McKinsey Study: Black Representation in Film and TV.

Updated: Apr 19, 2022

FADE is a Shoppable Video technology solution made for the Media and Entertainment industry. The category consists of film, television, radio, print, and digital entertainment and includes segments such as movies, series, news, music, digital media, and others. PWC projects this category will reach a staggering $2.4 Trillion in 2022.

The problem that FADE solves in this space is the acceleration and democratization of viewer discovery and purchase within professional video content. As a co-founder, I often walk into the room (albeit virtually) to talk about our technology and find that my partner and I are the only women, and almost always, I am the only black person in the room. Working across Fortune 500s, startups, and others for 20+ years, this is not new; but those thoughts led me to discover this:

"Data on the levels of diversity and representation on-screen have been available for several years. But those numbers alone, as important as they are, tell only one part of the story. We examined in detail the racial complexities and challenges of this dynamic workplace, analyzing the entire film and TV ecosystem—including studios, networks, production and streaming companies, and distributors—through the lens of the individuals who must navigate it: on-screen talent, as well as off-screen writers, producers, directors, executives, agents, crew members, and beyond."

—McKinsey, March 2021

Unless you follow the business of film and television, perhaps you missed the report that made nominal headlines almost a year ago, "Black Representation in Film and TV and its $10B impacts. Industry executives and McKinsey conducted the body of research and found that America's most exciting sector is also the country's least diverse, and the systemic biases are costing the industry.

We’re bringing this to the top of your inbox to generate a dialogue in Making Black History 2022.

The report reveals that the Film and TV industry could potentially unlock more than $10 billion in annual revenues if it addressed these barriers. An equivalent of a 7 percent expansion in baseline industry revenues as a subset of Media & Entertainment. The study leans in with an observation about the highest-ranking Black professionals in executive decision-making roles throughout the industry (department heads or top management, for example). “The film industry, in particular, remains disproportionately white, even compared with such homogenous sectors as energy and finance".

The report also examines the gender mix of the C-suite, stereotypes, the wealth gap, connective threading of jobs, and biases in the industry, among other topics. We took a look at the numbers:

The Big Picture:

2.5M Total Jobs supported in Film & Television (USA)
4.4M Direct Jobs Film & Television (Global)
The Industry
Film & Television projected to have reach $251.92 Billion in 2021 >> $318.23 Billion by 2025
Film & Television Production Spend >>$250 Billion

Executive Stakeholders and Decision-Makers

87 percent of TV executives and 92 percent of film executives are white.
Less than 6 percent of the writers, directors, and producers of US-produced films are Black
Only 5 percent of Showrunners are Black
Director & Producer Job Outlook is expected to grow by 24 percent

One executive eloquently summarized the study in CEO Magazine:

"Every project is very expensive so there is a perception of high risk in doing something different, such as hiring a more diverse crew or talent. The structures and focus that other industries can bring to diversifying their workforces are much more elusive in Hollywood" (excerpt).

Join FADE for a look at Making Black History 2022. We will open the aperture on Film and Entertainment inclusivity and economic opportunities through supplier diversity in a series of weekly blog posts. We will look at tomorrow's creatives executives, dealmakers, shot callers, and technologists that are breaking barriers to innovate and advance Hollywood.

This research is an excerpt from Mckinsey’s study Black Representation in Film and TV: The challenges and impact of increasing diversity found here, PwC Entertainment and media revenue article, and CEO Magazine found here. Opinions are our own.

About

Fade Technology is building and partnering for the mini walled gardens. Publishers want an alternative to redirecting traffic away from their platform or owning a commerce business model. But not every publisher wants to own an eCommerce store. Fade is the alternative that lets media companies get back to the business of distributing content that increases retention, time on site, revenue, and reduces customer churn. FADE makes premium video shoppable everywhere viewers consume immersive content on mobile, desktop, and tv. A BIPOC and a women-owned company that thinks about shoppable video a lot.