Creating Safe Spaces in High Risk Storytelling
As storytellers on the stage or on screen, we are often required to take perilous risks in the form of physically high-risk moments or emotionally intimate scenes. It is more important than ever that the creative spaces where we do our jobs are safe, both physically and emotionally. We may be asked to jump from a tall building, light ourselves on fire or be involved in an explicit, intimate scene with someone onstage. This ain't no office job. What are the protocols and coaching in place today to create these safe spaces to do our creative work optimally? How far have we come? How do we best manage these situations as performers and artists or as support personnel? Enter the expert stunt and intimacy professionals: Dayna Grant, award-winning stunt performer and coordinator from New Zealand; Mahsa Ahmadi, the first Iranian stunt woman and coordinator in the world; and Cha Ramos, leading intimacy and fight director from New York. These three women have not only made a career on living and delivering in these extremes but they also fearlessly bring their voice surrounding self-advocacy and agency in high-risk environments in the entertainment industry. Watch this panel to discover how to set boundaries, deliver professionally and keep yourself and others around you safe, comfortable and fiercely confident.