Leading Executives Explore the Power of the Female Perspective

Fremantle’s Coty Cagliolo, Dopamine’s Fidela Navarro, The Mediapro Studio’s Catalina Porto and BBC Studios’ Karina Dolgiej joined Elizabeth Bowen-Tombari, editor of TV Latina, at MIP Cancun today for the panel MIP Cancun Talk: Women at the Helm.

The conversation began with Bowen-Tombari asking about the experiences each executive had in getting to the positions they currently hold and the challenges during that process.

“We are very fortunate, but I do think there is a strong bias in getting to certain positions,” said Cagliolo, director of production for Latin America at Fremantle. “I can’t say that I personally experienced anything negative because I work in a company with a focus and vision on diversity and inclusion. But we do see what happens around us with other women and how difficult it is to break through that famous glass ceiling.”

Dolgiej, VP of content sales for Latin America and U.S. Hispanic at BBC Studios, stated that she was fortunate not to have any problems at the BBC. “It is not something difficult for women to be in leadership positions in the company, but it is true that in other companies and countries, it is not the same.”

“When I arrived in Mexico 22 years ago, the industry was predominantly male,” said Navarro, CEO of Dopamine, who is also a journalist. “That’s a reality, and it hasn’t been easy for us over the years, but I think there has been a lot of progress in a natural and organic way, but there is still a long way to go.”

She adds: “I see it a lot in the independent production world [where it is more difficult]. International companies have a series of policies, including diversity, inclusion and gender policies that have helped accelerate the path in reaching [executive] positions.”

Porto, director of content for Colombia and Mexico at The Mediapro Studio, agrees that she has been fortunate to be able to reach a leadership position in the industry. “I have never had [any obstacles] in my career, but we are in a very particular and important moment in time where we have to support each other. There is a lack of visibility for women in certain positions. When we are working on a production, and we are looking for a director or photographer, the first name that comes to mind is a man. It has to do with getting to know the women who are equipped for those roles.”

In addition to being women in leadership positions, Bowen-Tombari commented that they must make sure to make their brands stand out in a competitive landscape. When asked if the executives feel a greater responsibility to do so as women and what initiatives they are employing to stand out, Cagliolo said, “I think it’s very difficult to generalize, but it depends on the degree of your intensity and responsibility. You always try to do your best. Sometimes as women, we have to show a little bit more.”

In terms of representing her brand, the executive said that “it is important to continue on this path that is not an easy one. It is important that we do all we can to support each other, including diversity initiatives and the way we organize our teams.”

Cagliolo added: “Every time I’ve talked to a service provider, a client or a partner, I’ve said that we need to think about having a more inclusive team across the board; they always said yes, let’s explore this further.”

For BBC Studios’ Dolgiej, “There must be a balance. It’s not about saying, ‘I need a woman here, and I’m going to give her a spot on the team.’ No, it has to do with being the right person for the job. Diversity and inclusion at the BBC are critical. They are part of our DNA.”

Dopamine’s Navarro comments that greater female participation changes the perspective of productions “because we all have a lot of common issues and ways of balancing personal and professional life. Standards, policies and processes are quickly evolving. No one cared before if you had a problem with sexual or workplace harassment. Now we have an obligation to meet international standards and to be read.”

The conversation then turned to the sensitivities that women have and the role they play in making decisions about any project. “It doesn’t matter if we are mothers, daughters or wives, we always have a sense of caring for something, whether it’s a child, a parent, a production or a team. We always have a high level of detail,” noted Porto of The Mediapro Studio.

Bowen-Tombari asked about the projects these female executives are working on with the female perspective in mind. “We are doing several series,” said Dopamine’s Navarro. “One is Reina roja, a thriller with a great story about a couple of journalists for Amazon in Spain.”

“Representation is important in all projects,” Cagliolo said. “We released the latest episode of Toda la sangre, a series based on a book by Bernardo Esquinca, and the development team did an impeccable job in making correct character representation.”

Porto at The Mediapro Studio shared a particular experience he had with a production photographer. “The way a woman expresses a scene is totally different from the way a man does it, especially when we want to exalt the feminine aspect of a certain perspective.”

Dolgiej at BBC Studios highlighted Frida, from the company’s catalog, a documentary “from a historical point of view. She was a different woman, she didn’t fit the era in which she lived; she was ahead of her time. I think these are the kind of stories that continue to work within our industry, not only within Latin America but in Europe as well. It’s incredible how these kinds of stories can travel globally.”