Netflix's mentoring program ushers in a new and diverse generation of cartoon talent

Netflix has announced that it is launching a new mentoring program for emerging creatives, particularly from underrepresented communities, seeking to enter the animation industry. Trying to build on the impact narrative of productions like Maya and the three, Ridley Jones e Beyond the Moon, the studio is looking to offer more empathy and understanding-building stories to the audience while increasing the diversity of representation behind the screen.

In the announcement, Netflix points out that this journey begins with building talent pipelines in the business. Entry-level roles within animation are highly competitive, and candidates from top animation schools or referrals from industry connections have a significant advantage.

Then, the streamer launches the quarter Netflix Animation Fundamentals Program to broaden its reach and prepare underrepresented talent to compete in the first creative talent pools. The goal: to create equity and increase access for the first underrepresented creatives.

Participants in the program will be paired with a mentor from Netflix Animation Studio. Students will receive industry mentoring, career advice and guidance with professional-style portfolio editing and curation, sample or resume writing, so they are ready to apply for internships, training programs, and entry-level positions within the animation.

For the launch of this program in Fall 2021, Netflix partnered with LatinX in Animation and Exceptional Minds to identify candidates from the Latinx and neurodivergent communities.

• LatinX in animation (LXiA) represents a diverse group within the animation, visual effects and gaming industries dedicated to uniting a pool of talented innovators with a heart to create exceptional stories across multiple platforms. They do this by organizing activities and events that focus on networking, camaraderie, community service, education, communication, and professional development. LXiA provides the resources needed to further promote and develop Latinx creatives and decision makers in the animation, visual effects and gaming industries.

• Exceptional Minds (EM) is the only autism education organization that provides technical education in the digital arts by fully integrating behavioral training into the curriculum. EM has a full-time three-year Vocational Training Academy that is unique in that it combines the skills of artists, instructors, technicians, and behaviorists into a fully articulated curriculum based on idiographic and empirically validated principles of instructional design.