Refinery29 Presents: Below The Line — Meet The Hollywood Women Shaking Things Up Behind The Camera 

If you’ve ever sat all the way through to the end credit scene of a Marvel movie (often called a stinger scene), you’ve probably noticed that there are a lot of names to scroll through beforehand. The stars who make headlines and show up to premieres make up only a small fraction of the credits. 

Most of the people working to create the movies and TV shows we love don’t actually appear on-screen — even if their impact on the final product is undeniable. They’re behind the scenes, setting up shots, designing and creating interiors and costumes, editing footage, operating a sound boom, writing scripts, and calling ‘Action!’ In our new series, Refinery29 Presents: Below the Line, we’re getting to know the Hollywood women we don’t see on camera. 

In a series of conversations streamed live to Refinery29’s YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter feeds, senior entertainment writer and movie critic Anne Cohen will explore the ins and outs of making it in the industry, how women are adapting to the current reality, and what a post-pandemic Hollywood could look like. 

So, without further ado, let’s meet our first guests!

Name a fandom, and there’s a good chance Tessa Blake has had a hand in it. The veteran TV director has worked on series like The CW’s Riverdale and Charmed, Hulu’s Veronica Mars revival, ABC’s Once Upon a Time, and CBS’ NCIS franchise — to name just a few. 

Joining her is Hanelle Culpepper, who made history earlier this year for directing the first three episodes of Star Trek: Picard on CBS All Access. It marks the first time a female director launched a new Star Trek series in the franchise’s 53-year history. She had just started production on The CW’s Kung Fu reboot, which she’s co-executive producing as well as directing, when the industry suddenly ground to a halt. 

You can watch the first episode of Refinery29 Presents: Below The Line on Refinery29’s YouTube channel, Facebook page, and Twitter.