Cinematography : Female Cinematographers by Mike Sorrentino

Hi Mike, than k you for posting this! I am in Los Angeles and I am a composer. Happy 4th of July :)

Ciao Elena. Thanks for reaching out to me. When I have a need for music I may contact you. All the best!

Hey, Mike Sorrentino! You can search Stage32's members based on occupation and location here ( https://www.stage32.com/people ) and then just DM the ones that are of interest. Make sure you check out their reels, which should be a link on their profiles!

You can also post a job listing here: https://www.stage32.com/find-jobs/add

Hi Karen, thank you for your suggestion. I have used the search function in the member section and it kind of reinforces my point. A simple search of cinematographers in Los Angeles returns over 900 results. (many of those do not list DP or related skills) It is cumbersome to tab through that many folks in search of female talent exclusively. Would S32 consider adding gender to the search criteria? I don't think it's even available when searching for an actor/actress on the site. Just a thought. As I get closer I will likely use the job listing section. Take care!

I think the bigger issue is these profiles don't have videos! Luckily I'm putting together a little something about the importance of having a completed Profile, so hopefully, we can flesh out our pool of DP candidates across the board.

A five-minute search rendered these five rockstar female DPs of various degrees:

https://www.stage32.com/profile/14974/about

https://www.stage32.com/sara.eustaquio

https://www.stage32.com/profile/523371/about *No reel, but she's union

https://www.stage32.com/shirleymoirin *No reel, but she's shot shorts before

https://www.stage32.com/jenwhitedop *Website

Mike Sorrentino My instinct says no, but I'll pass along the suggestion to add gender to the search criteria. I understand your intentions but choosing someone based on their gender can be used to discriminate as well. And as a retired massage therapist, I can tell you that requesting a female when it's not required as part of the job description can come across as sexist. Again, I appreciate your intention to hire more women, but that initiative is ultimately on you. Can you imagine if we also added race as an option for finding crew? You could argue it would be to hire more people of color, but that's not the only way that tool can be used. The reason acting profiles can get away with it is because actors are seen, and so their looks are part of what gets them the job. Doing good work is what gets you the job as a crew member, and any other delineation is a responsibility you've accepted.

To paraphrase Dumbledore - doing what's right isn't easy, and making it easy isn't always right.

I hope that helps - let us know how the shoot goes!

Thanks for taking the time to carefully explain your thoughts. I get it too. I also appreciate that you poked around and suggested some DP's. I had actually come across some of them here on the site. I have some time to explore and vet candidates. I look forward to your blog about profiles. Thanks again.

Call Local 600 Los Angeles office

Great suggestion, Dan MaxXx!

Good points Karen. Sad that knowledge, skill, ability, experience or artistry are no longer the prime considerations. Oh well.

Just to be clear, my desire is to find a capable female DP that can bring all those great qualities to the project;. I'm not just trying to "check a box." This short film has a strong female lead and the cast is 95 percent female so for me it makes sense this time.

Hmmm…. I guess the project will then have a female Writer? Female Director? Female Producer? Quotas are an important and necessary tool in many instances, but the problems with applying those quotas always becomes readily apparent.

Many of us have been trying for years to achieve these ends. Equality is an important thing to strive for. Good on ya Mike, for trying.