Recently, 20th Century Fox has announced that it is on the hunt for female directors for their major movies, and it could not make me any more excited. There are countless reasons why this is a change for the positive for Hollywood, not only in terms of diversity and inclusivity, but also in terms of producing original and entertaining content.
Recent studies tell us that there is a distinctive lack of women in Hollywood. Fortunately, as the years have gone by, there’s been an increase in female speaking roles on the big screen, which has accounted, not only for more roles for actresses to fill in general, but for actresses to often fill major roles.
When we go behind the scenes, however, there is a noticeable decrease in positions for women. When it comes to feature films, this number is depressingly low, with women only directed 6.4% of feature films released by major studios between 2009-2014.
Allowing more women into the background of filmmaking has the potential to revolutionize filmmaking in terms of originality. As a writer, I often hear people encouraging creativity by saying, “don’t worry, nothing is original anyway, just write things your way!” which in many ways is true. There have been so many stories told throughout the history of humanity that it is difficult nowadays to find anything truly original. That being said, the originality of perspective is something that needs to be encouraged and celebrated. When we have the same stories told by the same old people, there is no originality to the form. To have Hollywood movies by and large by male directors means that we’re narrowing our scope of perspective, leaving out the stories that women have to share, and the ways in which they hope to share it. The more we diversify Hollywood, the better stories we will get.
Hollywood also has a long history of putting women in roles that are ultimately sexualised and objectified. This is still an issue that pervades the industry. Putting women behind the scenes can make a big difference in the kind of roles that women occupy on the big screen. By giving women the creative choices, Hollywood can finally start putting emphasis on the subjectivity of women rather than letting them be objectified time and again.
Another issue in Hollywood that has recently come to the fore is how ageist the industry can be to women. This has especially been highlighted after the latest Star Wars movie, with Carrie Fischer receiving criticism for… daring to age. When once Fischer’s character might have been the sole female character in a male-dominated franchise, the latest Star Wars movie not only starred an interesting, head-strong female protagonist but also put the older Leia into the role of a mentor. But other films have not been so kind to women’s aging process. Not only do female actress’ roles seem to almost disappear after they hit the age of forty (while male actors’ roles are significantly higher at that age), but the age disparity between female actress’ and their male love interest is staggeringly different. How will letting women behind the scenes help women and ageism in Hollywood, you might be asking? The answer is simple. Once more, behind the controls of the camera, women retain the creative controls that many of them are now lacking in. This will enable women to expand their casting choices to more than the choice few younger actresses and to expand their love interests to more than men decades older than them.
With the lack of women directors in general, it’s unsurprising that so few of them have won major awards in the A Academy. However, there is more at large than the simple lack of female directors. Women directors can more often be found working in indie movies, simply because film studios aren’t willing to fund female directors. When companies like Fox make the decision that they need more female directors for their blockbuster movies, they are lending women the tools to success that they often don’t have access to. With creative control and access to an appropriate budget, female directors can change the industry for the better.
Even with staggeringly low numbers of female directors in Hollywood, they have already seen much success. For example, Disney’s 2013 animated feature Frozen was co-directed by Jennifer Lee. Not only was she the studio’s first-ever female director of a Disney animated feature film, but she also took home an Academy Award for it. Kathryn Bigelow also took home the Academy Award for Best Picture in 2010 for The Hurt Locker as she was the first woman to win the award. While it’s great to see women like Jennifer Lee and Kathryn Bigelow making strides in the film industry, it’s unfortunate that in a generation that prides itself on progressiveness, we’re still waiting for women to make history by being “firsts.”
Hollywood has a woman problem. It’s a pervasive problem. It affects women on screen and off screen. But the best possible way to tackle this problem is to do exactly what Fox is doing. It’s to give women the reigns, it’s to give them opportunities that they deserve, strive for; but rarely have access to. I, for one, will be waiting with bated breath to see the directors that Fox hires and the work that they produce. I’m hopeful at the prospect of seeing Hollywood put more women behind the scenes, and to change the kind of stories they tell that feature women. I’m excited to see Hollywood diversify.
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