the most powerful activists, artists and advocates of our time. They included Maxine Waters, Solange, astronaut Peggy Whitson, Sarah Weddington (Roe v Wade), Ruby Bridges, Samantha Bee, Zendaya, Anita Hill, Chimamanda Adichie, Serena Williams, and the list goes on. The event reaffirmed my faith in the power of the women's movement and that women will be the ones to lead us forward to a better future. The future is female!

Cindi Leive, Dee Poku

Nicole Kidman

Solange

The Women's Convention Gave Me Life

The movement created by the Women's March organizers continues to go from strength to strength. Last weekend I spoke at their first convention in Detroit, which brought together 4000 women from across the country to discuss everything from running for office to immigration reform. I personally spoke on three panels - exploring the role of cultural influencers which featured Ibtihaj Muhammed, Piper Perabo, Yandy Smith and Jackie Cruz;  the status of women in film with Alia Shawkat, Piper Perabo, Sarah Sophie Flicker and Amber Tamblyn and and the importance of entrepreneurship with Piera Gelardi, Jennifer DaSilva, Tracy Reese and Arian Simone

Being at the convention was like being with family.  I was so inspired and moved by all the women I met and their powerful stories. From the mothers who travelled in from Flint to learn how to best to use their voices as activists, to the budding young filmmaker being sexually harassed by a supposed mentor, everyone was there to share, support and learn. A huge thank you to all the amazing speakers and participants who shared such great wisdom.

Yandy Smith, Ibtihaj Muhammad, Piper Perabo, Dee Poku, Jackie Cruz

Piper Perabo, Sarah Sophie Flicker, Dee Poku, Amber Tamblyn, Alia Shawkat

No Such Thing As A Mommy Goddess

I didn't feel like the greatest of mothers this morning. Sebastian was digging his heels in because we didn't have his favorite cereal and he wanted me to play lego. He's barely seen me over the last month so he's acting up. Meanwhile I had to ensure he was at school on time and get to a breakfast meeting so I had to half pull/carry him out the door. You need endless patience to be a good parent, and this morning I just didn't have the energy to sit and reason and explain. To find that patience you have to make time for self care. You have to be rested and nourished. And right now I'm neither. So yes, let's break the myth of the mommy goddess. Thank you Time Magazine for this story.

Battle Of The Sexes Is A Must See

I felt so energized after leaving the screening of Battle of the Sexes. The film, which stars Emma Stone and Steve Carrell tells the story of the now historic tennis match between Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs. King blazed a trail in the early 1970s as an outspoken activist for equal pay.  Hearing the blatantly sexist remarks being casually bandied about and the shocking disparity in salaries reminded me of how far we've come and how much still needs to be done. Congratulations to my great friends Simon Beaufoy and Christian Colson for writing and producing Battle of the Sexes. And of course, so good to watch the movie with a great group of female change makers. 

Can Our Schools Raise Good Citizens

My son started kindergarten today. Why is the first day of school such an emotional experience? It really was for me. So much more than I was expecting. I also wonder whether in these fraught times, there's a heightened sense of anxiety about how we raise good citizens and also, the world we're sending our kids out into.  

Can we entrust our schools to teach our kids civic responsibility and the need to respect their fellow humans no matter what creed, race or sexual orientation? This requirement has risen from midway on my list of school criteria to the top 3. Our kids spend around 70% of their time at school, absorbing lessons from teachers and fellow pupils alike. If we're to change the world for the better, we have to look to how we're raising the next generation and the values we're instilling in them.

Real Is Whatever Makes You Feel Good.

I have friends who love makeup and have fun with it - they are empowered by using it. Others, like me are ambivalent. I like the way it makes me look but it just feels like work. At a recent talk, Zadie Smith shared her frustration at the amount of time her daughter spent in front of the mirror and attracted both praise and criticism for imposing limits on her grooming time. I see her point, particularly when it comes to buying into society's beauty standards. Alicia Keys has eschewed makeup because for her, it felt like she was hiding behind a mask.

For me, there's no wrong answer. Here's one area where women should be left to choose their own path. To do whatever makes them feel good. But I always catch my breath when a woman in the public eye allows us past the facade. Keys looks incredible here on the cover of Elle Brasil.

Alicia Keys. Elle Brasil  

Festivals Should Move Culture Forward

I’ve attended a number of festivals in the last year in preparation for my own upcoming female focused gathering The Other Festival. Festivals present an incredible opportunity to bring diverse groups of people together, move culture forward and facilitate dialogue. To educate and inspire. Not everyone uses that opportunity. It’s why we need Afropunk.  This weekend I saw female headliners (a rarity) such as Solange and SZA , imagery designed to provoke conversation, political fashion, and numerous social justice organizations such as Planned Parenthood and The Gathering For Justice. More of this please.

On Camera, Start By Being Your Most Authentic Self

"There's no time that I go on TV and I'm not somehow nervous. It's adrenaline. Embrace the anxiety. It's energy you can use to make your performance stronger." Media Trainer and Political Strategist, Jehmu Greene.

It was so enlightening to hear the words of wisdom from this morning's masterclass host, TV correspondent Jehmu Greene.  A black woman defending progressive values on the likes of Fox News, Greene knows better than most, the value of being on top of your game. From understanding your body language, to knowing your audience and interviewing the producer in advance, our WIE Network members learned the importance of leaving nothing to chance. The smallest detail left unchecked, can lay all your best laid plans to waste.

Let's Keep Telling Our Own Stories

It was an honor to interview filmmaker Vance Ford last night for the British Academy of Film & Television (BAFTA). In 1992, 22 days prior to the acquittal in the Rodney King case, Ford's brother William, an unarmed young schoolteacher was shot in cold blood. His attacker was then acquitted by an all white Grand Jury. It's sad to see how little has changed. Ford's documentary about the case and its aftermath, Strong Island, won the Special Jury Documentary prize at Sundance and is released by Netflix next month. We have to keep telling these stories.

What Makes Working Mothers Want To Leave The Workforce?

On three separate occasions this week,  high powered, career-minded female friends of mine told me somewhat bashfully how much they wouldn't mind just giving up the rat race and becoming stay at home moms. The bashfulness was interesting because I guess they expected me, their feminist freedom fighter friend, to be a little disapproving.  But of course I feel quite the opposite.  The whole point of feminism is to give women the right to choose. Work outside the home, stay at home, all options are great if you make them from a position of strength.

But the reason for this particular post is to share what these women had in common and it's that they all hated their jobs. They were sick of the politics of corporate culture and the daily grind. So the question is, if you do what you love does that make the daily wrench away from your children every morning a little easier?  I think it might. I'm so passionate about my work and of course, as an entrepreneur I get to be my own boss and make my own hours. I can't imagine leaving it behind to focus solely on motherhood much as I idolize my son. I wonder if this rings true for others?

Top100 Women In The World

Thank you to GC4W for including me in their Top 100 Women In The World list.  I'm doing what I love and I feel very lucky. There's been a lot of push back against diversity initiatives recently, and it has really escalated in the last couple of weeks in particular. So I truly appreciate the support and the positive reinforcement.

Increasing Diversity In The Luxury Market

Misty Copeland is the new face of Estee Lauder. Zoe Kravitz was just announced as the global ambassador for Yves Saint Laurent Beauté. Naomie Harris and Adwoa Aboah feature in Miu Miu's fall campaign. Janelle Monae and Zoe Kravitz (again) have Tiffany's campaigns. It's always good to see the beauty/luxury industries, who command such influence, embracing diversity.

Black Women Deserve Equal Pay

Today is Black Women’s Equal Pay Day. I struggled with this issue my whole career. Knowing I was sometimes being paid less for equal work. And it is so hard to prove and navigate. There’s no transparency around salaries and even when you have the facts, I’m telling you, it’s really hard to walk into a room and ask your boss or HR why your counterparts are earning more than you. Black women make on average, 63 cents for every dollar a man makes and 17% less than their while female counterparts. Awareness and acknowledgement are the first step. Then we need to implement policy and put in safeguards that protect people of color in the workplace.

Assistant, Caregiver, Event Promoter, Housekeeper - My Many Jobs As A Female Entrepreneur

Women need to learn to delegate more and I know I'm as guilty as any. Why spend time finding someone to complete a task when I can just as easily do it myself?  So I run myself ragged dealing with the minutiae of being a mother and a founder, while rarely finding enough time for the most important tasks. I read a great article from a female founder recently whose advice to female entrepreneurs was to outsource, outsource, outsource. For startups in particular, the instinct is to be frugal and save precious resources. The less spent, the more saved, the better. Right? Wrong!

All the time we expend on housework, filing, commuting, scheduling, bookkeeping etc takes us away from the valuable big picture tasks, strategizing, fundraising and generally growing our companies. Of course this isn't always financially possible but if we consider the opportunity cost of delegation, we'll realize that the long term benefits are more than worth the short term expenditure. So learn to outsource your life and you'll reap the benefits. 

Issa Rae Is All Of Us

I know I'm woefully late to the party on this one and everything I have to say has probably been said a 100 times already but I binge watched the entire season of Insecure this weekend and it was like a come to Jesus moment. That girl up on that screen was me and every other black girl I know. For the first time that I can remember, I got to see a black woman portrayed on screen who wasn't hyper sexualized or a dominating badass nor was she a slave or a maid. She was just a girl trying to make her way in a complicaworld the way we all do. Experiencing the ups and downs and insecurities of navigating love, life, career, friendship, the way we all do. And don't get me started on her boyfriend, a would be entrepreneur who is both sensitive and vulnerable, just like we've all had. Thank you Issa Rae for dispensing with stereotypes and doing us all a massive favor. We can all walk into our jobs a little easier tomorrow, knowing that a few more people might dispense with the labels and see us for who we really are.

Yvonne Orji, Issa Rae, Amanda Seales (Photo: Justina Pintz/HBO)