Gender in the International Film Business

A literature review of key studies and analysis of gender representation among international film professionals.

A literature review of key studies and analysis of gender representation among international film professionals.

The report on gender in the film industry provides an analysis of data from various studies on gender representation both behind the scenes and on screen. In terms of employment, women remain significantly underrepresented in key roles, such as directing, writing, and producing, with women comprising only 18% of directors, executive producers, producers, writers, cinematographers, and editors in top-grossing films. Additionally, only 9% of directors in the top 250 films of 2012 were women, with 77% of those films having no female editors and 98% lacking female cinematographers.

The report also covers female representation across different film markets and industries. For example, countries like Taiwan and China show a higher percentage of women participating in the film industry, while countries like Iran and India have much lower female representation. In terms of funding, the success rates for female-directed projects applying for support in Europe were lower compared to male-directed projects, with women receiving smaller shares of available funds.

On-screen representation reveals a stark contrast between male and female characters, with women making up only 30.8% of speaking roles. Additionally, women are more likely to be depicted in sexually revealing clothing or as partially naked, compared to male characters. Films directed or written by women tend to feature more female characters, though these films generally have lower budgets and earnings than their male-led counterparts. The report calls attention to the persistent gender disparities and highlights areas where improvement is still needed across the film industry.