Ava DuVernay is dropping truth bombs yet again. The Hollywood Reporter recently brought together some of the top showrunners and producers in the business, and the resulting feature is full of interesting insights and anecdotes. The roundtable includes contributions from “Queen Sugar’s” DuVernay, “Orange Is the New Black’s” Jenji Kohan, “Westworld’s” Lisa Joy, and more. While the piece is well worth reading in full, something DuVernay discussed really stands out.
When the participants were asked if they have the confidence to say no, the “Selma” director had an especially great answer. “Embedded in that very question is the idea that privilege does not apply. For me to say no, in my mind, there may not be another chance,” she explained. “There’s a natural tension with anyone to keep the chance for the open door. When you add to that issues of representation and marginalization that go on top of the artist’s feeling of ‘Can I get my thing made?’ it becomes challenging for me to say no.”
The “13th” helmer went on to share specific examples from her own career. She said, “I get an opportunity from Netflix. ‘Do you want to make a doc?’ ‘Yes, I want to make a doc.’ Apple: ‘Would you like to make a commercial?’ ‘Yes, I will make that commercial.’”
“I’m running around doing everything because I love it but also because there is the fear that any artist has that there won’t be another question asked to say no to,” DuVernay revealed. “And on top of that, the fear that the industry might shift in terms of its attention to women right now or the current renaissance regarding people of color, specifically black folk on TV, and then you’re left with nothing.”
Joy added, “There is that pressure not only to be prolific but to not fuck up. And especially when you feel the added burden of being a woman who is doing this now.” She said, “I represent opportunities for other women and other people of color, and I’m trying to start my own kind of movement.”
Both DuVernay and Joy are pointing to the fact that the stakes are higher for women in the industry, and particularly women of color. If they fail, their failure will be used as an example why it’s in Hollywood’s best interest to favor material by and about white men.
DuVernay has previously described Hollywood as “a patriarchy, headed by men and built for men. To pretend like Hollywood is anything other than that is disingenuous,” she observed. “#OscarsSoWhite is trendy, but for women filmmakers and filmmakers of color, it’s not a trend. This is our reality, and it’s important that we do something to change it. We have to find new ways to work without permission, new ways to turn corners and go through doors that are closed off to us to create our own audiences and our own material independently.”
The second season of “Queen Sugar” will premiere on OWN June 20. Just like the first season, every episode of the family drama’s new season will be helmed by women. Her next feature, a live-action adaptation of the beloved fantasy novel “A Wrinkle in Time,” is set to hit theaters March 9, 2018. The film’s cast includes Oprah Winfrey, Reese Witherspoon, and Mindy Kaling.
