Reimagining the Script - Oct 4

Reimagining the Script

This event addresses how media portrayals can influence perceptions and potentially steer young women away from STEM and other male-dominated careers.

We will screen short films from Womanhood: The Series (Season 2) that use humor to explore the cultural attitudes and biases that women face in STEM or any male-dominated workplaces. Meet the directors and filmmakers, Jessica McGaugh and Sheila E. Schroeder, and join an expert panel discussion on how storytelling shapes perceptions—and what more authentic representation of women's contributions and capabilities would look like.

Using comedy to highlight social injustices and biases, the Womanhood project offers a unique storytelling approach that has already proven impactful. Season 1 received eight awards and over 55 international film festival acceptances, demonstrating that audiences want to see high-quality content with female leads and stories about women.

Jessica McGaugh, is a hybrid filmmaker-educator and a professor of film and television production at San Diego State University. Her award-winning works have screened across the globe including San Diego Film Festival, Vancouver Film Festival, Mumbai International Film Festival, Denver Film Festival, NDTV, and Rocky Mountain PBS.

Sheila E. Schroeder, a core filmmaker and co-creator of the project and a professor of Media, Film & Journalism Studies at the University of Denver, is part of the Project DU F.I.L.M. initiative, which pairs students with industry professionals to create inclusive media content.

Our other expert panelists are: Noel Thompson, screenwriter at Nakamakula Productions, and Saul Kutnicki, Lecturer in Film at North Central College.