POWERING UP THE NEW GIRLS' CLUB
By Ravigo Zomana

"It's not what you know, it's who you know".The Good Ol' Boys club. Country club connections. The subtle (and sometimes not so subtle) network of men in power has long excluded women from many organizations and businesses. Now it's our turn. The Professional Organization of Women in Entertainment Reaching Up (POWER UP) is giving women in the entertainment and media industries a similar foot in the door and then some.Launched in December 2000, POWER UP is going full throttle even in its infancy. The group has close to 300 members, and has already held one educational seminar, as well as a couple of social events. I had the very good fortune to speak to each of the three co-founders individually.Amy Shomer and K. Pearson Brown initially met while working on the GLAAD Media Award show last spring. One month before the Los Angeles show, Stacy Codikow was brought on board to help. The three worked with nine others on the show, but didn't particularly come together as friends or coworkers after the show was done.Later in the summer, Stacy Codikow thought of all the lesbians she knew working in the film business, and the networking that could be done. She decided to ask Shomer and Brown to help with this new idea that she had. "I called them and invited them to a Saturday breakfast in my rooftop garden. When they showed up, I said 'Let me tell you this story...'. I told them [my idea] and they both wanted to do it," recalled Codikow.After some deliberation, and after seeing a notice that the Daily Variety would be publishing an issue about gays in Hollywood on October 11, the trio decided that that would be a good day to announce their new organization. A board of directors - which includes some impressive talent in itself - was convened, and POWER UP was born. 

Working feverishly, the women focused on developing the mission and goals of the organization, and six weeks after announcing their fledgling group, they had a launch party. We're talking Hollywood style with over 300 attendees, and the facility packed to capacity. Hosts for the evening were Judith Light, Susan Dey and Suzanne Westenhoefer.In only two months, the group has seen incredible growth. Noted Shomer "We had hoped to have 100 members in the first year; we have over 200 members in just two months." Shomer continued by saying that although extremely pleased with it, she knows that the group won't be able to maintain this initial growth rate.Although specifically targeting lesbians, membership in POWER UP includes straight women and both gay and straight men. Membership, according to Codikow, is open to all who support women in all forms of entertainment and media; she included photographers, designers, journalists and other artists in her description, as well as producers, directors and actors.What are the goals and mission of POWER UP? In a nutshell, to promote women in the entertainment and media industries. Resume banks, networking, educational seminars, and social gatherings are just the beginning. The founders hope to offer movie making grants with elaborate premiere parties in the future, but we'll talk more about that later.There is also an underlying philosophy that is quite compelling. POWER UP is about giving lesbians a safe place to meet and network, professionally and socially, while at the same time working from within to change attitudes about gays and lesbians in society at large. Shomer commented that "The reality is that a lot of people don't judge you beyond your talent and character.... [If you are afraid of being out] you're setting yourself up to not live life wholely. If you have the ease of not thinking twice [about changing pronouns or watching what you say], you can live by example and be safe. You have to be within a common bond... being gay is that bond [for us]."   

Codikow said " A lot of it is about unity of women. Let's unite lesbians who have a chance to change the world through media.... We want to portray a positive image in our society.""Hollywood is a media center. The images that the rest of society and the world see of our community come from what is done here. We want to build a strong base of people who are creating that image. Attitudes [toward gays and lesbians] will change [as a result of what people see]," affirmed Brown.Shomer reinforced this yet again by saying that "It's very much about integration.... It does make a difference if there's someone who can say 'Yes, this is an okay person.' We hope to facilitate that kind of introduction in the job market and creative force."Okay, this sounds interesting. But what does membership get you? Plenty! Regular/student members may attend one educational and one social event per year, as well as two general meetings. Founding members, Silver members, and Gold members are eligible to attend all functions and get some nice gifts and special mention as well. (POWER UP places ads in award show books and lists member names.)In addition to educational seminars, fun parties and social mixers, there is the resume bank. All members are eligible (and encouraged) to submit their resumes for a database. When a request comes in for someone with a particular skill or expertise, POWER UP will go through the database and compile a list of members with that talent, allowing the requesting group to contact the individual members about a job. POWER UP has already helped members get jobs, including one on the Academy Awards show. (Brown laughingly noted that she was the first POWER UP success story. Having moved to Los Angeles from Washington, DC, she found housing, a job and friends through a network of contacts which started with one person.)And then there are the grants. Initially, it is hoped that three grants will be available for making short films; these projects can be about anything, and are not limited to lesbian content. Once the films are completed, they will be shown at a gala premiere party. Grants are only available to members of POWER UP and everyone working on the project must be a member.   

This sounds even better, but you're thinking 'Well, great. But I don't live on the West Coast.' Not to worry. According to Codikow, there are a number of New Yorkers who are members, and an East Coast branch will be forming. She also claimed that if there are large enough numbers of interested people, branches may be opened in other locations as well.Shomer noted that there are "...a lot of Canadians and New Yorkers who want to join. We want to be able to refine what we're doing to be able to give the guidance and leadership that is needed." Brown commented on the favorable response to these personal touches. "When people join, we give them a call. We thank them for joining and tell them what events are coming up. They are so appreciative; there was such a need [for this type of organization]."All three women concurred as to their aspirations for POWER UP. Noted Codikow "I want to have an organization that goes beyond the three of us, that takes off and grows, and gains support and respect."Shomer added to that, saying "We want to develop our reputation as the people who do and accomplish.... I want us to be an organization that people flat out respect; our actions will take us there and we have the talent [in our membership]."Brown continued the thought by stating " I want POWER UP to become a household word in the industry and the community, one that everyone knows of and wants to be associated with."POWER UP looks to soon be a powerful ally for women in media and entertainment. It's about time we girls had a club of our own. 

Ravigo Zomana is a freelance writer and editor for TechnoDyke.Com. She enjoys the literary life, but opted for a career that would support her reading habit. She continues to write, read voraciously and edit, hoping to someday earn enough to quit her other job.