Females MARVEL at the box office

Hollywood is an industry all about networking.

You hire who you know, who you’ve done business with before, who you owe a favor, and who’s blackmailing you.

Some say it’s just business and it’s not that men are deliberately excluding women but that it’s about the connections you have. Some industry executives say it doesn’t matter who they hire for the job, whether man or woman, just as long as the job gets done.

I disagree that that’s what’s actually happening. 

 Personally, I think some men are still uncomfortable with having a woman in a high-up position. They don’t want a woman bossing them around. (OH NO!! That would be embarrassing, emasculating. People will snicker, point and stare, talk about you behind your back, all because a woman was in charge.)

There are times however, when they’re dying to hire a woman.

Whenever there’s a rom-com or drama they go a knockin. 

Females have been pigeon-holed into making and writing these same genre films.

These films have the same story…

“Woman has a great career, but something is missing in her life. Woman meets man, they fall in love, her life is now fulfilled. The End. Cue: Etta James.”

If a studio decides to make an action, superhero, or war film they rarely will go to a female director.

Many believe that female directors don’t bring in as much revenue as male directors.

This might be so, but I’ll tell you why….

Like I said women are relegated to directing rom-coms and dramas, which have a lower production value than action and superhero films.

Films with lower production value, meaning they are not as expensive to make, generally don’t make as much money at the box-office.

So as you can see it’s a tangled web, where it’s a lose lose scenario for women.

Executives claim it’s just business and they want directors that will bring in the most money, but if they only let women direct rom-coms and dramas, which generally make less money than how can we prove that we can make successful box-office hits.

Frankly, it takes one person willing to give women the opportunity to do this.

It might be happening... as Marvel has hired Patty Jenkins to direct Thor 2, making her the first woman to direct a superhero flick.

She is my superhero. (I hope she wears a cape on set.)

This announcement came as a surprise to many (because she has two X chromosomes).

(I wonder how many comic book nerds cried at this announcement)

The discussions surrounding this decision are quite interesting, as many wonder whether she is qualified or not and whether they think a female can direct a superhero film.

"Whosoever holds this hammer, if he be worthy, shall possess the power of...THOR!"

(I guess the other male directors couldn’t lift the hammer). Hazah!

(Frankly, I think it’s sad that in the year 2011 she is the first woman to direct a superhero film.)

She’s best known for directing, Monster which Charlize Theron won an Oscar for.

When someone claims that a female director is a poor choice for a specific genre, one needs to look no further than Kathryn Bigelow, who won an Oscar for the military thriller Hurt Locker. http://movies.yahoo.com/news/patty-jenkins-direct-thor-2-female-director-fit-183300290.html

Had Hurt Locker made a bigger splash at the box-office this movie might have paved the way for allowing women to direct various genres.

Many agree  

that it’s long been a problem in Hollywood: a lack of women who move on from film school to take the helm of major motion pictures. http://www.screened.com/news/could-thor-2-help-shift-hollywoods-attitude-towards-women-directors/3029/

Hopefully this will help change Hollywood’s attitudes toward female directors. Since Hollywood cares about box-office moolah more than anything else, then women-directed films hitting it big will only lead to more women getting the same opportunity.

Let’s make it happen!!

“For Odin For Asgard”