Canon Club: Issue No. 10

Welcome to the tenth issue of DEG’s Canon Club Newsletter!

Hear from the industry's top voices at

EnTech Fest and Summer Symposium 2025

DEG

Amy Jo Smith

Industry Advisor/Filmmaker

Barbara Ford Grant

Netflix

Heather Dowdy

Nexus Studios

Kristin Glushon

Spherex

Teresa Phillips

Trusted Partner Network

Terri Davies

Twelve Labs

Soyoung Lee

See the full list of speakers here

REGISTER HERE


EnTech Fest and Summer Symposium 2025 is free for DEG members.

If your company's a DEG member, you're a DEG member!

 

Non-members can attend for $695.

 

Use discount code EarlyBird25 by April 15 for 25% off a one-day ticket.

Half of the proceeds from all non-member tickets will be donated by DEG to fire relief efforts.

MEMBERS ON THE MOVE

Congratulations to women from member companies who have recently joined new companies or been promoted to prominent positions.

Amazon Prime Video

Kelly Day

Day will lead Amazon's International originals,

in addition to her current role as

 VP International.

Congratulations to women from member companies who were named as Media Play News' Top Indie Power Players of 2025.

Cineverse

Yolanda Macias

Shout! Studios

Melissa Boag

Did a female executive recently join or receive a promotion at your company, or were they honored for any industry awards?

Email cayla@degonline.org to recognize them in our next newsletter!

THE WORD


“It’s fantastic that they are women but first and foremost, they are hilarious, writer-performers.”


-HBO comedy head Amy Gravitt on the streamer's upcoming television projects, the majority of which have female leads.


Read more

NOTABLE NEWS

Former Vice CEO Nancy Dubuc Is Back, This Time Tackling Women’s Sports

Wall Street Journal ($)

Nancy Dubuc, a longtime media executive known for leading A+E Networks and Vice Media during challenging times, has been named executive chair of Togethxr, a media and commerce startup focused on women’s sports. Togethxr, pronounced “together,” is behind the “Everyone Watches Women’s Sports” T-shirt that has become a common sight at sports events around the world. It also produces social media content, documentaries, podcasts and newsletters about female athletes and their fans. Read more

Hollywood’s DEI-Promoting Nonprofits Face Trump Assault: “The Higher Profile You Are, the Bigger the Target”

The Hollywood Reporter

Now many organizations doing this work, from Women in Film and Color of Change to Gold House, are facing a crisis. If not yet through a direct hit to philanthropic financing than the secondary ramifications of an all-out war on progressive policies in the private sector. “The ground has quickly shifted,” says consultant Scott Curran, who works with entertainment-oriented nonprofits advancing progressive causes. “The higher profile you are, the bigger the target you are, especially in this environment. The goal isn’t always to stop the work. It’s to create a chilling effect so that the people doing it stop the work themselves.” Read more

Support Women in Film | Support Color of Change | Support Gold House

Michelle Obama’s Next Act: Video Podcaster

New York Times ($)

Ask any prominent podcast host for a list of dream interview guests, and it is quite likely that Michelle Obama’s name would be on it. That is why the former first lady shouldn’t have much trouble booking whomever she likes on her new show, “IMO,” short for “in my opinion,” which she will host with her older brother, the basketball executive Craig Robinson. The podcast was announced on Monday by Higher Ground, the media company founded in 2018 by former President Barack Obama and Mrs. Obama. Read more

Female Representation in Film Has Significantly Increased Over Last Decade, Says Study From Kering Women in Motion and Annenberg Inclusion Initiative

Variety

The study, presented by Annenberg’s Dr. Stacy L. Smith and Katherine Pieper, drew data from 3,240 narrative films made in Australia, France, Germany, Italy, the U.S. and the U.K. that grossed at least $1 million globally. It also surveyed the lineups at five top film festivals: Cannes, Berlin, Venice, Sundance and Toronto. Smith and Pieper also examined talks that have been hosted by Kering’s Women in Motion Program and drew parallels between the concerns that were raised during these conversations and real progress that happened in the filmmaking landscape. In the U.K., the number of women behind the camera skyrocketed from 8.3% in 2015 to 32.3% in 2024. In the U.S. it went from 8% to 16.2%, and in France it grew from 14.4% to 25.9%. Read more

Billie Jean King on Why She’s Finally Getting Her Degree, Her Advice to the Next Generation of Tennis Players and Her Legacy

Variety

King’s athletic achievements are groundbreaking: she’s won 39 Grand Slams, ranked No. 1 nationally a total of six times from 1966 to 1975 and was the first woman in the his- tory of sports to win $100,000 in a single year. She went on to form and serve as president of the Women’s Tennis Association, and she made history in 1973 when she defeated Bobby Riggs in the famed “Battle of the Sexes” tennis match. Dedicated to LGBTQ+ rights, King fought hard off court to help achieve pay parity for women’s tennis and is a champion for women’s sports in general. To sum it up, Billie Jean King is a gamechanger on every level. But all her life, one thing has gnawed at her: “I’ve been saying, ‘I never finished school.’” Read more

IN THE WORKPLACE

Invest in Women or Prepare to Fall Behind

Fast Company ($)

Supporting women’s advancement is not about generosity but a strategic decision that strengthens businesses. Companies that fail to integrate women into leadership and decision-making structures actively undermine their potential. The economic benefits of diverse leadership are clear. Businesses with diverse leadership teams outperform competitors by 35%, yet women hold only 10% of executive leadership roles in Fortune 500 companies according to a McKinsey & Co. study. Companies with fewer women in leadership experience higher attrition rates among female employees, which can lead to productivity loss, increased turnover costs, and knowledge drain. Read more

The Glass Ceiling Isn’t the Only Setback for Women in the Workplace. The Entire Corporate Ladder is Broken, One Author Suggests

HR Brew

Lareina Yee, Kweilin Ellingrud, and María del Mar Martínez have each faced their own challenges as working mothers, but have climbed the corporate ladder to become senior partners at the consulting firm McKinsey & Company. Because they’ve seen how hard it can be for women to succeed in male-dominated industries, they wanted to share the research and real-life stories of how women can succeed in their book, The Broken Rung: When the Career Ladder Breaks for Women—and How They Can Succeed in Spite of It. HR Brew chatted with Lareina Yee about what people leaders can learn from the book. Read more

More...


‘Wicked,’ ‘Emilia Pérez’ and ‘The Substance’ Earn ReFrame Stamp for Gender-Balanced Hiring The Hollywood Reporter


Patricia Clarkson Transforms Into Equal Pay Icon Lilly Ledbetter for Biopic ‘Lilly’ — Watch Trailer [Pictured] IndieWire


Women Directors Behind ‘Baby Reindeer’, ‘One Day’ & ‘We Are Lady Parts’ Talk Breaking Records & Smashing Glass Ceilings At The BAFTAs Deadline


A Hollywood Star With a Secret That Could Have Ended Her Career New York Times ($)

For more information on the Canon Club newsletter, please contact Cayla Newnan at Cayla@degonline.org.


For more information on Canon Club, please contact Bekah Sturm at Bekah@degonline.org.


For sponsorship opportunities, please contact Andi Elliott at Andi@degonline.org.

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