SheSources, revisited
Hey!
First off, thanks for being here and for reading this post. It’s Emma here, the founder of SheSources. In honor of the SheSources relaunch I would like to be honest for a second.
SheSources initially relaunched earlier in 2023, while I was attending a full-time dance conservatory program at Broadway Dance Center in New York City and losing my grandmother at the same time. And then I really lost my grandmother, and then I lost myself a bit too. I’ve felt a bit silly on social media teasing a relaunch since what feels like forever and then not really revving up the engine. It’s easy to make announcements and harder to actually do the work you’re posting about. Social media is deceiving, as always.
The loss of my grandmother rocked my world. I should have seen it coming but was till surprised when all was said and done. So much of who I am today is thanks to her. She played me “What I Did for Love” from A Chorus Line in the car as a little girl. Her favorite movie was Singin’ in the Rain (and if you know me, you know it’s mine too). She drove me to my dance lessons while my parents were at work. She would sit in the lobby of my home dance studio and knit leg warmers that I could wear the next week in class. She never missed a single show I was in, growing up performing at Kidz Theater in NYC. As an adult in college pursuing musical theater & acting, she would send me auditions she thought I might find useful or text me about the latest show she saw and ask me questions about it. What she instilled in me was a love of the theatre, but also a love for storytelling and the way it could connect us across generations and diverse backgrounds. I loved her stories, and I loved the stories she showed me.
I write all of this out because it’s therapeutic, mostly. And because my own personal journey back to SheSources was affected by this time. SheSources was born out of my frustration with trying to find stories in college about women and gender-marginalized people that were real, nuanced, and authentic. I was frustrated by the lack of women & GNC people I was learning about in theater history & film history. The deeper I dug the more I realized that they existed, I just had to fight to find them. Plus, as a young woman who was starting to become interested in writing, directing, producing, and other roles in our industry, I wanted a place to turn to where I saw more role models for me.
My mentor in college was Anne Quart, the SVP of Production at Disney Theatrical Group. When I met Anne in her office for the first time, I asked her how she got to where she is today. She gave me the full story— from high school to sitting in her gorgeous office above a Broadway Theater. At the end she actually thanked me for asking her that. She felt that women & gender non-conforming people in this industry don’t share their stories with each other enough. And it would be all the more empowering if we did.
I was in an artistic entrepreneurship class at NYU at the same time and thought well, there’s my school project idea! I’m going to create a platform for more non-cis-men in this industry to share their journeys and effectively “mentor” readers or listeners of the platform. I created the business plan and everything. Then covid hit. Then I saw a business plan competition open online at HerCampus in collaboration with Aussie Hair Care. I entered it and won money and suddenly, my school project became all too real.
I won’t bore you with the SheSources history but if you happen to be curious about our journey since then, click here to read more.
In this actual, official SheSources relaunch we’re returning to basics: blog & podcast. And we want all of our content to always feel like one of two things to you, the reader: helpful or inspiring along your journey in the entertainment industry.
Our industry is facing a double strike at the time of our relaunch and hopefully the conversations surrounding SAG and WGA at this time remain constructive and create a better working environment that reflects the needs of creatives in an industry deeply changed by technology. We promise to stay up to date on the strikes & continue solidarity.
So, our new mission statement:
SheSources is an online resource dedicated to women and gender non-conforming individuals pursuing leadership roles in the film/tv/theatre industries.
Part of the point of SheSources is that I am not an expert, whatsoever. I want to learn what other early-career people want to learn in an industry that feels so mysterious and difficult. I am looking towards mentorship and connection and inspiration to help me and, fingers crossed, help you too.
Our rebrand was done by the incomparable Christina Staggs.
