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Reimagine Tomorrow

I want the world to see more

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Progress comes only when we match our beliefs with real-world action, in our company and in the world at large.

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National Geographic Content announces the expansion of its National Geographic Media Scholarship program to include six Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) that will receive $10,000 scholarships for each school.
 
Currently in its second year, National Geographic will provide a $10,000 scholarship to a qualified student who is interested in an opportunity to explore careers in factual storytelling and filmmaking, and attend one of the following HBCUs: Texas Southern University, Grambling State University, Spelman College, Howard University, Alcorn State University and Virginia State University.
 
In addition to the financial award, each recipient will have the opportunity to participate in the National Geographic Media Scholars Immersive Experience Program (NGIEP), a unique two-week immersion program at the National Geographic headquarters in Washington, DC, and receive an executive mentor for at least six months. The immersion program’s goal is for participants to gain valuable experience learning from experts at a strong global brand and an organization with a rich history of scientific discovery, exploration and dynamic storytelling through the immersion program. They will learn about the various lines of businesses, from traditional media to experiences that bring the National Geographic brand to consumers worldwide.

National Geographic HBCU Media Scholarship Program

Disney Tinker Lab was developed and implemented in partnership with Chicos.net — an nongovernmental organization specialized in the field of digital media and children’s rights since 1998 — exclusively within Latin America. This unique offering introduces innovative ways of learning through experimentation and story creation with digital media in schools. These programs focus on the abilities and skills that are nowadays considered vital for the full development of boys and girls and lay the foundation for “learning to learn” for a lifetime. Modules merge the STEAM education with doing, playing, and storytelling, to encourage digital literacy, collaboration, creativity, critical thinking, and communication in children. 
(Website in link below is in Spanish.)

Tinker Lab

Established in 2008, Disney Dreamers Academy is committed to inspiring African-American youth and to making a difference in their lives at a critical time — the high school years when they are thinking about their futures. Each year, 100 high school students experience an immersive, transformational program that aims to help them pursue and realize their dreams. Over the span of four unforgettable days at Walt Disney World, participants meet influential leaders and celebrities, get immersed in hands-on learning experiences and become part of the magic as our theme parks become the most vibrant of classrooms. At Disney Dreamers Academy, they’ll learn to propel themselves further than they ever imagined.

Disney Dreamers Academy

ESPN and My Brother’s Keeper Alliance have developed a mentoring program to support youth of color in the greater Los Angeles, New York, and District of Columbia communities. MBK Alliance focuses on building safe and supportive communities for boys and young men of color where they feel valued and have clear pathways to opportunity. Through this partnership, adult mentors will serve as role models, offer career counseling advice, provide educational guidance and encourage the young participants to define their aspirations and map out the futures they envision for themselves. The Undefeated, ESPN’s platform for exploring the intersections of race, sports and culture, will serve as a community hub to amplify compelling stories about the program.

ESPN and My Brother’s Keeper Alliance

Disney Musicals in Schools aims to improve access to arts education. The program launched in 2010, and to date has established theater programs in 388 underresourced public elementary schools in 26 cities across the U.S. and the UK. The program provides free performance and professional development materials to participating teachers. With COVID-19 impacting theaters and schools, Disney extended all performance licenses through the end of the next academic year. Many schools elected to produce virtual shows to keep theater programs thriving, an effort supported with special licensing permissions from Disney Theatrical Group.

Disney Musicals in Schools

One of the things that The Walt Disney Company’s two animation studios have in common is their commitment to inspire the next generation. Walt Disney Animation Studios and Pixar Animation Studios have each developed their own unique way to give back to aspiring students. In November 2020, Walt Disney Animation Studios hosted an online Student Summit for more than 1,500 college and university students from 55 countries and territories with the goal to inform, engage, inspire and prepare them for future careers in animation by hearing from directors and artists. In the Bay area, Pixar Animation Studios connects with Madison Park Academy and Madison Park Primary throughout the school year – offering free career panels, mock interviews, resume workshops, heritage month read-ins and draw-alongs with their own working artists.

Animation Studios Inspiring Future Storytellers

This team has been working since 2019 to advance workforce and culture opportunities, including an internal Black Talent Network for Black vice presidents across the company designed to accelerate their exposure, development, and sponsorship; and an HBCU (historically Black colleges and universities) strategy group focused on growing a stronger pipeline for Black professionals at Disney. The HBCU work includes hosting virtual career conversation events and virtual career overview sessions; identifying Disney’s HBCU alumni and amplifying their stories; and expanding the company’s United Negro College Fund (UNCF) relationship with increased Disney scholarships for HBCU students.

Black Employee Experience

In spring 2020, Disney introduced Reimagine Tomorrow to employees, elevating the company’s diversity, equity and inclusion efforts. Reimagine Tomorrow is part of a multifaceted plan to drive brave, meaningful change across the company and support leaders and employees in navigating diversity, equality and inclusion in our communities and in the workplace. The work is anchored by six pillars: transparency, representation, accountability, community, content and culture. The Reimagine Tomorrow Conversation Series launched in May 2020, during a time when the world was experiencing a global pandemic. Through these authentic virtual events, featuring employees and internal and external experts, a shift was beginning to take place that ignited a spark within Disney’s culture to build capacity for change on a global scale.

Reimagine Tomorrow Conversation Series

Stories Matter

As part of the Shorts Incubator Program, up to six filmmakers from underrepresented backgrounds are selected to present diverse perspectives through the production of original live-action shorts for proposed initial exhibition on Disney+. Work is underway to scale and enhance this program to allow more participants greater exposure, including the addition of an Unscripted Incubator through ABC News. Participants also will have an opportunity to be mentored by creative executives from Hulu, Searchlight Pictures, 20th Century Studios, and more.

Disney Launchpad: Shorts Incubator

The Creative Talent Development &amp; Inclusion (CTDI) department, part of Disney General Entertainment Content, is a dedicated talent services team that actively connects writers, producers, directors and crew at all levels to opportunities across DGE. CTDI’s year-round work includes: directly sourcing talent for over 350 targeted requests from producers and executives; hosting over 150 networking and professional development events for over 2,000 creatives at all levels; and managing Disney’s flagship Writing, Directing and PA programs. CTDI also directly engages with dozens of entertainment industry, community and cultural organizations and partners with many in additional talent offerings. Every DGE network and studio has creative talent and crew that originated through CTDI.

Creative Talent Development & Inclusion Team

The Executive Incubator Program is an apprentice-style, two-year rotational program at Disney General Entertainment Content (DGE) designed to create a pipeline of the next generation of creative executives. These Creative Associates are exposed to all aspects of our business, including development, current, casting and marketing. On-the-job learning is combined with job shadowing, executive speaker events, department overviews, mentorship roundtables and social events. Associates rotate among ABC Entertainment, Freeform, FX Networks, and Disney Television Studios. This program is designed to create opportunities for individuals with diverse and varied perspectives across all dimensions of identity aspiring to hold executive roles at DGE. DGE is currently running two cohorts of the program with 13 Associates. The second cohort kicked off in January 2021 with eight new Creative Associates as part of its Executive Incubator Program.

Executive Incubator

The Apprenticeship Program creates opportunity and access for top underrepresented entry-level individuals by removing barriers and providing pathways into Disney General Entertainment Content (DGE) and the media/entertainment industry as a whole. Apprentices are part of a two-year program where they will gain experience supporting Creative Executives, blended with agency exposure and a curated cohort experience. Fourteen apprentices were chosen from select colleges and universities across the country and began their apprenticeship in 2022. Apprentices are placed across DGE content groups based on their areas of interest, including: ABC Entertainment, ABC Signature, Disney Branded Television, Freeform, FX Studios, HULU Originals, National Geographic, and Twentieth Television.

Apprenticeship Program

Field Ready is a joint program of National Geographic Content and the National Geographic Society aiming to promote and increase diversity and inclusion of underrepresented and marginalized creators and storytellers in natural history, science, adventure, exploration filmmaking. The Field Ready Program offers one-on-one mentorship with some of the most seasoned filmmakers. Alongside this mentorship opportunity, the program includes monthly master classes and Q&amp;A sessions with industry leaders, and a training and discussion series where participants meet industry leaders through specialized workshops that help them navigate the unique world of factual production.
 
Industry leaders teach one-hour master classes. In addition to the master course, there are premium Q&amp;A sessions with industry leaders to help the mentees hone their skills even more. In these sessions, they will share invaluable industry knowledge around a core theme that addresses the mentees’ interests.
 
Previous Q&amp;A sessions included the following:
• Brandon Sargeant – Camera Operations in the Field
• Bree Frank – The Future of Filmmaking
• Chai Vasarhelyi – The Art of Filmmaking
• Darren Aronofsky – Bringing Your Vision to Life
• Faith Musembi – Filmmaking as a Career
• James Cameron – Science &amp; Tech in Storytelling
•Terence Carter – Producing Purpose-Driven Content
 
Previous speakers included the following:
• Brian Skerry – National Geographic Explorer
• Dominique Andrews – Director, Production Management, National Geographic
• Janet Han Vissering – SVP, Development &amp; Production, Natural History, National Geographic Content
• National Geographic Society Impact Video Team – Globally recognized team
• Plimsoll Gear Shop – Emmy® Award-Winning Team
• Sandesh Kadur – Green Oscar® Nominee and National Geographic Explorer
 
Upon graduating, the Field Ready class of mentees will be announced to the wider production community as qualified candidates for National Geographic productions around the world. The program has become a reliable resource to National Geographic’s production partners for hiring and mentoring the next generation of talent. By investing in a diverse community of qualified candidates and endorsing them as field ready, the goal is to impact the industry and further cement National Geographic’s steadfast commitment to diversity and inclusion.
 
For inquiries into Field Ready, please email <a href="mailto:NGPFieldReady@natgeo.com" title="mailto:NGPFieldReady@natgeo.com">NGPFieldReady@natgeo.com</a>. For more information, visit <a href="https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.natgeotv.com%2F&amp;data=05%7C01%7CKayla.Demopoulos.-ND%40disney.com%7C34487b4b2ba34e1c465808daab250d16%7C56b731a8a2ac4c32bf6b616810e913c6%7C1%7C0%7C638010472874586040%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=JJDSEUHZ8wsroISZVaeIFcLMFfm4PXnl2u9nhjhsQfI%3D&amp;reserved=0" title="Original URL: http://www.natgeotv.com/ Click to follow link.">www.natgeotv.com</a> or our press site <a href="https://nam04.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.natgeotvpressroom.com%2F&amp;data=05%7C01%7CKayla.Demopoulos.-ND%40disney.com%7C34487b4b2ba34e1c465808daab250d16%7C56b731a8a2ac4c32bf6b616810e913c6%7C1%7C0%7C638010472874586040%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJWIjoiMC4wLjAwMDAiLCJQIjoiV2luMzIiLCJBTiI6Ik1haWwiLCJXVCI6Mn0%3D%7C3000%7C%7C%7C&amp;sdata=J19zFTe6fooaGqa39AgiGdWCdsT58AM40wjxdghLxbk%3D&amp;reserved=0" title="Original URL: http://www.natgeotvpressroom.com/ Click to follow link.">www.natgeotvpressroom.com</a>, or follow us on Twitter @NatGeoPR.
 
About the National Geographic Society
 
The National Geographic Society is a global nonprofit organization that uses the power of science, exploration, education and storytelling to illuminate and protect the wonder of our world. Since 1888, National Geographic has pushed the boundaries of exploration, investing in bold people and transformative ideas, providing more than 14,000 grants for work across all seven continents, reaching 3 million students each year through education offerings, and engaging audiences around the globe through signature experiences, stories and content. To learn more, visit <a title="about:blank">www.nationalgeographic.org</a> or follow us on <a title="about:blank">Instagram</a>, <a title="about:blank">Twitter</a> and <a title="about:blank">Facebook</a>.

National Geographic: Field Ready Program

Disney launched the platform in September 2021 after years of work with underrepresented creators, crews, Disney employees, talent, and more. The project is a celebration of the diversity of the human experience and a way to showcase the importance of accurate representation in media. Go behind the scenes and learn about what it takes to weave inclusion and representation into the creative process.<a target="_blank" href="http://reimaginetomorrow.disney.com/" rel="noreferrer noopener"></a>

Explore the Making of the Reimagine Tomorrow Platform

Learn about Disney’s internal and external programs focused on expanding representation in media and entertainment.