Stargate’s Amanda Tapping has moved from acting, to producing, to directing — and now she’s speaking out about her experience in the industry and how she hopes it can be reformed.
Marking International Women’s Day, the new project “Bite the Bullet Stories” has released a new installment featuring the former Samantha Carter actress. In it Amanda discusses the trials she has faced as a professional, especially since she began her career as a director.
Created by actor and photographer Farrah Aviva, “Bite the Bullet Stories” features celebrities and everyday people sharing their own experiences of personal hardship, triumph, and determination for change.
Amanda Tapping directs the CBC period drama X Company in Budapest in 2017.
For Amanda, that means confronting an industry of sexism and attacks on women’s self-worth.
She also speaks to the growing ‘Me Too’ movement in the film and television industry, calling for it to reach beyond the immediacy of finger-pointing to secure a real, level playing field for women in the industry.
“I don’t want the ‘Me Too’ movement to hurt us in the long run,” she says — “and I feel like it’s starting to go that way.” The real point of the movement is not merely to call out wrongdoers for what they have done, but for women to insist that “I deserve equal respect, and to be treated with dignity. And that’s not asking too much.”
“I guess I’m ‘Biting the Bullet,’ ultimately, to say that we can be our genuine, authentic, graceful, beautiful, creative selves … without having to apologize for it. And without letting people take our power away.”
Watch the full, 8-minute video below. Then be sure to read Amanda’s follow-up post on Instagram!
Amanda will also be honored by the Director’s Guild of Canada, B.C. at the annual Women in Entertainment gala tonight! Her directorial debut was actually on an episode of Stargate SG-1 back in 2003 — the seventh season episode “Resurrection.”
Today Amanda Tapping has nearly 50 directing credits to her name. This year she is directing an episode of the NBC drama Blindspot (created by former Atlantis writer-producer Martin Gero).
Find more “Bite the Bullet” stories on the project’s YouTube channel.
On Twitter: @amandatapping and @B_T_B_Stories
40 pounds to have a picture taken with RDA?
No way, Jose’ !!
Hasn’t he made enough millions already?
Unless, each 40 pound is directed, with proof, to help other humans in real need, he will lose all the respect that I had had for him, etc.
RDA donates all of his fan proceeds to his charities, Quench the Fire about pain management, and Sea Shepherd to protect animals.
Drago, until you have walked a mile in someone else’s shoes (lived their life) and dealt with the experiences they have I believe you have no right to cast judgement on anyone. We have no idea of the stereotypical prejudices Ms Tapping has had to deal with. So many “people” are threatened by an intelligent, competent, and beautiful woman that they must demean and belittle their success to justify their own shortcomings. We as a human race must be better than this!
First, I must say that you have done an excellent job. I like your role as Samantha Carter. As for as movements go, I am deeply concerned about our culture in general. It has fractured into subgroups yelling for rights and respect with the assumption that the “other” group has what they do not. About the time I came into the work force, I firsthand experienced WASP-Male discrimination. Long story- even a direct “catch” of discrimination. The meanness, the disrespect, the less pay, etc. is rampant. If I may mention, I have three advanced degrees including a doctorate; however, unbelievably… Read more »
I know we all go through discrimination in just about every job that is out there, I understand Amanda is no different to any of us who have been subjected to bullying and being treated less than who we are be it our gender, whether we are introvert or extrovert. We should be all treated the same. I also can believe in her role of employment, it is hard for women to be given roles without having to “give favours” to CEO’s of companies. Recent news sadly attests this is still going on. Its all down to respecting and giving… Read more »