Video Interview with Ilene Chaiken

Writer and executive producer Ilene Chaiken sat down for a keynote interview at MIPTV with World Screen’s Anna Carugati, discussing her journey in Hollywood and her commitment to championing diversity in front of and behind the camera.

Chaiken has a long list of credits, including The L Word, Empire and The Handmaid’s Tale. During her one-on-one session with Carugati, Chaiken discussed the importance of storytelling that pushes boundaries. These shows “do have an impact on the world. Telling stories changes culture. Telling stories changes lives, changes the way one individual feels about herself or himself and changes the way the rest of the world understands an individual’s experience. I also think that the audience has changed in significant ways. They are much more sophisticated and hungrier for new stories. In some ways, the audiences have changed faster than the programmers. What television does best and what is needed and wanted is to see something we haven’t seen before but makes us feel connected to one another.”