The Creative Moment Podcast: Being gay in the creative industry

Being gay in the creative industry: Two personal experiences

We catch up with Marc Allenby, ECD of both Harvard and Eat the Fox; the tech marketing and PR agencies, part of the Chime Group and Daniel Maynard, vice president, communications, media (television and direct-to-consumer) Europe and Africa at The Walt Disney Company.

We talk to Marc and Daniel about their experiences as gay men working in the creative sector.

Here’s a summary of what we discussed:

01.30 mins How self confidence shines through into all of our work.

04.30 mins Do either of Marc or Daniel feel that being gay has had a detrimental impact on their careers in the creative sector?

08.00 mins Marc and Daniel discuss the issue of coming out at work and that awkward “Oh OK” moment they sometimes get from colleagues!

13.00 mins Marc tells us about the first time he came out at work: Drunk at the Christmas party!

14.00 mins Marc talks about his “traumatic” childhood memories of growing up feeling “different".

17.30 mins Daniel describes how as a gay man, as opposed other minority groups, he has felt he had to declare himself as being gay, otherwise people just didn't know.

21.30 mins How a company can create an inclusive culture towards gay people and other minority groups.

28.30 mins Why positive role models are so important for all of us.

37.30 mins Why we need to all love who we are and celebrate diversity!

39.30 mins If an individual is opposed to you because of who you are - don’t stand for it. It’s illegal.

42.00 mins We finish with the Oscar Wilde quote: “Be yourself, everyone else is already taken”.