Catching up with Cinemamas

 When and Why was Cinemamas founded?

Cinemamas was founded in December 2020, the year after my daughter was born. I had quite a difficult first year as a new mum and felt pushed out of the industry. I was battling with all the fractured identities within myself - the mother, the filmmaker, the foreigner, and the Londoner; I wanted to bring all the pieces together. I really craved being part of a community that bridged both my career and my new life as a mother. I shared the Cinemamas idea with anyone who would listen and with the help of a kind friend who knew a lot more than me about websites, we put together a website - it was a start! I had been invited to speak at a panel and that gave me the incentive to get finalise the website.

 What are Cinemamas goals? What are you hoping to achieve and/or change in the industry?

The intention was to create a sense of community and a non-judgemental space - a positive movement for conversation and support around parenting. In this space being a working parent is normalised, as well as and the needs and challenges that come with that. When most women in the screen industries become mothers, many feel they have no choice and simply leave the industry in order to have a more balanced. By promoting hybrid ways of working, like job-sharing and flexible working we are hoping to help stop the endless talent drain and allow industry parents to have a better work/life balance..it is possible! We champion other industry parents who generously share their tips, advice, and struggles in order to help anyone else facing the same issues.

 What was the industry’s response when you launched Cinemamas?

The response has been mostly wonderful and welcoming. So many great stories we’ve published have reached others in the same boat and they got in touch to say it helped them. People have also been great about coming forward to write a piece or share an interview..so it's really come full circle in terms of drawing in more positivity. We've really been shown the love and support from those who understand our ethos and that we exist as a community support group but are not competing for a piece of business. We are women who want to hold up all those wonderful women (and men) within our industry who are trying every day to juggle it all. Every story shared, every little piece of advice passed on helps us all.

 Any memorable moments since you’ve launched?

There have been quite a few highlights but what really sticks out was running our online events during lockdown. It was so incredibly rewarding to offer support to many mothers out there who may have been grappling with anxiety or lack of confidence. Like many other freelancers, I lost all of my work so it really felt like I had purpose again. Many quickly felt that they were part of a community that offered a sense of certainty in really uncertain times. And finally, being shortlisted for Makers and Shakers of the year and receiving a Community support grant from the Film & TV Charity gave us a real sense of recognition. It’s been an incredible ride thus far, despite the global pandemic happening around us – but perhaps that will accelerate achieving what we set out to do!

Lessons learned in the industry? (Post-pandemic) what are your thoughts?

The biggest lesson I’ve learned is that we need to learn to be kinder to ourselves as an industry; we just need to have more compassion. We work in an industry that thrives on a fast pace with so many of us afraid of being left behind, feeling that we always need to turn up like we are emotionally bullet-proof. As working parents in particular we battle with guilt and have to work twice as hard to manage all other aspects of our lives while trying to prove that we can still do it all. The past 18 months have been so incredibly hard with so many of us struggling with our mental health that it’s more important than ever that we prioritise looking after ourselves.

-If you could give yourself one tip - going back - what would it be? 

You don’t have to do everything yourself - ask for help! 

You can follow Cinemamas here:

https://www.cinemamas.co.uk