HER Docs on Women’s Day
Let’s do a short exercise together. Type in “100 best documentary directors” in Google or any other search engine. Then scroll through the list of 100 names that appear on the screen. How many women are there?
Why is it that in the 21st century, we still have such a lack of diversity in one of the most visible film professions—film directing? Why is it that when we think of film titles and their creators, the names that come to mind are most likely male? And why do women’s rights and gender equality still have to be negotiated? Is this issue systemic?
Although the percentage of female film students and graduates has increased in recent years, many do not stay in the industry. Alongside systemic discrimination, women face significant challenges in balancing their careers with family responsibilities. Additionally, the financial instability and lengthy production timelines of non-fiction filmmaking often push women to transition to fiction films instead.
It’s time to create a landscape where women directors are not just included but celebrated. To make this a reality, we need to facilitate the dissemination of documentary films directed by women and expand feminist education. By building stronger communities and developing networks of feminist film festivals, organizations and initiatives, we can strengthen both collective and individual capacities to educate and sensitize the audience to feminist and socially important issues with greater outreach.
On this day, we stand for and celebrate all female storytellers, who push through daily challenges, structural discrimination and emotional tolls to bring their stories to life. We also want to recognize the numerous initiatives and individuals who tirelessly advocate for change, educating the audiences as well as ensuring that global movements like 50/50 by 2020, #MeToo, and Time’s Up continue to inspire local action—even as these major movements slow down.
Women have been making films for eleven decades now. There are countless films by women out there. The question is, why do we not necessarily know about them? (…) We need to look at the canon, we need to appreciate it, we need to screen it, we need to buy tickets for films by women, and then we will know that it exists amongst us. It’s not some other thing out there that we have to somehow find. It all exists, we just need to really pay attention to it and bring it up. [Tilda Swinton, Cannes Film Festival 2019]
