FEATURED MEMBERS

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Gabriela Yiaxis

Costume Designer

"For me it was never about a costume being pretty but how a costume could tell a true story about a character to an audience. Obviously when I was young, I didn’t understand that clearly. It was just my heart singing when I saw something really good."

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Zeb Achonu

Editor

"Be open to new experiences. Absorb as much as you can from your peers, not just the technical stuff, but the people skills involved in editing. Be confident in what you know, and sure of what you can fake. Don’t be afraid to ask. The edit community is so much better connected now than when I started out. Plus having the internet in your pocket at all times is a game changer!"

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Zoe Goodwin-Stuart ACO

Camera Operator

"To myself, and everyone starting out really: don’t berate yourself too much. Everyone’s learning capacity is different I say this to trainees all the time. No one is the same as you, don’t compare yourself to other people, take your own path if it's right for you then it's right."

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Heather Basten CDG CSA

Casting Director

"Once I experienced casting I never wanted to look back."

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Diana Olifirova

Cinematographer

"All the discoveries you make from these jobs will help you to get to the next level. It’s important to remember this is a fun challenge and curiosity will lead you through to the next challenge and that part of the journey. It’s fun to find new ways of doing it, by doing it. Be patient and enjoy. This is going to be a lifetime of work."

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Clare Pearce

Producer

"When I am lucky enough to be in the position that I am able to work with such incredible people, I make sure that I learn as much as I can from them. I always feel that you can never stop learning at any point in a person’s career."

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Christine Lalla

Director

"There will be those who will not like to see your talent and skill disprove their biases/ racism/sexism, so don’t get disheartened when you’re rejected countless times, seek out the genuine. Look to see who they have championed before you. Don’t wait for funding or a job to be creative - work on personal projects. Writing, lighting, directing, drawing - they’re all facets of storytelling. Practice in each discipline will fuel the others."

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Leslie Gaston-Bird

Sound Re-Recording Mixer

"Perhaps the greatest challenges for me are “self belief” (not the same as “self confidence”) and risk tolerance. To believe in yourself is not the same as having confidence. I have confidence in my abilities as an audio engineer, but if I had truly followed my passion and “believed in myself” I would be in Los Angeles making music! I chose instead to play it safe and find steady employment, regular hours, and a reasonable sleeping schedule. Having said that, I think the next hurdle is to work with other women and minorities to continue breaking down barriers to “even the playing field” for everyone."

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Jules Chapman

Hair & Makeup Designer

"I don’t have one success, I count many successes. Each project, each new experience. The people I meet, the places I’ve been too. The insightful conversations, a new technique, a problem solved or solution found. There are all levels of success in my world."

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Graduate Showcase 2022

Championing New Talent In Our Industry

Our Graduate Showcase is back for its third year! It is time to celebrate some of the best up-and-coming talent in our Industry. All of those listed below have either been shortlisted or nominated for GSA BAFTAs and Student Academy Awards, are RTS Student Award and Grierson Award winners & nominees, Cinéfonation winners & nominees or have had their film screened at a BAFTA or Academy accredited film festival, or have been selected for one of our Industry friends' programmes. Now is the time to champion new voices: here they are. Share their work, sign them, hire them. Happy Graduation!

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Primetime Pride 2022!

Spreading the Love

A new report has found that LGBTQIA+ representation is at a high with nearly 12% of regular characters identifying as LGBT (according to media advocacy group GLAAD). However, we must not end there but ensure that representation increases on-screen as well as off-screen to make sure people are allowed the freedom to share their stories, their experiences and their hopes and dreams. To spread the love at Primetime, we will be showcasing trailblazing LGBTQIA+ filmmakers who are pushing for more authentic representation both on and off screen within film. They will be discussing their hopes for the future in the industry, their favourite bits of content and sharing all their upcoming projects!

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Mental Health Awareness Week 2022

To highlight the importance of Mental Health Awareness Week 2022, of which the theme is Loneliness, we are spotlighting incredible trailblazers in our industry who are making outstanding contributions in representing mental health on screen. While there has been an amazing mental health movement in recent years, the Industry still needs to make great leaps in accurately representing mental health on screen as well as facilitating it off screen.

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Autism Awareness Month 2022

In honour of Autism Awareness Month 2022, we are highlighting incredible trailblazers in our industry who are making outstanding contributions in pushing for more representation of autistic people both on and off screen. With much stigma and misinterpretation still surrounding Autism, we hope to help start shifting this by spotlighting members, projects and people in the Industry who are paving the way for change! For more resources around language and workplace accommodations, check out Neurodivergent Creatives Network.

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Kate Reid BSC

Cinematographer

"It was a harder industry to break into than I ever imagined, but once I learnt about this job it was the only thing I could see myself doing, so I just kept going. From my perspective now, older and hopefully a bit wiser, I would say the main challenges are the limits we place on ourselves."

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Claire Anne Williams

Hair & Make Up Designer

"I do believe there has been change in the industry thanks to the Time's Up, Me Too and Black Lives Matter movements. I truly believe that everyone should feel safe in their work place, and that everyone deserves a right to earn a living to take care of themselves and their families free of impediments of harassment, racism, sexual assault and discrimination."

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Svetlana Miko ACO

Steadicam Operator

"The art of filmmaking stood out for me. I love the format but I also love the physicality the way an operator is part of the process. To me, it is the joy of being lost in executing a shot, but also being amidst the wonderful and amazing creative collaborations; being a part of the triangle of vision between operator, cinematographer and director is great."

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Ramadhan 2022

To celebrate Ramadhan this month, we want to showcase our Muslim members and other Muslim voices in our Industry, share the work they are doing and their hopes for the future of Muslim inclusion within our Industry going forward!

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BAFTA Nominee: Carolyn McLeod

Casting Director

"Trying to sustain a career in this industry, regardless of your job title, is difficult. I’ve always been freelance, so the ‘feast or famine’ aspect of having to constantly source one’s own work is not for the faint of heart. Trying to keep the faith and persevere is the tough part, but having a passion for whatever you do will get you through to the other side."

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BAFTA & Oscar Nominee: Nadia Stacey

Hair and Make Up Designer

"That it pays to be brave and to not worry what people might think, just to be true to your design and what you believe is right for the characters. I’ve also learnt that by immersing yourself in the world you are trying to create that little gems of ideas spark. I’ve also learnt that sometime it pays for me to listen to that secret inner punk."

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BAFTA Nominee: Posy Dixon

Director

"When I was starting out, female identified individuals got ushered into production roles. So fight that wave if you feel it sucking you in and it’s not truly the direction you want to go in. Advice would just be shoot and edit as much as you can. Hone your skills and the rest will follow."

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BAFTA Nominee: Sheena Duggal

VFX Supervisor

"Don't be afraid to ask questions, no one can know it all, it takes a village, smart people surround themselves by smarter people. Normalise being OK saying "I don’t know, but I’ll find out and get back to you". Care about making a good film and telling a good story, but don’t care too much, make sure to find a good work/ life balance. Apply practical intelligence to problem solving. Look at the world, observe, light, photography and art there’s so much to learn. Love what you do."

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BAFTA Nominee: Hester Ruoff

Producer

"Not everyone is going to agree with you, so don’t let that deter you from pursuing what is on your heart. Put your head down, work hard, treat others how you would want to be treated and always always lead by example."

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International Women's Day 2022

You Can #BreakTheBias

Imagine a gender equal world. A world free of bias, stereotypes, and discrimination. A world that is diverse, equitable, and inclusive.

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Neurodiversity Celebration Week 2022

With around 15% of the population thought to be neurodivergent (ND), they are one of the hidden minorities within our workforce. We want to celebrate our ND members and other ND voices in our Industry, and the work that they are doing and actions we can take to support them and move the conversation forward.

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OUR TEAM HAS GROWN!

Welcoming Our New Assistants

We're so pleased to announce that we are growing our team and adding a new Communications Assistant and Executive Assistant who will be helping us across the platform, connecting women in film online!

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Carly Paradis

Composer

"Primetime invited me to a Director x Composer ‘speed networking’ virtual event [Primetime Pledges]. It was here I met director Ed Lilly and we hit it off very early (we were also wearing the same thing in our first meeting haha). We went on to collaborate on ‘The Rising’ which has been such an organic, collaborative, energized experience. We were all there for the same reason, to kick ass on this project we were all so passionate about it."

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Isabell Chavez Vega

1st Assistant Editor

"When you’re starting out you’re eager to please people and help out the team, to put in extra hours and energy, no matter if that means cancelling plans with friends or skipping on proper sleep. Our industry can be very intense with working hours and expectations, and we need to change that. In one word: sustainability. It’s hard to draw boundaries at the start of your career, but it’s no good if it comes at a cost of endless missed occasions and sleep deprivation. Rest and relaxation is just as important as work."

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Tanya Marar

Camera Operator

"I’ve been given opportunities from people that I’m grateful for, and my friends are my mentors in life, but I never had an industry mentor. It’s something I think is important. I mentor university students, and I’m launching a podcast where I interview camera women in different stages of their careers about their experiences, to give people the access to relatable stories to help navigate the industry."

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We're Hiring!

Come Join The Team

We've been accepted onto the Government Kickstart Campaign which places 16-24 year olds who are currently claiming Universal Credit on 6 month fixed work contracts . We are looking for two eager Film & TV fanatics who want to help change our Industry for the better to come and join our team!

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Prano Bailey-Bond

Writer/ Director

"Carve out all the time you can to explore and develop your creativity – write, paint, make stuff – never stop doing any of that. Stay weird. Learn the nuts and bolts of your craft."

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Hutch Demouilpied

Composer

"I was inspired by my grandmother who wrote piano compositions and she used to ask me what they sounded like, as she was deaf by the time I was born."

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Lizzy Talbot

Intimacy Coordinator

"The early years of tackling attitudes towards safe intimacy was absolutely exhausting. It felt like a constant battle and at some points giving up seemed the most sensible thing to do. The #MeToo movement changed everything and slowly but surely the industry and more importantly industry leaders stated to take notice."

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Annika Summerson

Cinematographer

"It would be interesting to see if we all applied for jobs with showreels only, no names, no gender, no nationality, no age…"

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Graduate Showcase 2021

Championing New Talent In Our Industry

Our Graduate Showcase is back for its second year! It is time to celebrate some of the best up-and-coming talent in our Industry.

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Amanda Brown

Composer

"I would advise never stop being curious, never stop learning or finding delight in music and always build up your skill set. So when the opportunities finally arrive, you will be ready."

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Our Online Shop Launches

100% cotton, 100% supporting women

Time to re-a-dress the gender imbalance, one badass t-shirt at a time. 100% profits support women working behind the camera in the Entertainment Industry. 100% cotton and sustainable products you can get behind. Whether on set or on the look out for work, we have pieces for every occasion.

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3 YEAR DEAL WITH BRITISH CINEMATOGRAPHER

Member Exclusive

Primetime has just signed an exclusive 3 year deal with No.1 Cinematography Magazine in the country: British Cinematographer.

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Primetime Pride: Summer Of Love

Celebrating Self Love In All Its Forms

As we navigate out of this incredibly challenging time where our mental health has been pushed to its limits, we want to take a moment to share some joy in how far we have come, and reconnecting with the person who has carried us through this last year, ourselves. Here are some of our favourite picks from members who identify as being part of the LGBTQIA+ community or whose films explore LGBTQIA+ issues and/ or the theme of Self Love - enjoy! And here's to us! Happy Pride Everyone!

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Valeria Bullo

Production Executive

"I came into the industry slightly later in life so I was naturally in a huge rush to work as hard as I could and progress quickly. I felt I had to accept everything and anything and that if you didn’t, you could be replaced in a heartbeat. I would remind my younger self that it’s okay to say no! Especially to free work, low wages, inappropriate behaviour, bullying etc. The industry is a very different place now and it’s refreshing to see and hear so many people nowadays calling out unacceptable behaviour and saying NO very loudly."

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Ally Pankiw

Writer/ Director

"If your ten-years-from-now self came back in time and asked you if you were doing everything you possibly could to achieve your dreams today, would you be able to say yes? If the answer is 'no,' then you know what you have to do!"

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Emilie Levienaise-Farrouch

Composer

"Don't be timid or embarrassed to explore your musical ideas to their full potential in the process of finding your own voice, even if it's weird or going against the accepted way to score a certain type of scene."

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PRIMETIME PRESENTS: AN ASFF MASTERCLASS WITH SARAH GAVRON ft. SPECIAL GUEST ANU HENRIQUES

Co-hosted with The British Blacklist

At Aesthetica Short Film Festival 2020, we held our first Masterclass with BAFTA-winning Director Sarah Gavron featuring Associate Director, Anu Henriques, talking about Sarah's career moving from shorts to features, the huge success that is Rocks and the need for equality within our Industry.

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Shaida Kazemi

Script Supervisor

"Believing I could do it and that I am good enough was a challenging limiting belief to overcome. Getting people (particularly people with big egos!) to respect and listen to you can be tough sometimes, let alone being a woman and one of colour. Our job is predominantly preventing/fixing errors and this sometimes means stepping on other people’s toes. I have had to learn how to do this with the best intentions and a positive mindset in a genuinely kind, fun and collaborative way."

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Aurore De Blois

Compositing Supervisor

"The VFX business is still heavily dominated by men, and while there are a great deal more women VFX supervisors out there today than there were ten years ago, they number a small few and it is only in the past few years when they have arisen- and good for them. Change must come beyond just women directors being given their due in film and television – it must come within all areas of production."

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Exclusive Primetime Screenings

Member Events

Together with Netflix, we will be bringing our members exclusive events which celebrate brilliant women filmmakers on Netflix, including access to previews, Q&As, online premieres and films which have been nominated for BAFTAs and Academy Awards.

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Primetime Graduate Showcase 2020

Championing New Voices In The Industry

During this unprecedented time we want to do something to celebrate some of the best up-coming talent in our Industry. With graduations moving online, getting a foot in the door may seem harder than usual and so we wanted to put together a showcase for women graduates to give them greater visibility and connect them with established members in our network and to the community at large. Now is the time to champion new voices: here they are. Share their work, sign them, hire them.

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Yarit Dor

Initimacy Coordinator

"Now I mentor others. It is a core value for me to help lift upcoming practitioners so they are more prepared and equipped to advocate for a better consent culture on set. So this November my company Moving Body Arts opened the first Intimacy Coordination Mentoring Scheme for Underrepresented Groups supported by ScreenSkills and fully funded by the Film & TV Charity Fund."

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Siobhán Harper Ryan

Hair & Make Up Designer

On Greatest challenges: "Overcoming various social issues which overwhelmed me when younger. Struggling to understand what we all now know as Aspergers Syndrome, it's so good to see in recent years, more of an understanding of this, how ASD presents differently in women. I also have to mention the challenge that is being a single mum in this Industry. My son is now almost 12 so things are becoming easier but I can not stress how tough it is finding childcare with the hours we do."

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Luisa María Martínez Arcaraz BFE

Editor

"I am currently based in my hometown of Mexico City and have been splitting my time between London and Mexico City for the past 8 years. I’ve edited mostly local things while being in one city or another, but just last year I edited a US-produced feature film documentary “Fandango At The Wall” while in Mexico City, with the director based in LA and only coming down to Mexico City for the last stage of the edit. I think our industry will be more open to this kind of remote collaboration now, especially after Covid-19."

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Practical Support

Useful Resources

Here are some practical resources and tips updated as we hear about them to help navigate this uncertain time.

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Emma Lamp

Costume Designer

"Don’t be afraid to speak honestly to directors about your work - if you really think an idea is worth fighting for then speak up. They employed you for your expertise and often I find people respect you more for defending a design decision than just being passive and in agreement with everything clients say. BUT also read the room and know when to pipe down! Be polite and helpful to everyone, I’ve worked with Runners who are now Directors."

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Sally El Hosaini

Director

"It was the realisation that filmmaking was the synthesis of everything I loved. I grew up in Egypt. In overpopulated Cairo, lives overlap and intertwine like nowhere else. And the oral tradition is very strong - Egyptians like to talk. It was through being surrounded by natural storytellers and through writing that I made sense of my emotions and understood the world around me. "

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Rachael Tate

Dialogue & ADR Supervisor

"Women in feature sound although a growing breed, were few and far between when I started out. Having that female role model in Becki Ponting was probably more crucial than I gave it credit for at the time. Seeing a female succesfully doing the job I wanted meant I could envisage the path ahead of me. Us women are out there doing the work just as good (or better) than our male counterparts and younger females should be exposed to that possibility for themselves."

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Debbie Wiseman OBE

Composer

"I managed to continue working with John by playing him the score via Skype instead of him coming round to my house. It was actually quite similar to how we’d normally work except he missed out on my tea and sandwiches…! We're going to be recording with a socially distanced orchestra soon. It will be a very new experience for the musicians to be seated so far apart from each other, but I know they'll all rise to the challenge."

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Staying Connected

Creative Opportunities & Connections

Some of our favourite content creators, new opportunities, online course and much more to help us feel connected and keep those creative muscles flexing.

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Adrienne Taylor AMPS

Boom Operator

"I joined the sound department as a trainee after working at a documentary production company as a runner. Because the production did not cater for a sound recordist on their shoots I was assigned the task of going out with the director and camera operator to capture sound. Talk about being thrown in at the deep end; but I loved it!"

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Terilyn A. Shropshire, ACE

Editor

"I treasure my relationships with my Black directors. Telling our stories has been one of the most satisfying and precious gifts of my career."

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Stefanie Ng

Sound Editor

"I’ve been working with mostly the same Wellington crew since I started at 19; I started off in a trainee position, became an assistant, moved up to first assistant, and am now editing."

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Carly Reddin

Production Designer

"I believe that things have to change from the top-down, and that an equal number of women and people of colour should be on boards and involved in the decision-making at that level."

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May Leung

VFX Supervisor

"I have two teenage daughters and I have instilled in them, that they should strive to have passion in their choice of career, work hard, persevere, fight for what you want and deserve, be honest and you will succeed."

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Joy Gharoro-Akpojotor

Producer

"I think mentorship is so important to help guide us. I came from working outside [the Industry], I made two no-budget features on around £35K and then I got the BFI Flare mentorship - that was my first time understanding what making films in the industry was."

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Bectu Endorses Primetime

Bectu has endorsed online women’s platform, Primetime, as the film, TV and commercials sectors start to get back to work following the coronavirus lockdown.

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Directors x Composers Primetime Pledge Event

Following our successful Primetime Pledges event for the Camera Departement, we connected Directors & Composers so that as the Industry gets back up on its feet, more female and underrepresented composers will be in the mix for work.

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Time's Up UK, Primetime and ERA50:50 are joining forces to tackle Microaggressions

A microaggression is a hostile, derogatory or negative act or remark, whether intentional or unintentional, directed against a person because of their group membership, such as their race, gender, background, sexual orientation or age.

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Shaheen Baig

Casting Director

"Speak up when you disagree and sense injustice and don’t worry about not being fashionable or part of ‘the scene’ it’s really not that interesting. Being left of centre is a brilliant thing, never doubt that."

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The 73rd British Academy Film Awards

High profile actors, nominees and winners wear Primetime badges and rings in solidarity with their colleagues and friends from across the Indsutry, the 'P' of Primetime symbolising a pledge to work towards a fairer, more inclusive Industry for all.

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Nainita Desai

Composer

"I’ve never looked at myself from the outside in, but instead from the inside out – so I don’t let my gender, race etc stop me."

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Waad Al-Kateab

Filmmaker

"Believe in your work and when you believe in it, all the challenges and all the big issues become smaller and you will find your way."

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Emma Butt

Re-Recording Sound Mixer

Always trust your gut and never let anyone make you doubt your decisions and no matter how difficult it gets sometimes, never loose the fire that drives you to keep achieving more."

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Nina Rice

Sound Recordist

"Stay calm, trust your instincts, have confidence that you know what you’re doing and not to second-guess yourself."

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Anna Smith

Film Critic

"I always remember not to complain about my job. It's an incredible job and I love it. If the worst thing about your job is watching a bad movie that's a winner."

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Tina Gharavi

Director

"I am often surprised by the number of questions I get asked which are heavily biased because people have not seen a 5'2" beige Iranian women kick as on set."

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Kristina Hetherington

Editor

"As a child, film and TV could sweep me up and affect me deeply. I wanted to be a part of this magic and feel priviledged that I am now part of it."

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Emma Thomas

Script Supervisor / Continuity

"Don't give up on your dreams and get there by any means necessary. (Yes, it's what I would tell me older self as well)."

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Jaspreet Bal GBCT

First Assistant Camera

"The greatest challenge for me was finding my identity. There's a lot to be said for resilience."

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Liz Trubridge

Producer

"I have been fortunate enough to work with many inpsiring women over the years and have been fortunate to hone my own skills by learning from them."

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Grace Snell

Costume Designer

"I was always inspired by assisting Costume Designers who were mothers. Watching how they could juggle real life with such a demanding job role."

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Christiana Ebohon-Green

Director - Scripted TV Drama

"Mentorship has played a big role in my career. It helped me to find my feet in the Industry and drew attention to me – people took me more seriously."

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Nanu Segal

Cinematographer

"I would advise my younger self to be more fearless! To take risks and not be afraid of unknown outcomes. If you don’t put yourself out there, you’ll never know…"

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Izzy Mant

Producer - Scripted TV Comedy

"Building up a reputation is a long, slow process. Unless you're one of those slick types who never finds an old sock in their trouser leg half way through the day."

FEATURES AND FEATURED MEMBERS

Gabriela Yiaxis

Zeb Achonu

Zoe Goodwin-Stuart ACO

Heather Basten CDG CSA

Diana Olifirova

Clare Pearce

Christine Lalla

Leslie Gaston-Bird

Jules Chapman

Graduate Showcase 2022

Primetime Pride 2022!

Mental Health Awareness Week 2022

Autism Awareness Month 2022

Kate Reid BSC

Claire Anne Williams

Svetlana Miko ACO

Ramadhan 2022

BAFTA Nominee: Carolyn McLeod

BAFTA & Oscar Nominee: Nadia Stacey

BAFTA Nominee: Posy Dixon

BAFTA Nominee: Sheena Duggal

BAFTA Nominee: Hester Ruoff

International Women's Day 2022

Neurodiversity Celebration Week 2022

OUR TEAM HAS GROWN!

Carly Paradis

Isabell Chavez Vega

Tanya Marar

We're Hiring!

Prano Bailey-Bond

Hutch Demouilpied

Lizzy Talbot

Annika Summerson

Graduate Showcase 2021

Amanda Brown

Our Online Shop Launches

3 YEAR DEAL WITH BRITISH CINEMATOGRAPHER

Primetime Pride: Summer Of Love

Valeria Bullo

Ally Pankiw

Emilie Levienaise-Farrouch

PRIMETIME PRESENTS: AN ASFF MASTERCLASS WITH SARAH GAVRON ft. SPECIAL GUEST ANU HENRIQUES

Shaida Kazemi

Aurore De Blois

Exclusive Primetime Screenings

Primetime Graduate Showcase 2020

Yarit Dor

Siobhán Harper Ryan

Luisa María Martínez Arcaraz BFE

Practical Support

Emma Lamp

Sally El Hosaini

Rachael Tate

Debbie Wiseman OBE

Staying Connected

Adrienne Taylor AMPS

Terilyn A. Shropshire, ACE

Stefanie Ng

Carly Reddin

May Leung

Joy Gharoro-Akpojotor

Bectu Endorses Primetime

Directors x Composers Primetime Pledge Event

Time's Up UK, Primetime and ERA50:50 are joining forces to tackle Microaggressions

Shaheen Baig

The 73rd British Academy Film Awards

Nainita Desai

Waad Al-Kateab

Emma Butt

Nina Rice

Anna Smith

Tina Gharavi

Kristina Hetherington

Emma Thomas

Jaspreet Bal GBCT

Liz Trubridge

Grace Snell

Christiana Ebohon-Green

Nanu Segal