Research
Dr. Stacy L. Smith & the Annenberg Inclusion Initiative Launch Website Exploring Oscar History
Dr. Stacy L Smith and the Annenberg Inclusion Initiative have launched The Inclusion List, a new initiative that showcases inclusion in entertainment. “Who says hashtag activism can’t create...
Research: Women of Color See Gains in Top-Grossing Films
The power of “The Woman King’s” reign is still being felt. Gina Prince-Bythewood’s latest is among the titles starring women of color making a major mark on the film...
Research: Inclusion Initiative Finds “Hiring Women of Color Was the Exception, Not the Rule” in 2022
“The pace of change has been slow for women directors,” a new report from Dr. Stacy L. Smith and the Annenberg Inclusion Initiative concludes. Titled “Inclusion in the...
Research: 2022 TV Offered Record-High Depiction of Barriers to Abortion Access
Midway through this year, the reproductive rights of folks with uteruses living in the U.S. suffered a cataclysmic regression when the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in June. Now, with at least...
UCLA Report: Cast Diversity at Decade High But BIPOC & Women Remain Underrepresented Off-Camera
The latest Hollywood Diversity Report from UCLA has found, for the first time since the study commenced nine years ago, that BIPOC “collectively reached or exceeded proportionate representation...
Women Represent 25 Percent of Film Directors Working in Europe
A new study from the European Audiovisual Observatory (EAO) reveals that women “represent only a quarter of all film directors working in the European film industry,” per Deadline. Even...
“Boxed In” Report: Streamers Hire More Women Behind the Scenes than Broadcast, WOC Characters Remain Underrepresented
Now in its 25th year, the latest “Boxed In” report reveals that streaming platforms have yet again eclipsed their broadcast TV competition with the representation of women on television. The...
Muslim Characters Are Erased & Stereotyped in Popular TV, According to Inclusion Initiative Study
Last year, Dr. Stacy L. Smith and the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative released a study outlining the inadequate representation the Muslim community has received in popular film in recent years....
TV Academy Members from Marginalized Groups Report Underrep, Exclusion, & Ineffective DEI Practices
A new report from the Television Academy lays bare how much work the industry has to do if it ever truly wants to be diverse, equitable, and inclusive. Based on the findings from a survey of 4,128 TV...
Racism “Rife” in U.K. Film and TV Industry, Bectu Survey Finds
A new survey carried out by the U.K. creative industries union Bectu has found that racism and underreporting of racism are still highly prevalent in U.K. broadcasting. According to a press release,...
“O Womaniya!” Study: Women Hold Just 10 Percent of Senior Roles in Indian Film and TV
A new study into the state of female representation in the Indian film and TV sectors has found that women make up a very low number of behind-the-camera roles, such as heads of department (HODs) and...
WGA West Reports Significant Increases for Women & BIPOC Writers Since 2010, but White Men Still Dominate
From the rise of streaming and huge blockbuster franchises to the onset of the pandemic, a lot has changed for screenwriters since 2010. And, happily, some solid progress in inclusion and diversity...
Inclusion Initiative: Little Growth for Women Musical Artists in Last Decade But WOC Saw Spike in 2021
H.E.R., Billie Eilish, Olivia Rodrigo, and Doja Cat are among the most-nominated artists at this Sunday’s Grammy Awards. But in the music industry overall, women artists are severely...
Study: Women Made Up 34% of Speaking Roles in 2021’s Top Films, Majority of Those Characters Were White
Earlier this week, we reported on a study from Dr. Stacy L. Smith and the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative that delved into the number of women and people of color serving as leads and co-leads in...
Number of Women & POC Leads/Co-Leads Held Steady in Top Films of 2021, According to New Research
The good news: judging from last year’s box office reports, the number of female and people of color leads/co-leads in popular films hasn’t really decreased during the pandemic. The bad...
USC Annenberg Study: Women Film Directors Making Gains but Racial Disparities Persist
Dr. Stacy L. Smith and the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative have released their latest “Inclusion in the Director’s Chair” report and it offers a rare piece of pandemic-era good news:...
WIF Study Finds “Severe Lack of Capital Investment” in Women-Owned Production Companies
Hollywood’s gender problem extends beyond on- and off-camera roles. According to a new study from WIF (Women In Film, Los Angeles), there is also a pronounced gender disparity among the...
Black Directors Helm Just 1% of Competition Films at Major Fests, According to New Research
Screen International is offering a brutal reminder of just how far the film industry has yet to go on the road toward inclusivity. The film mag and blog surveyed the main international competitions...
There Is a Pronounced Gender Gap in Top Films’ VFX, Inclusion Initiative/WIA Study Finds
It’s no secret that women are underrepresented as speaking characters, directors, screenwriters, and producers in Hollywood’s highest-earning films. But a new study from Dr. Stacy L....
UCLA Diversity Report: Pandemic Audiences Embracing TV Shows with Diverse Casts and Writers
The latest edition of UCLA’s Hollywood Diversity Report examined television viewing habits during the 2019-2020 season and found that pandemic audiences are connecting with shows featuring...
Raising Films Survey: Majority of Respondents Believe Caregiving Has Negatively Impacted Their Career
The U.K. film industry is not a welcoming place for parents and caregivers — an issue COVID-19 has only exacerbated. This is among the conclusions drawn from a recent survey conducted by...
Inclusion Initiative: Latinas Comprised Only 1.9% of Leads/Co-Leads Across 2007-2019’s Top 1,300 Films
The latest report from the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative has found that, despite making up about 20 percent of the U.S. population, the Hispanic/Latinx community “remains almost invisible...
Muslim Characters Are “Missing and Maligned” in Popular Global Movies, Study Finds
The USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative has released its first-ever study on Muslim representation. Dr. Stacy L. Smith and Co. investigated the prevalence and portrayals of Muslim characters across...
Study: Just Six of 2007-2019’s Top 1,300 Films Featured an Asian/Pacific Islander Woman Lead or Co-Lead
This year, Chloé Zhao became the most decorated filmmaker in a single awards season and made history as the first Asian woman to win the Best Director Oscar. Steven Yeun was the first Asian American...
New Report Finds Black Women in Family Films More Likely to Work in STEM Than Other Female Characters, But Colorism Persists
The Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media’s latest study considered the representation of Black women and girls in family entertainment over the past decade — and came to some...
Half of Netflix’s 2018-2019 Films and Shows Were Driven by Women and Girls, New Study Finds
The USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative has released a new report analyzing the U.S.-based 126 movies and 180 series released on Netflix in 2018 and 2019. “Inclusion in Netflix Original U.S....
DGA Report: Women Directed 34 Percent All TV Episodes in 2019-2020 Season
Once again, the number of television episodes directed by women and people of color bested its own record. The Directors Guild of America released its latest “Episodic Television Director...
New Study Concludes Swedish Film Industry Isn’t Reaching Full Diversity & Representation Potential
A new study released by the Swedish Film Institute, entitled “Which Women?,” has determined the Swedish film and TV industry can do a lot better when it comes to representation and...
Study: The Number of Women Writers & Directors Screening Indie Films at Fests Continues to Rise
Women keep reaching new historic highs as writers and directors of indie films screening at major festivals. A new study from Dr. Martha M. Lauzen, of the Center for the Study of Women in Television...
Women Represent Only 35 Percent of Non-Acting Emmy Nominees, New WMC Report Finds
The good news: more women received non-acting Emmy nominations in 2020 than in 2019. The bad news: gender parity is still a long way off. According to a new report from the Women’s Media Center...
“Boxed In” Report: Streaming Programs Feature More Female Protagonists Than Cable or Broadcast
Streamers such as Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon outstrip the likes of CBS, NBC, ABC, and HBO when it comes to the representation of women. According to the new “Boxed In” television report,...
Study: The Number of Female Speaking Characters in Top Films Hasn’t “Meaningfully Increased Since 2007”
Dr. Stacy L. Smith and the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative have released their latest study, “Inequality in 1,300 Popular Films: Examining Portrayals of Gender, Race/Ethnicity, LGBTQ &...
Women Represent Just 35% of Film Reviewers, According to New Thumbs Down Report
Dr. Martha Lauzen and the Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film have published the latest “Thumbs Down” report on gender representation in film criticism — and,...
WGAW Inclusion Report: Underrepresented Writers Making Gains, but Systemic Discrimination Persists
In the past year, underrepresented writers — including women, people of color, people with disabilities, LGBTQ+ individuals, and people over age 55 — have made strides in movies and...
Survey: Underrepresented TV Writers Face Discrimination at Twice the Rate of Overrepresented Scribes
The Think Tank for Inclusion and Equity (TTIE) has released its second “Behind-the-Scenes: The State of Inclusion and Equity in TV Writing” report. A survey of 333 working TV writers who identify...
Women Write 28.5% of Film Reviews Across Europe, According to New Study Presented at Berlinale
Le Collectif 50/50 is expanding upon the research it conducted on gender representation among film critics. Last year the equality collective released a study revealing that women represent 47...
2020 Diversity Report: Women and POC Make Strides in Film, Remain Underrepresented
UCLA has released Part 1 of its annual Diversity Report, focusing on representation on both sides of the camera among the top 200 films released in 2018 and 2019. Like the 2019 report and the 2018...
WMC Report: Women Make Up 30 Percent of Non-Acting 2020 Oscar Nominees
The good news: there are more women nominated in non-acting categories at the Oscars this year (56, or 30 percent of all non-acting nominees) than in 2019 (51, 25 percent). The bad news: 30 percent...
Study: Films Led by People of Color Tend to Out Earn Those with White Leads
A new report from USC Annenberg’s Inclusion Initiative and ReFrame concludes — yet again — that diversity sells. “The Ticket to Inclusion” analyzed the economic...
Women and POC Hit New Highs as Leads/Co-Leads in 2019’s Top Films, Study Finds
The Oscars and BAFTAs are still #SoWhite, but show business seems to be upping its on-screen inclusivity as of late. A new research brief from the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative found that...
Research: More WOC Festival Programmers Means More WOC Directors Screening Films
We’re smack dab in the middle of the 2020 Sundance Film Festival, where 46 percent of competition directors are women and 38 percent are people of color. Given that Sundance is ongoing and that...
Study: BFI Makes Progress with Implementation of Diversity Standards, but Further Change Is Needed
In June 2016, the British Film Institute (BFI) introduced guidelines to increase and improve diversity on-screen and off. These Diversity Standards addressed inclusion in regards to on-camera...
40 Percent of Last Year’s Top Films Featured a Female Protagonist, New Study Finds
Turns out 2019 wasn’t just a historic year for women behind the scenes. Women also fared very well on-screen last year, according to the latest “It’s a Man’s (Celluloid) World”...
2019 Celluloid Ceiling Report: Women Hit Historic Highs Offscreen, But Are Still Far From Parity
From 2018 to 2019, the number of women directors working on the top 100 films tripled — from four percent to 12 percent — achieving a historic high. This is definitely something to...
Research: Women Directors Hit 13-Year High in 2019 But WOC Remain Especially Underrepresented
We’re ushering in 2020 with some good news and some bad news. Dr. Stacy L. Smith and the Annenberg Inclusion Initiative just dropped their latest report, “Inclusion in the...
DGA Report: Women & POC Directed Half of All TV Episodes in 2018-2019 Season, Marking a First
If you’re looking for some positive current events to discuss at Thanksgiving dinner next week, the Directors Guild of America (DGA) has got you covered. According to the guild’s new...
GLAAD Report: Number of LGBTQ Series Regulars on Broadcast TV Reaches All-Time High
The LGBTQ presence on broadcast TV is growing. Per Variety, GLAAD has released its annual “Where We Are on TV” report and found that the number of LGBTQ characters represent 10.2 percent of...
Study: The Number of Women-Directed European Films Is “Growing,” But Slowly
The good news: the number of European feature films directed by women released in 2017 (357) was more than triple the 2003 figure (118). There are definitely more women making movies in Europe. The...
New UCLA Study Offers Five Practices for Promoting Diversity in Hollywood
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’re probably aware that Hollywood is mostly controlled by white dudes. There were 112 directors on last year’s top 100 films, and only one...
Theater Survey: Discrimination & Lack of Maternity Leave Feed Offstage Gender Gap
Excluding costume design, dudes dominate theater’s design, production, and technical professions. Women represent just 37 percent of Broadway and touring stage managers, a 2017 study revealed....
WMC Study Reveals Women (Still) Make Up Less Than Half of Non-Acting Emmy Nominees
As the latest “Boxed In” report showed, the overall number of women on both sides of the camera increased in the 2018-2019 television season. Many projects from women creators, such as...