The Rapidly Changing Role of Women in Entertainment
In case you haven’t noticed, there has been a paradigm shift for women leaders across the country as entrepreneurs, change makers, executive leaders and mothers.
Hollywood is no exception as the rise in feminism has had an increased number of celebrity women speaking out publicly against long-endured injustices. The list of activists includes celebrities such as Ashley Judd, Patricia Arquette, Geena Davis, Emma Watson and Lena Dunham.
It isn’t just famous actresses who are making their voices heard.
Directors, producers, network executives, writers and filmmakers are all cultivating new opportunities for women in both creative and leadership roles.
For many of us— myself included– this is no longer a choice.
Women are being called to make a difference in the world through our creative contributions in entertainment in the stories we tell, the roles that we play, the projects that we greenlight and the television shows we choose to give our attention.
We are in a FLUID state of progress.
No matter what role we play in the entertainment industry, we are part of a dynamic force that may bring into question the original intention of our creative careers.
And while it may pose as a distraction, our reality is bringing us the kind of shift that women before us have been working towards for generations.
It’s time we talk about the importance of passing that baton.
On Today’s Show
I’ll be sitting down with the extremely talented and prolific television director, Bethany Rooney whose talents have been included in many diverse television credits such as Desperate Housewives, NCIS, Criminal Minds, Parenthood, 90210, One Tree Hill and countless others.
Bethany is joining us today to discuss how she got her start as a television director, why she is known as an “actor’s director”, what aspiring young women in Hollywood can do to follow in her footsteps, and her role as a leader of future of women influencers in Hollywood.
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Meet Bethany Rooney!
In a field where longevity is rare, the long-term success of Bethany Rooney’s career has defied the odds of Hollywood. Rooney has been at the helm for over two-hundred episodes of prime time television for almost thirty years, including many critically acclaimed series such as Scandal, Criminal Minds, Arrow, Nashville and the American long-running classics Desperate Housewives, Ally McBeal, and Brothers & Sisters. Her reputation as an actor’s director who leads with gentle command has made her part of an elite group of television industry leaders. She serves as the co-chair of the DGA’s Women’s Steering Committee and shares her knowledge of the craft by teaching the intensive Warner Brothers Directing Workshop. Her book (co-authored with Mary Lou Belli) “Directors Tell the Story: Master the Craft of Television and Film Directing” is being utilized at the Warner Brothers, ABC/Disney, and Sony directing workshops, and in directing classes on many university campuses, including Tisch Asia School of Arts, Full Sail University, Chapman University, Arizona State, Vancouver Film School, Watkins College of Art, Design and Film, and Columbia College (Chicago). Learn more about Bethany—>