With diversity and inclusion finally coming to forefront, it’s fantastic to see writers, creators, and filmmakers like Issa Rae, Ramy Youssef, Mindy Kaling, and Lulu Wang getting the attention they deserve. Along with watching the content created by these brilliant minds, it’s equally as important to continue to seek out more diverse creators to support and amplify.
Check out WeScreenplay’s panel “Specificity in Character Description & Intentional Inclusivity”
BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, and people with disabilities are often underrepresented, misrepresented, and stereotyped. The world is a rich tapestry of experiences and it’s important for everyone to see themselves accurately reflected.
It’s vital to share the work of people in marginalized groups who are creating content from their own day-to-day lived-in experiences. As we diversify the shows and films we watch, different perspectives not only help us grow as a society, but aid in expanding our world view and inspire our own work to become more inclusive.
There are so many incredible writers and creators changing the landscape of mainstream film and TV. They are shaping the cinematic world and giving life to stories that have previously been pushed to the side. I’m very happy to showcase a handful of them here.
- Katori Hall (writer/creator, P-Valley, Starz – TV series)
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Based on her play Pussy Valley, Katori Hall’s P-Valley has become one of the most talked about and critically acclaimed series of the year. P-Valley “Follows the lives of strip club dancers working down in the Dirty Delta” (IMDb).
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This is an all-women directed series, rich in authenticity, with black female and queer characters at the forefront of its stories. It’s a gritty dive into in a world that feels refreshingly real.
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- Ryan O’Connell (writer/creator, Special, Netflix – TV series)
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O’Connell is a disability advocate and LGBTQ activist. Not only did he write and create Special about “A young gay man with cerebral palsy [who] branches out from his insular existence in hopes of finally going after the life he wants”(IMDb), but he also stars in this fantastic series based on his own life experiences.
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Special is hilarious, heartwarming, and left me wanting more from O-Connell and his whole world of characters.
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- Tanya Saracho (writer/creator, Vida, Starz – TV series)
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Recently cancelled by STARZ, Vida’s three seasons focused on “family, queer and Latinx identity, gentrification, and sisterhood” (Bustle.com) with Saracho at the helm as Showrunner.
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Vida is a series that deserves every bit of praise it received, celebrating the culture of East LA and delivering complex, gripping characters. This is a highly binge-worthy series that absorbs and grounds you in a vivid, beautifully authentic world.
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- Lynn Chen (writer/director, I Will Make You Mine – feature film)
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First time writer/director Lynn Chen (who also acts in the film), delivers a wonderful final installment in the Surrogate Valentine trilogy.
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Taking over the reins from Dave Boyle who wrote and directed the first two films, Chen pivots the story away from the lead male character, focusing it instead on the three lead Asian American women as they “wrestle with life’s difficulties while confronting their past relationships with the same man” (IMDb). Chen’s direction and acute attention to detail, bring a type of precious nuance so true and subtle that the scenes feel like secretly caught moments.
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- Ashely Eakin (writer/director, Single – short film)
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Ashely Eakin is a filmmaker whose story of having a rare bone disease went viral in 2017 after appearing in a SoulPancake video. Among other accolades, Eakin’s short film Single was selected for the SXSW 2020 Film Festival and received the Special Jury Recognition Award. Starring actress Delaney Feener, Single brings us along as “a girl born with one arm gets set up with a guy who has one hand – and she is pissed” (IMDb).
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In addition to Single being a fantastic short film, I found it incredibly refreshing to see characters with disabilities played by actors who truly have that life experience. It took me down a rabbit hole into all of Eakin and also Delaney’s work, which brought me to Delaney’s Instagram account and a video she made talking about the importance of accurate representation.
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Jeff Barnaby is a Mi’kmaqi writer and director who grew up on the Listuguj Reserve in Quebec, Canada. I first learned of Barnaby’s work after watching Blood Quantum – a horror genre movie where Indigenous members of the community are immune to the zombie plague. Blood Quantum premiered at TIFF and was distributed by Shudder.
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As a horror genre lover, I was very excited to see a movie starring Indigenous characters told by an Indigenous writer/director about their community, and I learned that he burst onto the independent film scene in 2013 with Rhymes for Young Ghouls. As stated in The Globe and Mail, it’s “a savvy native-Canadian genre film with a strong, beautiful and ingenious heroine whose courage helps right an injustice.”
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Barnaby’s work as writer and director is truly a deep dive into the “horror genre [as] a vehicle for subversive social commentary” (interview via cbc.ca).
Happy viewing! Please feel free to reach out and let me know of other films and tv shows by diverse creators that I need to watch.
Have a script from an underrepresented perspective? 
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Helenna Santos is an actor, writer, producer, and was the founder/editor-in-chief of Ms. In The Biz for its seven year run. As an actor, she has been seen most recently in CW’s THE FLASH, ABC’s A MILLION LITTLE THINGS and THE GOOD DOCTOR as well as THE BABY-SITTERS CLUB on Netflix. Helenna produced and starred in the female driven sci-fi/thriller feature film The Shasta Triangle and the adventure movie At Your Own Risk. Her work as a contributing writer has been featured in MovieMaker Magazine, Backstage Magazine, IndieWire, Film Inquiry, and BUST Magazine, and she can often be found on panels at conventions such as San Diego Comic-Con. Connect with her on Instagram and twitter!
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