Moms-in-Film, an organization founded to “energize the careers of mothers” in film and television by providing community, funding and advocacy, is poised to “alleviate the childcare issue for filmmaker-parents on the ground at SXSW 2017.”
According to a statement emailed to MMW on Friday, the Bi-coastal organization is partnering with Collab&Play, LA’s first coworking space with on-site childcare, to provide professional, free childcare using the funds received from a SXSW community grant.
This pilot of the Wee Wagon, a mobile childcare unit which will provide childcare to the film community on set as well as at festivals, will launch the service which will be available from Moms-in-Film later this year. In addition to providing free childcare in the Wee Wagon from March 13 to 17, Moms-in-Film is presenting a panel on Parenthood and Filmmaking, to address the challenges facing parents of both sexes working in various fields within film.
We’re told that the Wee Wagon is an advocacy initiative as well as a practical service, in an “industry which is not currently structured to support parents; a reality that disproportionately affects women and accounts for much of the industry’s gender imbalance,” according to Mathilde Dratwa, founder of Moms-in-Film.
“The lack of provisions for childcare keeps women off set as well as away from festivals,” Dratwa notes, “where they miss out on networking opportunities and meetings that could lead to funding, distribution, collaboration, and future projects.”
All told, the SXSW “Wee Wagon” will be stationed outside the ZACH theatre and will always be staffed by two early childhood professionals from Collab&Play. The Wee Wagon can accommodate up to 5 children at a time (between the ages of 3 months and 4 years).
