Netflix Inc. NFLX -1.44% is creating a $100 million global fund aimed at increasing outreach to underrepresented communities looking to work in entertainment, the streaming giant said Friday.
The Netflix Fund for Creative Equity will be distributed over five years to external organizations as well as internal initiatives at the company.
Netflix didn’t say what specific organizations it would support. It previously contributed to Project Involve and Ghetto Film School, nonprofit organizations that provide fellowships and mentoring to filmmakers from diverse backgrounds.
The fund is the latest of several initiatives Netflix has launched that are aimed at boosting diversity in entertainment. Last year, the company said it would donate $5 million to organizations supporting Black artists, advocacy groups and businesses.
“Doing better means establishing even more opportunities for people from underrepresented communities to have their voices heard, and purposefully closing capacity and skill gaps with training programs where they are needed,” said Netflix Co-Chief Executive and Chief Content Officer Ted Sarandos in a company blog post Friday.
Last June, Netflix said it would shift 2% of its cash holdings to banks and credit unions serving Black communities, while Netflix co-founder and Chairman Reed Hastings and his wife Patty Quillin are donating $120 million to Black colleges Morehouse, Spelman and the United Negro College Fund.
The attention to diversity by Netflix and other entertainment companies increased in the aftermath of the death of George Floyd while in Minneapolis police custody and the social justice protests around the country that followed.
The new Netflix fund comes on the heels of a study commissioned by the company from the Annenberg Inclusion Initiative, a University of Southern California-affiliated think tank, to analyze the diversity of its content for movies and TV shows made in the U.S. The study examined 126 movies and 180 scripted series in 2018 and 2019.
The report gave Netflix high marks in terms of gender equality in its films and movies. The number of women and girls in prominent on screen roles was in sync with the population and ahead of industry trends. Behind the camera, Netflix was ahead of the rest of the industry among creators and writers and on par in terms of directors, the report said.
Netflix had a strong representation of Black characters, the study said, but the streaming service came up short with LGBTQ and disabled characters.
Mr. Sarandos said Netflix believes increasing its efforts as well as continuing to work with USC to track their progress will create “a lasting legacy of inclusion in entertainment.”
Write to Joe Flint at [email protected]
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