“Captain Marvel’s” record-breaking debut was in good company on International Women’s Day. March 8 also saw the publication of a new study concluding that the number of women directors in France has been growing throughout the past decade. According to Forbes, the Centre National du Cinéma et de l’Image Animée (CNC) not only reports that more French women are directing films, but France represents 36 percent of Europe’s women-helmed titles.
The CNC, the French Ministry of Culture department that produces and promotes French cinema, notes that 27 percent of French movies were directed or co-directed by women in 2017 compared to 20.8 percent in 2008. More women than men are also making their directorial debuts. Between 2008 and 2017, 42 percent of women filmmakers helmed their first pic, versus 31.8 percent of male directors.
Overall, 370 of Europe’s women-directed films were from France from 2012-17. That figure outshines Germany (242), the UK (87), Spain (82), and Italy (70). In terms of percentages, however, Scandinavia has France beat. In the specified time period, 24.2 percent of French films were directed by women. Nearly 28 percent of Norwegian films, 25.4 percent of Finnish films, and 25 percent of Danish films were from female directors.
And while the number of French women filmmakers is increasing, the study also highlights the gender inequity in French cinema’s budgets, distribution, and salary. Between 2008 and 2017, the woman-directed film with the highest budget was Roselyne Bosch’s “La Rafle” (€19.98 million or $22.6 million USD), while Luc Besson’s “Arthur 3 et la guerre des deux mondes” was the most expensive male-helmed pic (€68.83 million or $77.7 million USD). In 2017 the average budget gap between women- and men-made films was €2 million ($2.3 million USD).
As for distribution — which determines how large a film’s theatrical release is and therefore how many people get to see it — women’s films received 34.4 percent less funds than men’s. Women’s movies opened in an average of 118 theaters in their first week, versus 170 theaters for men’s films. The pay disparity is even more egregious: women directors’ salaries are about 42 percent lower than their male counterparts. Women in other production roles earn 38.9 percent less than men.
Obviously it’s great to see more French women directors receiving opportunities and making movies, but the CNC’s study shows that a lot more work needs to be done before women and men can enjoy the same position in French film.
