“EDI is at the heart of what we do. We’re at the beginning of our journey, with a long way to go. We’ll keep on taking our next steps, and building on our beginnings, to produce and promote real change in our industry.”
– Delna Dhamodiwala, Global Head of HR
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At DNEG we commit to creating a safe and inclusive workplace where we invest in continuous improvement and allyship, and setting the standard for best practices in the VFX and Animation industries.
Our path
Over the past few years, EDI at DNEG has gone from being a series of locally-led programmes to a structured global programme supported by members of our senior management team.
Together, our crew, our EDI Task Group, and our employee-led groups work towards one goal: to foster a culture of inclusion and belonging globally.
The members of DNEG’s EDI Task Group function as advisors to our senior leadership team, providing direction and guidance on EDI policies, programs, and initiatives.
We also have several employee-led groups at DNEG. These identity or experience-based communities aim to create an open forum for our crew to meet and support one another in building their networks and their sense of belonging. They include communities such as:
dnWomen – a discussion group for our women-identifying employees
Thrive – a discussion group for mental health and wellbeing
Proud – a discussion group for our LGBTQ2S+ employees
DNEG Black Voices – a discussion group for our Black employees
Parent/Caregiver Resource Group – a discussion group for our employees with parental and caregiver responsibilities
Neurodiversity Working Group – a working group focused on increasing the visibility of neurodiversity within DNEG, and accounting for it in our methods of communication
Accessibility Working Group – a working group focused on making DNEG’s products and services universally accessible to everyone, including identifying, preventing, and removing barriers for the people who live with some form of disability
DNEG Indigenous Voices – a group for all Indigenous peoples, and non-Indigenous allies aiming to build connections between communities, support Indigenous voices, and highlight Indigenous experiences by learning, listening, and recognizing the diversity and richness of Indigenous cultures
Our programme
Our ongoing EDI programme includes a number of initiatives designed to support our crew in their day-to-day, and foster a diverse, equitable and inclusive culture at DNEG.
We are in the process of bringing these initiatives to all our global sites.
Mentorship Scheme – focusing on underrepresented individuals in the business to increase our gender equality, our mentors and mentees meet regularly to provide career support and boost personal development.
Career Coaching – providing regular support for our colleagues at all levels, with regular support and help in identifying larger career goals, to help invest in our talent and form stronger, well-connected teams.
Find out more here and here
Parental Leave Coaching – helping our crew approach parenthood with the time and space to take stock, and return to work with confidence and able to flourish in both their professional and family life. Find out more here
Leadership Training – our various industry specific leadership training programs are designed to equip our crew and production leads, supervisors and managers to lead and empower their teams with confidence, insight and self-awareness.
Thrive: Mental Health and Wellbeing – our mental health and wellbeing initiatives aim to provide an environment which fosters good mental health, to break down stigma and barriers around mental health issues, and to help our talent access mental health support when needed. To support our crew we trained a cohort of Mental Health Champions and Allies in our studios in London and India. They act in the same way as physical first aiders able to respond to health emergencies.
Find out more here and here
Gender Pay Gap Reporting – We continue to work towards being an inclusive and diverse organisation and we are dedicated to building on our commitments in relation to this. Our mean gender pay gap in the UK for 2021 is 29%, which is due to more men occupying senior roles. We are taking positive action to close the gap by championing inclusion and diversity at an industry level, and supporting career development within DNEG for all employees.
Download DNEG’s UK Pay Gap Report 2021
Download DNEG’s UK Pay Gap Report 2020
Our partners
We are proud of our external partnerships with associations doing brilliant work to promote diversity, inclusion, and belonging.
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ACCESS:VFX is a global, industry-led, non-profit which focuses on actively pursuing and encouraging inclusion, diversity, awareness and opportunity through Inspiration, Education, Mentoring and Recruitment.
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Animated Women UK supports professionals from all backgrounds of the VFX and Animation industries, and at every stage in their career, offering networking and mentoring opportunities to help grow and support industry talent among the range of their work.
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The Animation & VFX Alliance of British Columbia works with government and industry partners to ensure that British Columbia remains the ideal location to create and produce animation and VFX.
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The Academy Software Foundation provides a neutral forum for open source software developers in the motion picture industry to share resources and collaborate on technologies for image creation, VFX, animation and sound. The ASWF Diversity & Inclusion Working Group aims to address the state of D&I in the open source VFX Community.
DNEG is a Premier member of The Academy Software Foundation. |
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Lean In is a global community dedicated to helping foster leadership, advancement, and inclusion for people in the workplace through the concept of Circles: small groups which bring together women from all walks of life to provide a place for peer mentorship, skill-sharpening, and to be unapologetically ambitious.
DNEG is partnering with Lean In to empower our employees in India. Some of the topics covered in DNEG’s Lean in Circles are mindfulness, confidence building, Women leadership in the VFX industry |
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Saantvan Mental Health Services is a platform providing therapeutic services. They focus on de-stigmatizing mental illness through workshops and personal sessions.
DNEG is working with Saantvan to raise awareness around mental health and provide support to our crew in India. Over the years DNEG and Saantvan delivered workshops on mental health awareness, coping with grief and loss, emotional abuse, boundaries, and more. |
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ScreenSkills is an industry-led skills body for the screen industries – film, television, VFX, animation and games which provides insight, career development and other opportunities to help people get into the industry and progress within it, regardless of their race, sexual orientation, religion, age, gender, disability status, address, socio-economic background or any other dimension of diversity.
DNEG embraces ScreenSkills’ mission to support talents at every level, and help them build a fulfilling career in VFX and animation. |
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The Tech + People Network (TAP) is a non-profit organisation which supports a strong and diverse technology employment sector. Through their programmes and events, they foster peer-to-peer connections and collaboration that enable learning and knowledge sharing.
DNEG is a member of the Tech + People Network and actively participates in the Diversity & Inclusion Tech Project. |
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The Visual Effects Society (VES) is a non-profit professional, honorary society, dedicated to advancing the arts, sciences, and applications of VFX and to improving the welfare of its members by providing professional enrichment and education, fostering community, and promoting industry recognition.
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Women in Animation (WIA) brings together the global animation community to empower and advocate for people of underrepresented gender identities in the art, technology, production, and business of animation, inspiring excellence and justice in all facets of the industry. WIA launched the 50/50 by 2025 initiative to advocate for change, and provide programmes and connections to drive toward gender equality by 2025.
DNEG Animation is a member of the WIA Global Fund’s Partner Circle. |
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Women In Leadership Foundation (WIL) delivers programs that bring people together to collaborate in the development of their leadership skills, and creates positive change in the future of diverse leadership.
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Find out more
Get in touch with the team to find out more about EDI at DNEG.