29 - What It Takes to Succeed as a Female Filmmaker w/ Emmy Award Winner Janet Grillo
Are you passionate about filmmaking, or have you ever dreamed about becoming a part of the film industry? If so, then join me on today’s episode of Mentors and Moguls featuring my guest Janet Grillo. Janet Grillo is a critically acclaimed filmmaker, Emmy Award winning producer, and former studio executive. She’s most known for her work directing the award winning film Jack of the Red Hearts; writing, directing, and producing the critically acclaimed film Fly Away; and for working as an executive producer for the Emmy Award winning HBO documentary, Autism: The Musical. She currently works as a full time Arts Professor at NYU Tisch School of the Arts, Kanbar Institute of Film and Television. Be sure to listen in as together Janet and I discuss her career in the film industry, how the industry has evolved over time, and what the future looks like for women aspiring to go into filmmaking.
Janet begins our conversation today by explaining how she began her path into the film industry, discussing her beginnings at New Line Cinema when it was first starting out and how she was then able to grow along with the company. She explains to listeners that in the film industry, technology, form, and content are all closely linked together so that with the advent of video, an entirely new market opened up, creating a new revenue stream that then allowed for more movies, such as independent films, to be made.
In addition to talking about how technology has evolved over the last several decades, Janet also discusses how the environment for women within the film industry has changed over time. She explains that while she has always dedicated herself to promoting female-driven films and stories, for many years, their work just wasn’t being received because it was assumed there was no audience for such projects. Because of the Me Too movement and other cultural shifts, however, she finally sees this changing and is optimistic that the momentum will continue forward in the industry for women.
Janet ends our talk today by explaining the need for all of us to continue cultivating a cultural context that supports the dreams of girls aspiring to pursue film so as to offer them the support required for them to be successful. She also offers advice to any listeners who may want to enter the filmmaking industry and some tips on the best ways to begin this journey.
What You’ll Learn in This Podcast Episode:
On today’s episode, you’ll learn about Janet Grillo’s career as a filmmaker and her insight into the film industry. She shares with us how filmmaking has changed over the last several decades and how this evolution has impacted both the stories being told today as well as who is telling them.
Links:
You can learn more about Janet Grillo and her work and filmography at https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0342037/?ref_=nmbio_bio_nm
and
https://tisch.nyu.edu/about/directory/film-tvs/1711293371
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