And That's A Wrap!

So, I’ve presented the facts and numbers of the very few women working behind the scenes in Hollywood, but in this post I will address the ultimate question, “Why does it matter?”

“What’s the point of this girl’s constant complaining?”

Well my friends, let me tell you.

Some may think that having an equal amount of women and men making creative decision about content isn’t important but I argue that it is extremely important. 

As a writer or content creator you reflect the reality you know and write what you know therefore you are likely to create characters similar to yourself.

This means that with a majority of male writers no wonder there’s way more males on-screen. They’re attracted to characters that are like them.

When women are behind camera there are far more female speaking characters. 

In movies directed by women, 47.7% of the characters were female; in movies directed by men, fewer than a third of the characters were female. When one or more of the screenwriters was female, 40% of characters were female; when all the screenwriters were male, 29.8% of the characters were female.

That’s a significant increase. 

Not portraying women on screen sends the message that females are less important than males.

Not only does having females work behind the camera increase the number of females on screen but it also alters the type of content that we see women in.

For example, women were far more likely than men to wear sexy clothing in movies, such as swimwear and unbuttoned shirts (25.8% versus 4.7%), to expose skin (23% versus 7.4%) and to be described by another character as attractive (10.9% versus 2.5%).

This type of provocative clothing devalues women and perpetuates the idea that a woman’s worth is equal to her beauty and physical appearance. Her intelligence is devalued and she is a mere object of the male gaze.

Women behind the cameras helps diminish this view of women and utilizes other important facets to convey her importance.

The types of jobs a female has is also affected by women behind the scenes. Women in film and television are often seen in traditional female occupations or as home-makers but when women are in charge these occupations change to roles that are less stereotypical. 

So ladies and gentleman, I give you the reason it is important to have diverse voices behind the camera.

These gender depictions influence young children who will appropriate these images and shape their worldview. 

In order not to perpetuate these gender stereotypes and promote gender equality we must create images that send positive depictions of men and women in the media.

I have Breasts…DEAL WITH IT

Hollywood is a town where networking and connections count more than talent. 

Good grades in college…USELESS!

Award winning short film…USELESS!

Being the niece of a studio executive…USEFUL!

It’s all about who you know and what favors people owe you. 

When choosing who you want to work with, you’re basically deciding who you want to play golf with, go to the Laker game with, and drink scotch with. (all in the name of business of course).

So no wonder men decide to work with other men.

But…I …I like the Lakers, I can play golf (miniature golf that is), and heck I’ll drink a scotch if it means directing a multi-million dollar film. 

For this reason I think women should form their own club.

And contrary to belief this club doesn’t involve us having pillow fights in our underwear. 

We’ll celebrate out Independence…

Cue: Destiny’s Child Independent Women

“All the women who are independent

Throw your hands up at me

All the honey's who makin' money

Throw your hands up at me”

There’s this false notion that there’s only one vacant spot at the men’s club for a woman.

But that isn’t the case.

Women feel the need to compete against one another and as a result we end up sabotaging one another.

Women need to rally together rather than tear each other down. We should advocate for one another and shouldn’t look at each other as competition, but rather as allies.

We would all be a lot better off if we did.

 To many people in the entertainment industry women are like exotic wild creatures on the verge of extinction and we represent diversity in the industry. (Go figure right)

Because we represent the “diversity” in the industry some women feel that there’s only one spot for the “token woman.” Instead of competing for the “token” place, we should advocate for one another and fight for more spots to be opened up for women.

The classic example of a woman deliberately belittling another woman is Sigourney Weaver’s claim about why James Cameron didn’t win the Academy Award for Best Director

"Jim didn't have breasts, and I think that was the reason"

http://www.okmagazine.com/news/sigourney-weaver-says-kathryn-bigelows-breasts-won-her-best-director

Really Sigourney, Really? Was that necessary?

Rather than celebrate this historic win by Kathryn Bigelow Sigourney Weaver rains on our parade.

I mean what a sore loser.

She tarnishes Bigelow’s win. She may have thought that Cameron deserved the win, but there was no need to bring gender into her argument.

If Tarantino won, would she have made any complaints against him?
“Jim didn’t have as big a …” (you can fill in the blank)

So if woman can’t even be proud of and embrace the achievement of other women how can we expect others in the industry too?

Honestly, I think Bigelow should have said…

 “I won because I have breasts and the 81 other winners before me won because they have penises.” 

Kathryn would never say this because she never even addressed the fact that she’s a “female” director, but that’s another issue.

So…club meeting starting next week, and I elect Tina Fey as our president.

Feyminism

“Feyminism” 

“ The advocacy of women in media and society in general. Largely inspired by Tina Fey, the comedienne who made great strides for women in comedy.”

I wish I could say I was clever enough to come up with that word.

(However, I found the definition on urban dictionary.)

I thought this week I would take a break from all the numbers and statistics and highlight a woman in the film and television industry who many people admire…

Tina Fey

Tina Fey is a role model to many and she has made huge strides for females in the comedy world.  Many look up to her as she has emerged as one of the funniest people in Hollywood. (Notice I didn’t say woman)

Because like I’ve mentioned before a joke should be funny no matter who says it.

She’s conquered the world of comedy in every facet. She’s an Emmy winning writer/producer of “30 Rock”; she’s been the head writer of “Saturday Night Live”; and is the screenwriter of some hilarious films such as “Mean Girls”, and “Baby Momma.”

She has worked her way up a very long ladder, especially in a male-dominated industry.

There are still people who are very uncomfortable with female comedians and think that women aren’t funny.

Fey says that there are people who continue to insist that women are not funny. 

“You still hear it,” she says. “It’s just a lot easier to ignore.”                   http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/features/2008/04/funnygirls200804

And that’s exactly what Fey has done. She’s ignored it and rather than stand on top of a soap box she’s made thing s happen and has proven to be extremely successful.

I mean, “The greatest revenge is proving them wrong.”

For example, her memoir Bossypants was number one on the New York Times bestseller list. It’s a hilarious read that talks about her journey into the world of comedy. She provides hilarious anecdotes about her childhood and brushes upon issues in the industry.

Fey is a role model to many but some feel that Tina Fey is a woman filled with contradictions.

For example, she is a strong female character in her show 30 Rock but some argue that her self-deprecating humor  diminishes her power and makes her play the role of a “fragile” woman.

Some feminists think that Tina Fey has not taken a bigger stand on the gender issues that exist in the entertainment industry and that she should serve as a bigger advocate for women’s issues. 

She does address these gender issues, but she uses humor to do so.

For example she talks about the difference between female and male comedy writers:

 “The men urinate in cups. And sometimes jars. Not all of the men at SNL whizzed in cups. But four or five out of 20 did, so the men have to own that one. Anytime there’s a bad female standup somewhere, some idiot Interblogger will deduce that ‘women aren’t funny.Using that same math, I can deduce that male comedy writers also piss in cups.”      http://popwatch.ew.com/2011/03/07/tina-fey-the-new-yorker-men-urinate-in-cups/

I think this lighthearted and humorous spin on things makes her likeable in that she’s not victimizing herself and she doesn’t alienate herself from the male population by bashing them.

She doesn’t need to talk about how great she is, all she has to do is show them how great she is. (And if her Emmys aren’t proof enough, then I don’t know what is.)

Let's Talk Numbers!!

I got into a very interesting discussion the other day with someone who had read my blog. (No, not my mom. Although that reminds me I should call her.)

 The person I was talking to said they thought I had made some interesting points about the gender inequality that exists in film and television, but that I couldn’t really argue that it’s unfair that there aren’t enough women behind the scenes, because he said not that many women are pursuing film.  

It did get me thinking. I wondered what the statistics were of women trying to break into the industry. So, I figured I would look at the core of where the young Hollywood minds begin (no, not porn)…FILM SCHOOL!!! 

It’s the factory where some of the best directors, writers, and producers are born. 

So just as a reminder, currently ….

for every one working female director, writer, or producer, there are 4.9 working males in the same above-the-line gate-keeping positions.  Stated in another way, only 8 percent of directors, 13.6 percent of writers, and 19.1 percent of producers were female across the 100 top-grossing films in 2008.   http://womensmediacenter.com/blog/2011/04/exclusive-hollywood-gender-gap-persists-in-100-top-grossing-2008-films/

So let’s compare these industry numbers to film school.

 I looked at the demographics of one of the top film schools in the nations, USC. The 2010- 2011 student body statistics reveal that 

59 percent of undergraduate students are male, while 41 percent are female. http://cinema.usc.edu/admissions/statistics/index.cfm

Although there is still a large disparity, it still doesn’t match up with the industry numbers.

According to the number of males and females in film school there should at least be 4 females to every 6 males, rather than one female to 4.9 males (as it currently is).

So maybe there isn’t exactly a 50/50 division of women and men pursuing jobs in the industry, but there are definitely more women trying to break in to the industry compared to the current representations. 

So one can’t justify the low numbers of women behind the cameras by saying that they’re not interested in film and television, because women are well-represented in film schools.

So the question remains…why aren’t there enough women behind the cameras?

One reason is sexism. 

Women aren’t welcome into this male-dominated world. The boy’s clubhouse still hasn’t taken down the “no girls allowed” sign.

Discrimination in certain work environments could discourage women from seeking employment there.

Oh you want proof….well here it is:

The recent Writers Guild Report shows that the median for female film writers' self-reported income in 2007 was over $40,000 less than the median for male film writers. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/stacy-smith/female-directors-writers_b_480848.html

If that’s not discrimination I don’t know what is.

Why should a woman who does the same job as a man be paid less? 

(Go ahead…try to come up with something…..I’ll wait…..still waiting…..still waiting…….)

Frankly, there’s no reason it should be happening. It just doesn’t make sense to me, nor should it make sense to anyone.

But the reality is…it’s happening!

If women were paid equally and had equal opportunities to direct, write, and produce certain projects then more women might be inclined to pursue this industry. 

Even one of the most successful female screenwriters claimed she encountered pay discrepancy.

I attended a panel discussion with well known screenwriter Linda Woolverton, who wrote Lion King, Beauty and the Beast, Mulan, and Alice in Wonderland (2010). 

She acknowledged that she is being paid less than male screenwriters. However, she stated that in the grand scheme of things she is overpaid in compared to many working class people, and that she would rather take a lower paycheck and get her story told and have the opportunity to send her messages through film.

Although I think it’s great that she is passionate about telling great stories and ensuring that they be told, I think she is well known and established enough that she can negotiate and demand for higher pay and her persistence and advocacy could create a ripple effect in the industry.

One woman standing up for her own paycheck could have profound effects on all women in the industry.

If the boy’s have a club, we should too!!

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”