Adobe Commits $6 Million to Support Underrepresented Video Creators
It’s no secret that the film and TV industries lack diversity, but in its latest announcement, Adobe is stepping up to offer support for underrepresented creators. The new Adobe Film & TV Fund aims to provide career support and growth to increase representation in film and television.
The Adobe Foundation is not new to providing support to creators and artists. Founded in 2007, the Foundation “creates positive change through support for creative and digital literacy, social equity and opportunity, and active engagement in the communities where we live and work,” according to the Adobe Foundation website.
The Adobe Film & TV fund is part of the Adobe Foundation and commits $6 million in support to improve representation in the industry “by providing resources, community, and support to underrepresented creators on-screen and behind the camera,” says Adobe. To tackle this goal, it will work to address inequity in funding, career, and training opportunities. In the Fund’s first year, Adobe and the Adobe Foundation have committed six million dollars in grants, contributions, and Adobe Creative Cloud product donations to accelerate the careers of thousands of creators across the globe.
Adobe and the Adobe Foundation are collaborating with global organizations that “are committed to empowering underrepresented communities and making a significant shift in representation for multi-hyphenate creators in film and TV,” Adobe explains. That includes Easterseals, Gold House, The Latinx House, NAACP, Sundance Institute, and Yuvaa. Funding will be focused on fellowships and apprenticeships that provide hands-on industry access via mentorships and networking opportunities within production houses, studios, and distributors. There will also be grants enabling the organizations to offer direct support for creators in their communities with funding for short and feature-length films.
“Diversity in front of and behind the camera is key to unlocking more diverse and more inclusive storytelling across TV and film,” said Stacy Martinet, VP Marketing Strategy and Communications, Adobe and member of the Adobe Foundation board. “Through our new Film & TV Fund, Adobe is looking to leverage its leadership position in the creative industry to unlock new opportunities for underrepresented creators.”
The first step of the new program is through the NAACP, with the specific goal of increasing diverse representation in the post-production industry. It is a 14-week fellowship program focused on education, training, career growth, and workplace experience. It will include access to Adobe Creative Cloud, training, industry mentorships, masterclass lectures, workplace rotations, and more. Applications open on January 18, and four fellows will begin the program in May of this year. Creatives can find out more and apply at the NAACP Editing Fellowship website.
“Equity matters, and it is incumbent upon those of us who sit in positions of power and authority to help identify solutions to advance diversity and inclusion both in front of and behind the lens,” says Kyle Bowser, senior vice president of the NAACP Hollywood Bureau. “It’s an honor to work with a like-minded partner in Adobe, who shows up at the table with ideas and resources that make a tangible impact.”
Adobe’s new fund builds on its long-standing collaboration with Sundance. Since 2015, Adobe has worked with Sundance through the Sundance Ignite x Adobe Fellowship, a year-round artist development program to support emerging filmmakers ages 18 to 25. Over the last seven years, the collaboration has supported 90 fellows. Adobe also launched the Sundance Women to Watch x Adobe Fellowship. This fellowship, which started in 2020, is also a year-round program to foster community, further craft, and offer support to female artists.
Image credits: Adobe
