At Backstage, our mission is to make the world’s creator economy more accessible, productive, and successful. We recognize that diverse, equitable, and inclusive casting in film, theater, and television that promotes belonging is integral to that mission.
Diversity in casting and crew staffing makes for more authentic, relatable storytelling. Equitable and inclusive casting and crew staffing means more opportunity for talent and talent seekers. As creators and viewers, we are beyond a crucial tipping point where DEIB in film, theater, and television is no longer novel or audacious, it’s imperative and important.
Audiences agree. They want to see more diversity in the entertainment industry, according to a recent study from Starz and the UCLA’s Center for Scholars & Storytellers. And a significant movement in the industry for more diversity on screen and off continues to gain momentum and has resulted in ground-breaking successes in film and television.
In 2019, TIME called Netflix’s Orange Is the New Black “the most influential show of the decade” in part for its “bold experiment in representational sleight of hand” with a cast that included “dozens of women Hollywood historically ignored—poor women, black women, brown women, trans women, immigrant women, elderly women, mentally ill women, women with double-digit dress sizes.”
Oscar-winning Moonlight and the HBO series Insecure have been praised as products of a new generation of creators skilled in the tactics and tricks for making people of color look as good on screen as they should. Cinematographers, lighting specialists, makeup artists, and other creators who understand the aesthetics of representation are crucial for countering the inherent bias that’s been embedded in making film and television since their inception, when cameras and lighting standards were calibrated for light skin tones—and stayed that way for generations.
We are working alongside you to keep challenging the model of the entertainment industry as exclusive and privileged—when we all know firsthand the greater achievement that comes with it being more inclusive and equitable.
We live our values so you can, too
We work with DEIB specialists to continually evaluate how we help facilitate the ongoing transformation of our industry. We want creators to be able to find the skilled performers and production staff they seek and also provide access to talent that otherwise might continue to be overlooked.
One of the ways we’ve put our values into action is by implementing important changes to our tools and resources.
Diversity
Individuals with diverse backgrounds, identities, attributes, and abilities have long been underrepresented or misrepresented in mainstream contexts. There is no question positive depictions through the arts and popular media assist in reducing stereotypes of underrepresented and marginalized groups.
Backstage seeks to attract and maintain a diverse talent marketplace, which is searchable by ethnicity, gender expression, body type, different abilities, and other keywords to find the right fit for your project. For example, talent profiles on Backstage for nine different ethnicities, including for individuals of African-American, Latino and Hispanic, Middle Easter, Asian, South Asian, and Native American descent, have increased exponentially over the last four years. Talent of African-American and Latino and Hispanic descent have increased by almost tenfold.
A new way we have ensured greater discovery of diversity among talent is by completely rebuilding how gender identity and expression are represented. To allow all talent on Backstage to appropriately and equally represent themselves, we have introduced 27 new gender options for talent profiles. Members also have an option to create their own description if they find one of our options does not accurately represent them.
Equity
Equity means recognizing not everyone has the same opportunities and providing individuals what they need to overcome—intentional or unintentional—barriers that create an imbalance in access to opportunity and success.
To make discovery more equitable, Backstage has changed how talent is found in search based on ethnicity, body type, abilities, and gender—specifically non-cisgender candidates. Our search tool is designed to include additional gender identities so, for example, directors looking for cisgender male or female talent will see non-cisgender talent included in their search results. Non-cisgender talent will likewise receive relevant casting and audition notices to ensure more people are included in opportunities.
We have also enhanced visibility during the job posting process by adding instructional content to our role-creation form that educates creators on the benefits of diverse and inclusive casting. This addition prompted the creation of more than 10,000 unique roles specific to non-cisgender people within a single year.
Inclusion and belonging
Inclusion and belonging ensures people from diverse groups are not just included but feel welcome and are able to participate as who they are.
Backstage profiles provide options to fully describe body type, ethnicities, abilities, and other attributes so individuals can promote who they are in the way that suits them best. Talent profiles also include personal pronouns to ensure talent can express who they are and be accurately addressed in messaging and direct communications. This seemingly small detail has big impact by preventing misunderstandings and eliminating unnecessary stressors, like talent having to self-identify during auditions.
Our ongoing commitment
Backstage is committed to continuing to find new ways to promote diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging in our messaging, tools, and own workplace practices. As we learn and do better, we will adjust, enhance, and grow our product offerings and features to ensure we are enabling and promoting the value of better talent decisions.
And we expect you and our talent community to continue to hold us to it.
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