The pandemic has brought the film industry to a standstill, leaving many director uncertain when they can get back to work. The last few weeks have been particularly hard for filmmakers from marginalized communities, especially those from poorer socioeconomic backgrounds.

No one probably knows this struggle better than award-winning documentarian Stanley Nelson (“The Black Panthers: Vanguard of the Revolution,” “Freedom Riders”) and writer-producer Marcia Smith. The pair, who co-founded Harlem-based non-profit Firelight Media have been conducting outreach within their creative community. Using surveys and focus groups, the organization has been evaluating how filmmakers of color can move forward in an even more unstable economic environment than they are accustomed to.

“We did a survey and held several one-on-one conversations, with the purpose of trying to get a handle on how they were dealing with the current situation, what they thought of the future, and how we could play a role,” said Smith. “Much of the response was concern about access to emergency funds because a lot of independent filmmakers earn their living by working non-film related jobs, and now they’ve lost those jobs.”

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