British Talent Agents Launch Working Group Centered on Diversity

A group of British talent agents have joined forces to create a group that will tackle issues of race faced by actors of color in the U.K., Variety reports.

The group was formed among members of the Personal Managers' Association, which is comprised of 180 member agencies representing actors, writers and directors working in film, television, theater and radio.

Members of the group include Julianna Bautista and Ikki El-Amriti (Identity Agency Group), Dawn Green (Creative Artists Management), Sharon Henry (Sharon Henry Management), Sara Sehdev (Core MGMT), Keana-Marie Senior (Victoria Lepper Associates) and Mildred Yuan (United Agents).

So far, the group has had successes including an agreement to retire the use of the U.K. acronym 'BAME' (British, Asian and Minority Ethnic) in casting breakdowns, and working with the Casting Directors' Guild (CDG) and Equity to promote equal treatment of non-white actors.

One priority movement for the group at this time is to develop at a hair and make-up provision for non-white actors, whose specific needs aren't always met.

Catherine Considine of the PMA said: "Recent times have unearthed a great compassion and unity among agents, which offers an opportunity to redefine our understanding of diversity. Our Diversity Group has created a safe environment for agents to look at the indignities and inequalities experienced by non-white talent."

Read more on Variety.