Summer 2025 NEWSLETTER: Member Spotlight SHIRLEY VERNAE WILLIAMS
- Jun 27
- 9 min read
Letter From the President
A TIME OF TRANSFORMATION, NOT UNCERTAINTY
"The person you are destined to become is the person you decide to be." - Ralph Waldo Emerson
As we pass the halfway mark of 2025, many of us are feeling the pressure of an ever-shifting landscape in film and television. With funding institutions tightening their belts and grant programs shrinking, it can feel like a relentless race to capture the elusive genie in a bottle—seeking that one creative move that will ignite both passion and success.
But we are producers. We know how to pirouette a pivot like no one is watching—because often, no one is. Only we truly understand the tenacity and grace it takes to bring a vision to life. And like the caterpillar must cocoon before becoming a butterfly, we too endure daily lessons that prepare us to soar. Transformation is not something we fear; it is the choice we embrace, again and again.
As we approach the 10-year anniversary of Women Independent Producers (WIP), I am immensely proud of this small but mighty community of producers and allies who continue to support our mission to empower, sustain, and connect underrepresented producers through advocacy, access, and creative wellness. This year began with the success of a powerful milestone—our first official appearance as a festival event at Slamdance with "Celebrate Women Producers," co-powered by KODAK, DOLLY CARD, and SAGIndie. There we were able to pause and honor real-world transformation—when fires swept through Los Angeles. Guests of the event were gifted wildflower-seeded paper to plant as a symbol of communal resilience— where there is ash, flowers will bloom again.
Recently, WIP presented "The Producer’s Deal: The Making of All Deals," led by entertainment attorney Innes Smolansky, co-hosted by Women in the Arts & Media Coalition. We also launched “The Scoop,” a member benefit connecting to industry intel and insights. Thanks to recent guests from Amazon Studios.
Next up, our return to the Tribeca Film Festival for our signature soiree, "Celebrating Independent Producers," co-powered by MANHATTAN NEIGHBORHOOD NETWORK (MNN), DOLLY CARD, and WRAPBOOK. Later this year, you’ll find us engaging our community again during Gotham Week in New York and AFM in Los Angeles.
"Change is inevitable, choice is optional." — John C. Maxwell
And just like our spotlight member Shirley Vernae Williams, Women Independent Producers is choosing to meet this time of transformation with intentionality, creativity, community and purpose.
Here’s to creating the future—together.
Onwards & Upwards!!
In Light...
Adetoro Makinde
President | Co-Founder
Women Independent Producers
THE COLLECTIVE POWER OF CREATIVITY AND MEMBERSHIP
SHIRLEY VERNAE WILLIAMS: Redefining Her Gifts
by Erin Mae Miller
"We have to use our infinite creativity to create possibilities for ourselves." ~ Shirley Vernae Williams
Allow me to introduce you to a powerhouse within our midst, a driven, entrepreneurial, kind human who does not take no for an answer and sees limitations as opportunity. I know I felt lifted after our conversation, and I hope you do too. I think we all need a little Shirley inspiration!
First things first, Shirley is the founder of Willie B Studios - named for her grandfather who “was the most kind person …he was so humble, loved people, and was so connected to humanity. I wanted to create something that would honor him.” You can see his impact in Shirley’s indefatigable spirit. As a member of WIP, Shirley says she was most drawn to it because “it’s the power of community… the power of the collective. The thing that I like, it’s the gathering of minds, sharing transparently - things that are working or not working. Someone else is benefiting. That’s what it’s all about.”
Originally from CT, Shirley attended a small college in GA… “but I hated it. I was not an academics girl - there was nothing I enjoyed... I fundamentally didn’t understand why I was learning things that had no connection to purpose. My mom was like, girl I know you don’t like it, but you gotta figure something out. So I found a program in NYC - it was called the school for film and television - it was a summer program for acting… I got off off off Broadway things, but things that didn’t yield much fruit. I was grinding hard. I was hungry.”
The artist grind which we all understand, Shirley found she was skilled at transcribing for non-scripted television. Those relationships began recommending her everywhere. “I was like, I’m going to be the greatest transcriber ever… making 750/wk.”
Shirley’s work ethic and relationships have helped her master the “pivot” in her career and life - when she discovers something new she wants to do, she makes it known. I actually met Shirley over a decade ago in NYC when she was a post supervisor at a non-scripted TV company where I was production managing a show. Before I knew it she had pivoted!
“I saw I didn’t want to be post supervisor forever - I saw my ceiling” Shirley says, “I quit and I went to Italy for 5 weeks and decided I wanted to produce.” After producing shows and short form content, Shirley decided, “I didn’t just want to produce, I wanted to direct.” So again, she pivoted and made it known to her contacts that she had her sights set on producing and directing, so she directed and produced several branded campaigns.
This is what I love about Shirley - she saw that brands were drawn to working with her, so she leveled up again: “These brands are coming back to these companies because of my work, and although I was getting paid well, I knew I was only making a fraction of the budget. In 2022 I started my own company. As a freelancer, I was always hustling, so starting my own business… I wasn’t scared at all. Same principles, but bigger game.”
When I asked, “What do you think of the current state of the industry?” She took a long pause, and then with empathy and conviction said, “It’s hard. We’ve been here before multiple times. Here’s the thing, I think we can be victims or victors.” I’ll just pause there, because I needed to hear that.
“I’m very careful about when I speak up” she says, “I’m not being dismissive about the current state, but this is where we have to use our creativity.” Shirley continues, “Too many of us are too dependent on the way the system works, because the system is showing flaws, errors, malfunctions - there’s been a massive meltdown. I get it. But that doesn’t mean that there aren’t a million other possibilities for people.”
I love Shirley’s perspective here. Shirley said her greatest lesson in starting her own company was learning about cashflow and culture. Cashflow because she was responsible to pay crew and staff within a couple weeks, when businesses have a longer timeframe to deliver payment for their services. Culture was a journey of intentionality: “I learned a lot about creating fun, loving, kind company cultures. Workforce Development: it’s a PEOPLE business. That’s what you’re in. It’s motivating, inspiring, incentivizing your people. These were all massive learnings.”
Shirley also spoke about the importance of hiring a fractional CEO and fractional COO who “specialize in verticals that allow us to move with speed and efficiency.”
“I’ve been able to continuously employ hundreds of contractors and employ staffers. It’s just a circumstance… We have to use our infinite creativity to create possibilities for ourselves. I have not experienced a drop of famine in this drought. I’m anchored in God, a lot of people don’t want to hear that, but that’s the truth. Where energy goes, energy flows. If that door’s closed, let me go look at another.”
While the bread and butter of Willie B is short form digital content, Shirley is finishing her first feature documentary A FATHER’S WRECKONING about a minister who murdered a friend and is now home doing reentry work and trying to rebuild his relationship with his children. It’s about his story and how life got him to a place where he could commit murder.
“He completely changed the entire culture of the prison. He was baptizing hundreds of prisoners and a packed out Sunday service. Now he’s home and his children suffered greatly. The documentary is about what he’s doing now to redeem himself.”
Shirley is passionate as well about AI education for black and brown women and partnered with DOW to host a meeting the last Tuesday of each month to educate and connect black and brown women to AI opportunities. (Note: Shirley has offered to do a soiree on AI, which I think would be fabulous for our community. Stay tuned for more details about that in the future!)
Shirley is now an Emmy-nominated, Adweek award-winning producer & director. With over 14+ years in media and entertainment, she has produced 140+ hours of television for major networks and developed over 60 branded and digital series for top-tier clients including Cadillac, CDC, Google, and AT&T.
Keeping in line with our WIP commitment, I asked Allison what she may be able to offer WIP Producers:
A trusted creative partner to brands and agencies alike, Shirley has worked with 60+ influencers, 17 pro athletes, and 20 entrepreneurs — 79% of whom are women — creating content that has garnered million views.
Thank you, Shirley for contributing to WIP. We look forward to cheering you on and supporting you in your work. As always, onward and upward Women Independent Producers!
WELCOME OUR NEW MEMBERS
With our increased national and international presence, WIP is excited to create space for more members to share, collaborate, celebrate and support. Since our last newsletter, we're happy to welcome these producers to our community.
Visit it our website and discover more about our dynamic new and current Women Independent Producers members.
Help us champion independent producers! The Peer Empowered Producer Fund (PEP Fund) provides meaningful financial support to our WIProducers during the development phase of their projects. Your contribution directly empowers producers to tell impactful stories that can change hearts, minds, and culture.
WIP extends our gratitude to all festivals and programs who have generously provided our members with submission discounts and passes.
If your organization is interested in supporting our members, please contact us.
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We Think You Should Know About...
NYWIFT: New York Women in Film & Television advocates for equality in the moving image industry and supports women in every stage of their careers.
FILM FATALES: Community of women feature film and television directors.
BROWN GIRL DOC MAFIA: Initiative advocating for women and non-binary people of color working in the documentary film industry around the world.
PANO (formerly NYC WOMEN FILMMAKERS): a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization working towards inclusion & parity in the entertainment industry.
DEAR PRODUCER: a platform where producers share their experiences, celebrate achievements, and provide mentorship for the next generation.
PGA: Producer Guild of America is a 501 trade association representing television producers, film producers and New Media producers in the United States.
WIF LA: Women In Film advocates for and advances the careers of women working in the screen industries—to achieve parity and transform culture.
NALIP: The National Association of Latino Independent Producers seeks to change media culture by advocating and promoting the professional needs of Latinx artists in media.
CAAM: The Center for Asian American Media (CAAM) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to presenting stories that convey the richness and diversity of Asian American experiences to the broadest audience possible.
NYMI: The mission of New York Media Initiative is to come alongside media professionals, inspiring, equipping, and serving current and future leaders with a passion to use their profession to make a difference globally.
THE GOTHAM: The Gotham celebrates and nurtures independent film and media creators, providing career-building resources, access to industry influencers, and pathways to wider recognition.
SUNDANCE INSTITUTE: The institute is driven by its programs that discover and support independent filmmakers, theatre artists and composers from all over the world.
PRODUCERS UNION: The Producers Union aims to organize fiction, feature film producers in an effort to fight for equitable pay, protect producers’ creative rights, and to define, amplify and advance the role of the producer.
BFTC: The Black TV & Film Collective facilitates career-advancing opportunities for creators of Black and African descent to achieve financial sustainability within the entertainment industry.
DPA: The Documentary Producers Alliance sets standards for inclusive, sustainable and equitable business practices based on research, collective experience and input from strategic partners, amplifying the voice of documentary producers worldwide, while educating the industry about producers’ essential role from development through financing, production and distribution.
PRODUCERS UNITED: Producers United is a collective of Career Producers advocating for the sustainability of dedicated producing in film and television and to ensure its future.
RESOURCES
RESOURCES FOR CREATIVES: A list of grants, funds, and programs for women filmmakers.
SUNDANCE Co//ab: Learn from a community of Sundance Advisors offering Masterclasses, webinars and more. (free memberships currently available).
FREELANCERS HUB: A community space designed to help New York City's freelancers.
MOME: The City of New York Mayor's Office of Media and Entertainment initiatives to address the underrepresentation of female and female-identifying creatives in film, television, and theatre.
ACTORS FUND: A partnership with other entertainment industry organizations to provide emergency financial assistance to those in immediate financial need.
Feel free to let us know about other organizations and resources to share with our community.
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