Film Tampa Bay Commissioner to Launch Local Chapter of Women in Film & Television

February 18, 2015

Tampa Hillsborough Film and Digital Media Commissioner Dale Gordon is hard at work transforming the film, television, and digital media scene in Tampa Bay. From landing ‘The Infiltrator’ and Tim Burton’s ‘Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children’ to hosting legislative events with special guests like John Travolta at the Hard Rock Café, she has been one busy woman.
 
Next week, Dale will launch the local chapter of Women in Film & Television (WIFT), an organization dedicated to building positive images of media-makers, both women and men, empowering them to achieve their highest professional and creative potential, and helping create more job opportunities throughout Florida.
 
The Commission is a division of the Tampa Hillsborough EDC. It made sense to bring the organization in under the EDC umbrella, since the film and digital media industry is a vital part of our economy and generates high skill, high-wage jobs for the region.  The average annual wage for film and digital media  positions here is $70,000.
 
WIFT Tampa-St. Petersburg’s first networking meeting will take place on Wednesday, February 25 at 5:30 p.m. at Edge, the rooftop bar at the Epicurean Hotel.
 
Why is WIFT Tampa-St. Petersburg needed? According to the Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film, women make up just 7% of the directors and only 17% of those working in key behind-the-scenes roles in the top 250 grossing films in 2014.
 
The lack of women in film roles isn’t just for those behind the camera either. Of the top 100 domestic-grossing films in 2014, only 12 percent of the protagonists were females. Dale hopes that this group will help the industry recognize a serious issue. “It is a problem the industry as a whole needs to address,” she told TheTampa Tribune in an article this past weekend. “We need to make sure that talent can equal success for a woman in film.”
 
The first event of the local WIFT chapter is open to both members and nonmembers. However, professionals interested in joining WIFT Tampa-St. Petersburg must have a minimum of two years experience working in the film, television, and entertainment industry. Over 100 people are already registered for the event. To learn more, click here.