Less than one week ago ARRAY, the arts collective for women and people of color founded by Ava DuVernay, announced that it was teaming up with Google for a $500K film grant dedicated to bringing one underrepresented creative’s film to the screen. Back in January DuVernay launched a database of below-the-line talent designed to bridge the hiring gap for women and people of color in the entertainment industry via ARRAY Alliance, the nonprofit arm of ARRAY. It’s no wonder that ARRAY is being recognized for its work toward “narrative change” over the past decade: it has been named as this year’s recipient of the Peabody’s Institutional Award. Deadline broke the news.
“I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, I truly treasure the Peabody because of the way in which it is determined,” said DuVernay. She explained, “the body that decides this honor is diverse, in cultural background, but also in professional expertise and areas of interest, it’s just a beautiful honor.”
Given in recognition of groups, outlets, and specific projects “for their enduring body of work and their iconic impact on both the media landscape and the public imagination,” the Institutional Award is chosen by the Peabody Board of Jurors.
“It was 10 years ago when Ava DuVernay created a unique, multi-platform arts and social impact collective dedicated to narrative change,” stated Oprah Winfrey, who has collaborated with DuVernay on “Selma,” “A Wrinkle in Time,” and OWN family drama “Queen Sugar.” “Now this vision manifested into a production organization led by a quartet of mission driven entities. The film distribution arm, ARRAY Releasing. The content company, ARRAY Filmworks. The programming and production hub, ARRAY Creative Campus. And, the non-profit group, ARRAY Alliance.”
Peabody executive director Jeffrey Jones added, “As an Academy Award nominee and multiple Peabody and Emmy Award winner, Ava has leveraged her remarkable success to amplify and uplift women directors and storytellers of color. ARRAY has produced an incredible slate of projects centered around Black experiences and has led many inspirational initiatives to support up-and-coming filmmakers of color. It’s an honor to name ARRAY winner of this year’s Institutional Award.”
Previous recipients of the Peabody Institutional Award include Kartemquin Films, “Sesame Street,” and “Frontline.”
