or


[08/09/17 - 09:00 AM]
Ryan Murphy's Half Initiative Advocates for Social Justice
The initiative within Ryan Murphy Television aims to make Hollywood more inclusive by creating equal opportunities for women and minorities behind the camera.

[via press release from FX]

RYAN MURPHY'S HALF INITIATIVE ADVOCATES FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE

August 9, 2017, LOS ANGELES, CA- Ryan Murphy launched Half, an initiative within Ryan Murphy Television that aims to make Hollywood more inclusive by creating equal opportunities for women and minorities behind the camera. Less than one year after launching Half, Ryan Murphy Television's director slate hired 60% women directors and 94% met the minority requirement. In collaboration with John Landgraf and FX Networks, the director slate significantly increased from 12% female/diverse directors in 2015 to 51% in 2016 for the network as a whole. There are women and minority department heads across many departments as well as even staffing an all female art department. "I love looking around my company and empowering inclusion in all departments" says Murphy. "I recently led a production meeting and was proud to see that more than half of the people sitting at the table were women and minorities. That's the way it should be."

Concurrent with the hiring goals, Half launched a Directing Mentorship Program in which every director on every Ryan Murphy Television production mentors emerging directors through pre-production to post-production along with offering a significant stipend for their commitment. The Directing Mentorship Program had 29 participants in 2016 and has added 30 participants in 2017 providing more than $200,000 in financial aid. These funds provided critical stipends for travel, lodging, and daycare for working mothers, allowing them to meet personal financial obligations while gaining unprecedented access to further education and career growth. Three participants in the Directing Program became first time episodic directors and Murphy continues to search for more talent through the program.

Half has collaborated with Mayor Eric Garcetti on creating an internship program to create creative pathways for under-represented youth in conjunction with the California Film Commission. Recently, Murphy has joined Mayor Eric Garcetti's Advisory Board on the Entertainment Inclusion Fund.

Half will be launching Half Fest at the Skirball Cultural Center whose mission is to "welcome people of all communities and generations to participate in cultural experiences that celebrate discovery and hope, foster human connections, and call upon us to help build a more just society." Half Fest's goal is to showcase it's participants in the Director Mentorship Program so that the industry can engage with diverse storytellers.

Half aims to not only be a trailblazer, but also a trendsetter with its operation. All practices are transparent and the database of information and statistics are available to all so that other companies can follow Half's model of inclusion and diversity of hiring across every department. Half and Ryan Murphy advocated that giving first time women/diverse directors an episode is not a risk but an opportunity to invest, cultivate and build careers. Murphy added that "I want to mentor and sponsor these emerging directors as storytelling continues to move forward and so should the storytellers."





  [august 2017]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
  


· SHOWATCH
(series past and present)
· DEVWATCH
(series in development)
· MOVIEWATCH
(tv movies and mini-series)





[10/28/25 - 10:01 AM]
Hulu Renews Hit Emmy-Award Winning Comedy "Only Murders in the Building" for a Sixth Season!
The series will film overseas for the first time, with the beloved crime-solving trio leaving New York City to investigate London's newest mystery.

[10/28/25 - 08:32 AM]
Peacock Sets Streaming Debut Dates for Focus Features' "Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale," Universal's "Nobody 2" and DreamWorks Animation's "The Bad Guys 2"
The three films will roll out on successive Fridays beginning November 7.

[10/28/25 - 08:30 AM]
Epic New Landmark Natural History Series, "Kingdom," Set to Premiere Saturday, January 24 on BBC America and AMC+
Narrated by renowned naturalist and three-time Emmy Award-winner Sir David Attenborough, the major new six-part natural history series chronicles the dramatic real-life sagas of four African animal families, in one of the most ambitious projects ever undertaken by BBC Studios Natural History Unit.

[10/28/25 - 07:09 AM]
Season 5 of ESPN Original Series "Peyton's Places," Presented by Elijah Craig Bourbon, Premieres November 2 Exclusively on ESPN+
Josh Allen, Jason Kelce, Jim Harbaugh, Rob Gronkowski, Julian Edelman, Joe Burrow, Boomer Esiason, Chad Johnson, and more are among the featured guests.

[10/28/25 - 07:01 AM]
"One Piece" Season 2 Premieres March 10, 2026
Additionally, Netflix revealed a first look at Drum Island.

[10/28/25 - 06:47 AM]
Prime Video Takes the Spotlight with Its New "Karaoke Club" Show, A Celebrity Singing Tour
Hosted by the hilarious Stéphane Rousseau, the series transforms karaoke into an electrifying experience where the stars deliver their signature style with humor, energy, and, above all, a whole lot of fun.

[10/28/25 - 06:31 AM]
"Michelle Obama: The Style, the Power, the Look - a Conversation with Robin Roberts - Special Edition of 20/20" Airs Sunday, Nov. 2, on ABC, Streaming Next Day on Disney+ and Hulu
The "Good Morning America" co-anchor joins Obama at Marymount University in Virginia in advance of her upcoming book, "The Look" - a celebration of style from the moment she entered the public eye - to discuss the lessons she's sharing about her newfound confidence and empowerment.

[10/28/25 - 06:01 AM]
Netflix Announces "The Future Is Ours," A Dystopian Limited Series Starring Enzo Vogrincic, Emiliano Zurita, Delfina Chaves, Marleyda Soto and Marco Antonio Caponi
The series will be the first audiovisual adaptation of renowned American writer Philip K. Dick's work in Spanish.

[10/28/25 - 04:00 AM]
Paramount and UFC Expand Partnership to Latin America and Australia Starting in 2026
This agreement expands upon the landmark seven-year media rights partnership announced this past August in which Paramount+ becomes the premier destination for UFC fans as the exclusive home of all UFC events in the U.S. starting in 2026.

[10/28/25 - 12:01 AM]
Video: "The Family Man" Season 3 Date Announcement - Prime Video
The wait is over, a new chapter of Srikant Tiwari is on the way and it starts right here! Watch Season 3 on November 21 only on Prime video!

[10/27/25 - 06:54 PM]
Boo! Monsters Funday Football is Coming Dec. 8 Featuring Eagles-Chargers Set in the World of Pixar's Iconic Monsters, Inc.
Powered by the NFL's Next Gen Stats and Sony's Beyond Sports visualization technology and Sony's Hawk-Eye Innovations, this season's immersive Funday Football experience will transport fans to Monstropolis for ESPN's Week 14 matchup.

[10/27/25 - 01:06 PM]
ESPN and Sony's Beyond Sports Forge Expanded Agreement, Deepening ESPN's Commitment to Innovation and Audience Expansion with More Animated Telecasts
With this new agreement, ESPN will produce animated telecasts for a NFL, NHL, NBA, and WNBA game across The Walt Disney Company and ESPN platforms during the 2025-26 season.

[10/27/25 - 12:03 PM]
Second-Most Viewed NBA Opening Week on ESPN Since 2014; "Inside the NBA" Averaged 1M Viewers in Its Opening Week Debut on ESPN
Last week's NBA coverage averaged 2.2 million viewers.

[10/27/25 - 11:53 AM]
Video: Trailer and Key Art Debut - "Joy to the World"
The film, starring Chad Michael Murray, Emmanuelle Chriqui, Ayesha Curry and more, premieres November 1 on Disney+ and Hulu.

[10/27/25 - 11:18 AM]
ESPN Updates NHL Exclusive Games for 2025-26 Season
Five national exclusive games have been updated across ESPN, ESPN+, Disney+ and Hulu, beginning December 4 with the Detroit Red Wings and Columbus Blue Jackets (ESPN+, Disney+, Hulu) at 7:30 p.m. ET.