Longtime producer Cathy Schulman and experienced producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura discuss the devaluation of producers in Hollywood and advocate for better rights under Producers United. They delve into the financial squeeze on producers, the misunderstood role of producers in the industry, and the impact of producers on the entertainment we all enjoy.

Cathy Schulman, CEO of Welle Entertainment, talks about the business of entertainment and her new movie. The podcast delves into transforming a book into a rom-com film for Amazon, challenges women face in Hollywood funding, creativity vs. commerce in entertainment, and efforts to reduce gender disparity in the film industry.

This week, we talk about the Hollywood blockbuster The Woman King, starring Viola Davis. It's an epic that features a group of women warriors fighting for the kingdom of Dahomey—and it's got a lot of Oscar buzz. Lilah goes behind the scenes with Academy-Award winning producer Cathy Schulman to discuss what it took to get it made. Then, we look into what happened to plant-based meat. A few years ago, it was all over the news—but the hype died down. Has it been absorbed into our diets, or was it just a fad?-------Want to stay in touch? We love hearing from you. Email us at ftweekendpodcast@ft.com. We’re on Twitter @ftweekendpod, and Lilah is on Instagram and Twitter @lilahrap.-------Links and mentions from the episode:– The Woman King is available to watch in cinemas now across the UK and US.– Cathy's handbook on advancing gender parity in Hollywood: https://bit.ly/3NgKWeA – The FT’s review of The Woman King: https://on.ft.com/3DdbKI6– A profile of director Gina Prince-Bythewood by FT film critic Danny Leigh: https://on.ft.com/3DlUArE– Emiko’s piece on how inflation will affect plant-based meat: https://on.ft.com/3sGJNDI – Emiko’s Big Read on whether the appetite for plant-based meat has peaked: https://on.ft.com/3U4cKVN -------Special offers for FT Weekend listeners, from 50% off a digital subscription to a $1/£1/€1 trial can be found here: http://ft.com/weekendpodcast-------If you want to try FT Edit (8 stories a day, hand-picked by senior editors), it’s available in the iOS app store here: https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/ft-edit/id1574510369-------Clips courtesy of Sony and Burger King.Original music by Metaphor Music. Mixing and sound design by Breen Turner and Sam GiovincoRead a transcript of this episode on FT.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.