Wolves travel in packs – always depending on one another, concentrating on the same goals. No member gets left behind.

The new on-campus student organization, SheWolf Society, abides by those very same characteristics.

The SheWolf Society strives to amplify voices of women and LGBTQIA+ creatives within the Chapman community. The club notes their goals are to “develop a more intersectional, inclusive and collaborative culture within the entertainment industry and at Dodge College of Film and Media Arts.”

The club was founded by senior screenwriting majors Erica Kennedy and Dalia Vered because of their desire for more representation and mentorship for marginalized voices in creative industries. Particularly at Chapman, Kennedy told The Panther she was frustrated with the lack of female support in the classroom.

“Our stories weren’t necessarily taken as seriously or understood as much by faculty and peers in the classroom, which can be kind of disheartening when you’re trying to craft an authentic story about the female experience and you’re in a room full of men who don’t understand it,” Kennedy said. “I wanted to create a space where everyone in the room could relate and show you the respect you deserved.”

The club originated with a writer’s room specifically for women and LGBTQIA+ creatives, but it has now blossomed into a club that gives members access to several different components: Q&A sessions with renowned female and LGBTQIA+ professionals in the industry, writing workshops to share ideas and internal student mentorship. In total, the SheWolf pack has 50 registered members thus far, 14 members on the executive board and has their first meeting on Oct. 9. 

The name, “SheWolf Society” came from the idea that she-wolves are women who have always strived for excellence and recognition, no matter their view in their community. The name itself was suggested by faculty adviser Jill Condon, an assistant professor within Dodge College.

“A she-wolf throughout history is a woman who always takes power for herself and is powerful and comfortable with that,” Condon said. “Like any queen who has a crazy king and dares to help out – that (expletive) is a she-wolf.”

The club has a foundation of a three-pillar methodology of community, networking and membership, with the goal of appealing to a broader range of members. Kavya Maran, the club’s co-chair of Diversity and Inclusion hopes that by showcasing an array of opportunities for students, all who come across the club will feel empowered.

“The core of the club first and foremost is to bring together all of these people from lots of different parts of Chapman that have a common interest in TV and film, and want to do something creative,” said Maran, a junior television writing and production major. “This club is going to be that space where they get to meet people that watch the same things as them or do the same things as them, and they’ll be able to find a sense of community and some new friends and maybe some useful connections.”

Condon emphasized the importance of women in the writer’s room and how, during her 20-year career of writing in television on shows like “Friends” and “America’s Next Top Model,” she was only able to pierce the glass ceiling. She said that the SheWolf Society could be that push for the next generation to dissolve those barriers. 

“There are still a bunch of rooms that skew very heavily male, and the parity between people of color and (LGBTQIA+) is even worse,” Condon said. “If you got in, it’s your job to bust down that ceiling for everybody else, and that is to me what a huge part of this club is – giving these girls the tools and turning them loose with the idea that they belong there.”