This research examines hiring practices among marginalized workers in the below-the-line (BTL) sector of film and episodic television production. Asking the central research question: In what ways, if any, do current Hollywood BTL hiring practices exclude marginalized groups? To address this, I draw on two interrelated sub-questions: (1) How do power dynamics between ATL and BTL workers shape hiring decisions? and (2) what role does risk play in hiring BTL workers? To do this, this study brings together Critical Industrial Relations Theory (CIRT) and the Migrant Intersectionality Framework. Using semi-structured interviews with 15 BTL workers in the film and television sector, this study investigates workers' career trajectories, entry into the industry, mentorship experiences, perceptions of fit, and workplace settings (unionized and non-unionized). Findings reveal that workers entering the industry, which this study conceptualizes as early-stage career opportunities, navigate a hierarchy of low-status work, where mentorship can either enable career advancement or cause it to stall. Additionally, credentials accumulation shapes hiring outcomes, and ATL talent wields significant power in calls for representation among BTL workers.
Heather Michelle Beson (Thu,) studied this question.