By Jaida Dent
Brooklyn College hosts a rich student body with over 100 clubs on its campus. This semester, a new club hopes to bring a light of creativity to students. ‘The Fireflies’ presents itself as the “first ‘Women in Film’ club” on campus and seeks to provide a space for creatives to discuss and learn from one another.
“I wanted to participate more largely in the student campus. I had an interest in filmmaking and [thought] how can I integrate that in the school, and the school doesn’t really have anything for women and film, so why not create a club that represents that for girls?” said Somaiya Ahmed, the president of The Fireflies.
The club’s primary agenda is to host film screenings and hold spaces for students to discuss similar interests. In the future, they also look to expand by having guest speakers on campus, informational filmmaking, and creative workshops, and be a resource to its members. As a community, the club leaders see an opportunity for students to network with each other for their projects and even collaborate on films as a club.
“We would want our students to have an opportunity to showcase their creativity and come and talk about films. Moving forward [we can] hold sessions where we invite guest speakers, who are filmmakers, to talk about how to create films, how to do editing, one-on-one lessons so that there is a learning aspect to our club, and not just social and gathering,” Ahmed told the Vanguard.
The core purpose of the club is to support and uplift women in film. The film industry is a male dominated space, and only 23% of directors, producers, writers, and editors in the top 250 films last year were women, according to The Celluloid Ceiling Report. The Fireflies hope to shine upon a solution for being a space that brings together diverse voices with a common interest.
“I was talking to a lot of people in the film department about this club, and something that they really liked was the fact that we centered women in film. There’s not a lot of places that really lift up women, especially in film. I think it’s nice that this club will bring a lot of different types of marginalized groups together to not only create films but to learn from each other” said Adia Brathwaite, the club’s social media coordinator.
In addition to creating space for women, there is an equal need to celebrate and uplift women in all facets of the film industry. Since the inception of the Academy Awards in 1929, 17% of all nominees were women, according to The Inclusion List from USC Annenberg. The Fireflies looks to be a place that highlights the work of students and recognizes their creativity and hard work.
“I hope that we get to celebrate women of color because, at the Oscars awards and everything, we don’t really see women of color getting that recognition. I hope that this club does that. We celebrate mostly women of color because that’s what’s lacking in the industry,” said Sabiha Yeasmin, the treasurer for The Fireflies.
Collaboration and community are values that this club stands upon. The club welcomes members of all backgrounds and majors and hopes to provide a safe space to foster creativity. Even the club’s name, The Fireflies, was inspired by the idea of unity that the club can create for students looking to step into an often segregated industry.
“The idea of light coming together at nighttime, just congregating and amassing, really inspired me to create this name. Just like fireflies unite and light up the night, I thought of us coming together as creatives, supporting and uplifting each other as a team,” said Ahmed.
The future remains bright for The Fireflies, as the club has the semester ahead to gain its footing and introduce itself to the students of BC. The growing organization hopes to provide the space and opportunity needed for students to thrive.
“My vision of this club is that it’s a safe space for people of diverse backgrounds, and it’s also an inclusive space,” said Marisha Sampson, the vice president. “Everyone is welcome, and we just love the opportunity to uplift the voices of women in film and other creative spaces as well.”
Students interested in joining The Fireflies can follow their Instagram: @firefliesbc.