The Black TV & Film Collective

The Black TV & Film Collective (BTFC) started as a Meetup group in 2014. We were just a couple of people who agreed we could help each other by sharing knowledge, building relationships and working on each other’s projects. In the early days we weren’t doing any marketing or recruiting yet every day there would be 6, 7 or 8 people joining the group. We quickly realized that the network we were building should extend beyond Meetup and that the ways we were supporting each other and other artists within our community should be formalized as a nonprofit organization.

Now we are over 1200 member, predominantly in the NYC area, but we have members in several other states. In 2017, we were awarded 501c3 status.

Everything we do is aimed to increase the equity and inclusion in storytelling. The stats don’t lie when it comes to our industry. Not only do they not lie, but in fact they are abysmal. People of color are systematically locked out of television and film career opportunities both in front of the camera and behind the camera. But we can’t live with the status quo. We can’t just hope someone else will come along and make a rule that changes this. We have to be the ones who change it. We believe that by working more closely together, we can. We also believe that by telling our stories and helping others to do the same, we will increase empathy and understanding in our society and human race.

The Black TV & Film Collective is a 501c3 that hosts classes, workshops and events that are designed to aid in professional development, encourage relationship building and/or provide production support. There are many ways that you can join us in our mission to increase the equity and inclusion of people of color in television and film.