On January 22, the African American Steering Committee (AASC) meeting featured The Unity Panel: A Conversation with the Co-Chairs of the Writers Guild of America (WGA), Committee of Black Writers.
AASC Co-Chair Jeff Byrd (Star Trek: Strange New Worlds), led a conversation with WGA Committee of Black Writers Co-Chairs Barret Helms and Bianca Sams (Sweet Magnolias) and Hilliard Guess (Cross-Ace) where they discussed the hurdles both groups have had to overcome on set and the importance of unity and community within their respective Guilds. They also explored the Writer and Director relationships and shared the insights a good relationship can provide to a show and/or an episode. They spoke about mutual goals and explored potential opportunities to work together and collaborate.
About the Committee:
The African American Steering Committee (AASC) was born of a desire to address the specific needs of the African-American members of the Directors Guild. One of the primary goals of the Committee is to establish a productive line of communication between African-American members and the creative community. The Committee meets monthly to plan events throughout the year celebrating the achievements of African-Americans, as well as forums with industry executives to proactively address what can be done to hire more African-Americans.