HISTORY OF WOMEN IN CINEMA
Women have always been a apart of cinema from the start; however, it was not always positive. More so than often, women were portrayed in
stereotypical roles - the damsel in distress, the housewife, or the whore. For acting, there weren't many options in the early days.
Slowly, but surely, that all began to change with actresses who dared to defy studio conventions of the 30s and 40s. Actresses such as
Katharine Hepburn and Marlene Dietrich took on roles of headstrong and courageous women. As actresses evovled in the way they wanted to be portrayed on screen,
so did female directors. Most films of those times were directed by men, meaning those films took on a male point-of-view.
Actresses turned directors soon became on the rise, such as Ida Lupino, Elaine May, and Barbra Streisand.
OUR MISSION
Women for the Reel aims to create easy-to-access- webpages spotlighting female filmmakers. We believe that all women
deserve a place at the table, where there stories deserve to be recognized.
We seek to create a safe space for aspiring filmmakers and to
foster creative conversation around what is failing women in cinema,
and how the industry can improve for the better.
TODAYS REPRESENTATION AND ITS ISSUES
In 2023, women were employed LESS OFTEN than in 2022, according to a report by SDSU,
although the highest grossing film of that year was directed by a woman.
Only 3 women have won Best Director at the Academy Awards, and the Academy has been around for 96 years...
Hollywood still has a long ways to go in understanding the value of female creativity, and the value it contributes to the world.
