Cannes Film Festival Campaign
The Cannes Film Festival is one of the key moments on the film world calendar. Women and Hollywood has used the festival to create an international conversation on the lack of opportunities for women to operate at the highest levels of the film business.
2018
Melissa Silverstein was one of the 82 women who climbed the steps of the Palais de Festival in protest of lack of women-directed films in competition at Cannes this year. The number 82 symbolizes the 82 women who have walked those steps as directors with films in the competition — compared to the 1,688 men. These 82 women were also instrumental in the successful push to get Cannes to take the Pledge for Gender Parity, which in turn inspired many other fests to do the same.
The signed pledge: 5050/2020/ Instagram
2017
Co-hosted networking meeting with influencers and female activists from around the world
2016
Co-hosted organizing meeting with women activists across the world
2015
Launched #SeeHerNow aimed at highlighting the contribution of women to the film industry, including directors, producers, editors and cinema professionals.
Infographic: Celebrate Women Filmmakers at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival
Coverage
AP: Where are the women? At Cannes, debate rages about lack of female filmmakers
The Globe and Mail: Liam Lacey: Cannes aims to represent the best in global cinema, but its record is embarrassingly androcentric
2014
CANNES WATCH: A CALL TO ACTION ON BEHALF OF FEMALE FILMMAKERS
WAYS TO IMPROVE OPPORTUNITIES FOR WOMEN DIRECTORS
- A list festivals need have gender diversity on all selection committees.
- There needs to be transparency in all the selection processes. (People need to be honest about how films are and aren’t selected.)
- There needs to be gender diversity in the selection committee for all international funding bodies.
- There needs to be gender equality in film funding. Women and men should each get 50% of the pie. (see Sweden)
- People need to support women directors and see their movies (especially on opening weekend)
- When you are putting together a jury, crew, panel or discussion make sure they are all racially and gender diverse.
- Film schools need to support and encourage women to stay in the directing focus, and they need to temper the male privilege (you all know what I mean.)
- Producers looking to staff a movie should ask agencies for names of women directors.
- Film schools should make sure that their faculty is gender diverse.
- And last but not least – just fucking hire women.
Coverage
CNN: Cannes president Jane Campion calls for more recognition of women in film
“It is the right thing for a jury to be evenly split among men and women and to include diversity at all levels. That makes for better discussions and brings other people’s perspectives into the mix. So while it is great that there are equal men and women this should be the norm,”
The Independent: Cannes Film Festival: Where are all the female directors?
The Frisky: Where Are All The Women Directors At Cannes? An Infographic Shows Just How Bad It Is
France24: Cannes Film Festival faces down critics, once again
USA Today: Women filmmakers take the spotlight in Cannes
“None of those announcements take away from the fact that the festival still has a problem with including women directors in the main competition,” she writes, adding, “Thus begins the next iteration of the conversation about women directors. Stay tuned for much, much more.”
Metro: The Cannes Film Festival begins, but are there enough women directors in it?
Radio CBC: Sexism at Cannes: Jane Campion speaks out
The glamorous Cannes Film Festival is underway in France. This year, the jury president is director Jane Campion, who is the only female to ever win the festival’s coveted Palme d’Or prize. Campion made headlines earlier this week, when she blasted the film industry for being inherently sexist. Day 6 guest host Rebecca Makonnen spoke with Melissa Silverstein, the founder of the Women & Hollywood Blog, about Hollywood’s gender imbalance and the significance of Campion’s remarks.
2012
Petition: Cannes Film Festival: Where Are the Women Directors?
Total 2,948 signatures
To the Jurors of the Cannes Film Festival
You will spend the next 11 days watching 22 films that the programmers and leaders of the Cannes Film Festival deemed to be the worthiest of this year’s competition.
The Cannes Film Festival is one of the most prestigious festivals in the world. Festival Films including last year’s Oscar winner The Artist have gone on to have long and successful lives, and filmmakers’ careers have been launched on the Croisette. As we all know, the opportunities to have your film seen on a world stage is invaluable.
For the 2012 edition, as with the 2010 edition, there are NO FEMALE DIRECTED FILMS in competition, and in the 64 years of the Festival only one woman — Jane Campion — has been awarded the Palme D’Or.
Festival director Thierry Fremaux responded to the recent manifesto from La Barbe – a French feminist action group – which decried the lack of women by saying:
“I select work on the basis of it actual qualities. We would never agree to select a film that doesn’t deserve it on the basis it was made by a woman…There is no doubt that greater space needs to be given to women within cinema. But it’s not at Cannes and in the month of May that this question needs to be raised, but rather all year and everywhere.”
We call for Cannes, and other film festivals worldwide to commit to transparency and equality in the selection process of these films. We judge films as human beings, shaped by our own perspectives and experiences. It is vital, therefore, that there be equality and diversity at the point of selection.
Mr. Fremaux is correct in stating that women’s rights must be addressed year round. We, the undersigned, encourage an industry-wide discussion about this issue, and call on the leaders throughout the industry to participate in and contribute to a dialogue about how we can, to quote Mr. Fremaux, “create a greater space for women within cinema.”
Coverage
LA Times: Women on Cannes red carpet — but not in directors’ chairs Jezebel: In 65 Years of the Cannes Film Festival, Only One Woman Has Been Awarded the Palme D’Or
Hollywood Reporter: Cannes 2012: 700 Protesters Sign Petition Demanding More Women Directors
Huffington Post: Cannes 2012 Sexist? Lack Of Woman Directors In Competition Spurs Outrage
The Grindstone: The Cannes Film Festival Has Become A Feminist Protest
The Guardian: Cannes 2012: Palme d’Or diversity debate rumbles on with new petition