From Hollywood to Homewood: Billy Porter Launches Audacity Project to Open Entertainment Industry Doors for Pittsburgh Youth
Pittsburgh, PA – Oct. 21, 2026 – Tony, Emmy and Grammy Award-winning actor and singer Billy Porter today announced the launch of Audacity Project, a workforce development initiative in Pittsburgh dedicated to preparing the next generation of behind-the-scenes film and television production artists from the city's East Liberty-Homewood community, through a $50,000 seed grant from The Pittsburgh Foundation.
Pittsburgh's rise as a film destination, most recently home to productions like HBO Max's The Pitt, creates urgent and readily available opportunities for the region's youth to enter the entertainment industry. Behind-the-scenes roles make up 95% of entertainment jobs, with wages 47% above the national average, yet African-Americans only make up 5% of the current pool of these workers, who are known in the industry as below-the-line talent, the crew members responsible for day-to-day production.
Audacity Project will provide technical training, mentorship and access to professional opportunities for traditionally systemically excluded youth to start career paths in the industry's workforce, including jobs like camera operators, prop masters, costumers and sound mixers, with a long-term goal of building a pipeline of below-the-line talent. The initial funding from The Pittsburgh Foundation enables Audacity Project to start a grantmaking pilot program in Pittsburgh, where it will give microgrants to youth in the city over the next several months.
“This project is about fulfilling dreams,” said Porter. “The opportunities for young people from neighborhoods like East Liberty-Homewood to enter into these vital careers in the industry need expanded. Audacity Project will give them the tools to tell their own stories, to create without limits and to build a future where their voices shape the world. It will help kids tap into creativity that might otherwise lay dormant. We have a responsibility to take care of the people where we came from, and for me, that's in Pittsburgh.”
“The Pittsburgh Foundation is supporting the Audacity Project for two reasons: First, Billy Porter could use his time, talent, treasure and platform to do great work anywhere in the world, but he decided to bring his energy to his hometown. We recognize and support this awesome decision,” said Bill Generett, president and CEO of The Pittsburgh Foundation. “Second, Pittsburgh has the very real potential to become a world class center for the film industry, but we must build our workforce with a new generation of people trained to work in the sector. The Audacity project does just that.”
The story of Audacity Project begins, fittingly, in East Liberty-Homewood itself, the same neighborhood where Billy grew up. As a sixth grader, an afterschool theater program changed the course of his life, opening doors that led him from local stages to Broadway and Hollywood. “There were opportunities in place where I could look at the talent I had, find a place to develop it and connect with mentors who could help me achieve my dreams for free,” said Porter. “The opportunities back then were baked into public policy. But those opportunities have dried up. Today, students don't have the same on-ramps to glimpse opportunities in the creative class.”
The idea for Audacity Project crystallized years later, when Porter was directing his first film and tried to hire his cousin, an accomplished hair stylist, for the production's hair team. He discovered she couldn't work on set because she wasn't a union member, and she couldn't join the union without first working on a production like his. “How do you get in the union if you're not given the opportunity to work?” Porter recalled asking. His cousin eventually received a waiver, earned more in four weeks than she typically made in six months, and found her own on-ramp into the industry. “Audacity Project dares to imagine: what if we expanded that on-ramp to everyone?
“People growing up with dreams of being a singer, actor, or dancer have a plethora of training institutions to choose from,” said Porter. “This effort expands the opportunities to cultivate the behind-the-scenes magic in the entertainment industry. Audacity Project is going to create the opportunities, and we’re going to do it the Pittsburgh way: banding together as a community to support the next generation.”
Building a Lasting Pipeline of Opportunity
Audacity Project's long-term ambition extends beyond introducing young people to the entertainment industry. It aims to build the infrastructure, partnerships and pathways young people need to move from curiosity to training, from training to professional experience, and ultimately into sustainable careers.
Over its first three years, Audacity Project envisions a phased approach:
- Year One: Opening Doors. Audacity Project will launch a pilot microgrant program to help young people explore creative and technical career opportunities, while building relationships with local educators, community organizations, industry professionals and potential employers.
- Year Two: Building the Foundation. The organization will conduct a feasibility study to explore a high school-level workforce development program focused on below-the-line careers and convene a leadership and governance committee of about 10–15 community, education, philanthropic and industry leaders to help guide the initiative's future.
- Year Three: Creating Pathways. Based on the feasibility study's findings and the development of additional partnerships and resources, Audacity Project will advance a sustainable model for technical training, mentorship and industry connections that supports long-term career pathways for Pittsburgh youth.
Throughout this work, Audacity Project will collaborate with Pittsburgh's film and television community, workforce development organizations, educational institutions, and civic and philanthropic leaders to ensure its programs respond to both young people's aspirations and the industry’s evolving needs.
About Audacity Project
Founded by Billy Porter, Audacity Project is a workforce development initiative that prepares the next generation of below-the-line film and television production artists from Pittsburgh. Through technical training, mentorship and access to professional opportunities, Audacity Project seeks to remove systemic barriers to behind-the-camera careers, particularly for young people historically excluded from the entertainment industry. Its long-term vision is to build a sustainable pipeline of diverse talent that expands economic opportunity, strengthens Pittsburgh's creative workforce and empowers young people to imagine and pursue new possibilities for their futures. Audacity Project is a fiscally sponsored project of the Entertainment Industry Foundation.
Media Contacts:
Audacity Project
Monica Malik
412-607-6520
monicaimalik@gmail.com
The Pittsburgh Foundation
Matt Minczeski
724-554-7993
minczeskim@pghfdn.org