Over the last month I've had the pleasure of working on a short film called Donuts. It was such a blast to work on, and not just because I was "forced" to eat copious amounts of donuts.

One of the most exciting things about the shoot was that it had a nearly all-female crew. If you don't work in the film industry, you might not realize how rare it is. (Check out these statistics from Women In Film). It may seem like a small triumph, but it's pretty exciting. In my nearly two decades of working professionally, I've never been on a set that had a majority of the crew be female. And, as a story about two women coming together, it just felt right.

Here's is to more projects helmed by amazing women! And also more opportunities to eat donuts in the name of art... 

Footnote: For any of you donut enthusiasts out there, check out these two gourmet donut shops in LA: Donut Friend and Glazed

The tragic story of Sarah Jones has made its way into international news. It's the story of how a crew member lost her life on the set of the film Midnight Rider. How did she lose her life? Trying to get the shot. For more info on what happened, check out this article.

What has made this story resonate with so many is the fact that we are often put in precarious positions on set in the name of "getting the shot". In truth, we all just want to make the best piece of entertainment we can and we are happy to go to (sometimes dangerous) lengths to do so. After the Sarah Jones story broke, I was surprised by how many of my friends had stories of dangerous incidents on sets. I myself can think of a few. And, in one case, had it not been for another actor standing up and saying that they were uncomfortable with the shot and would not do it, I would have gone ahead and done it. 

I hope that this story can be the last. I fear that it is not. We must all stand strong and stand up for ourselves and each other when working conditions do not seem safe. After all, we are all Sarah.


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Check out the facebook page " Slates for Sarah" to see film crews across the globe honoring Sarah: 
https://www.facebook.com/slatesforsarah