Women make up roughly half of all executives in animation, but a study released Monday says the numbers fall significantly when it comes to female directors and other leadership roles in the industry.
The study by the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative and the nonprofit advocacy group Women in Animation said that in the past 12 years, only 3% of animated film directors were women and only one, "Kung Fu Panda 2" director Jennifer Yuh Nelson, was a woman of color.
In some areas, like producing, animation has better female representation than live-action films. The study found that women made up 37% of producers on the 120 animated films surveyed going back to 2007. On live-action features, women make up about 15% of producers.
"The proportion of women in this leadership role in animation, and the progress made in the last decade indicates that there are spaces where the industry is taking inclusion seriously and affecting change," said initiative director Stacy L. Smith in a statement.
Women also made up 13% of directors of popular animated television shows from 2018, the only year covered by the study. But women of color were underrepresented in all areas.
Women are also outnumbered in below-the-line roles like head of story, lead animators and art directors, the study found.
And in front of the camera, only 20 of the top 120 animated features across the past 12 years had a female lead or co-lead. Of those, three, "Moana," ''The Princess and the Frog," and "Smurfs: The Lost Village," had a woman of color as the protagonist
Marge Dean, the president of Women in Animation, says a better understanding of the numbers will help push the industry toward achieving 50-50 gender representation by 2025.
“Heretic” and “Maria” Set As Red Carpet Premieres At AFI Fest
The American Film Institute (AFI) has announced that Heretic, the psychological thriller starring Hugh Grant, and Maria, based on the life of opera singer Maria Callas starring Angelina Jolie, will round out the Red Carpet Premieres section at this year’s AFI Fest. The Heretic Gala Screening will take place on Thursday, October 24, and the Maria Gala Screening will be held on Saturday, October 26. The complete Red Carpet Premieres section includes the world premieres of Music By John Williams, Robert Zemeckis’ Here, Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl and Clint Eastwood’s Juror #2. All Red Carpet Premieres will take place at the historic TCL Chinese Theatre. The full lineup for AFI Fest 2024 will be unveiled on October 1.
“At the heart of AFI Fest is an unwavering dedication to celebrating the best in global cinema--together,” said Bob Gazzale, AFI president and CEO. “We look forward to uniting artists and audiences once again to be inspired by the art form in a powerful sense of community.”
Heretic follows two young missionaries (Sophie Thatcher and Chloe East) who are forced to prove their faith when they knock on the wrong door and are greeted by a diabolical Mr. Reed (portrayed by Grant), becoming ensnared in his deadly game of cat-and-mouse. The film is directed by Scott Beck and Bryan Woods and produced by Stacey Sher, Beck, Woods, Julia Glausi and Jeanette Volturno. The film will be released nationwide by A24 on November 8.
Directed by Pablo Larraín, Maria presents a tumultuous and beautiful depiction of one of the world’s most renowned artists and reimagines the legendary soprano in her final days in Paris, as Callas (Jolie)... Read More