Facts about women in the media industry

Film & Entertainment Industry Facts

There are 39 film festivals solely dedicated to showing the work of women directors throughout the world. -Women in the Director's Chair

Twenty one percent (21%) of the top 250 domestic grossing films released in 2007 employed no women directors, executive producers, producers, writers, cinematographers, or editors—a 2% increase since 2006. None of these films failed to employ a man in at least one of these roles. -Celluloid Ceiling 2007 Report

Women accounted for 6% of directors of the top 250 domestic grossing films released in 2007, a decline of 1% since 2006. This figure is approximately half the percentage of women directors working in 2000 when women accounted for 11% of all directors. -Celluloid Ceiling 2007 Report

A historical comparison of women’s employment on the top 250 films in 2007 and 1998 reveals that the percentage of women in all behind-the-scenes roles (directors, writers, executive producers, producers, editors and cinematagraphers) has declined. -Celluloid Ceiling 2007 Report

Women accounted for 10% of writers working on the top 250 domestic grossing films of 2007. Eighty two percent (82%) of the films had no female writers. -Celluloid Ceiling 2007 Report

Women working behind the scenes influenced the number of on-screen women. When a program had no female creators, females accounted for 40% of all characters. However, when a program employed at least one woman creator, females comprised 45% of all characters. -Boxed In: Women On Screen and Behind the Scenes in the 2003-04 Prime-time Season, by Martha Lauzen

In Academy Award history, only three female filmmakers have been nominated for best director award (Lina Wertmuller in 1977, Jane Campion in 1994, and Sofia Coppola in 2004), but none have won. -Women's E-News

Men write 70% and women 30% of all film reviews published in the nation’s top newspapers. -Thumbs Down Report

Forty seven percent (47%) of the nation’s top newspapers do not include film reviews written by women, whereas only 12% do not include film reviews written by men. -Thumbs Down Report

On average, films employing at least one woman as director, executive producer, producer, or writer earned slightly higher opening weekend U.S. box office grosses ($27.1 vs. 24.6 million) than films with only men in these roles.

On average, films employing at least one woman as director, executive producer, producer, or writer grossed approximately the same at domestic box offices ($82.1 vs. $81.9 million) as films with only men in these roles.

Facts About Women Make Movies

WMM has more than 500 films in its collection, representing more than 400 filmmakers from nearly 30 countries around the globe.

In the last decade, WMM has worked with dozens of local women’s organizations in Asia, Latin America and the Middle East to support new International Women’s Film Festivals.

Projects that WMM has supported and distributed have been nominated for and won all of the most prestigious media awards, including the Academy Award, Emmy Award, Peabody Award, and the duPont-Columbia University Broadcast Award, among others.

WMM now sponsors more than 200 projects in its renowned Production Assistance Program, and has helped filmmakers raise close to $4 million in funding over the last 5 years.

WMM has returned more than $1.5 million in royalties to women filmmakers over the last three years.

WMM serves as an advisor to pioneering projects around the world including: the Gender Montage Project which trains filmmakers in the former Soviet Republics; and a groundbreaking program developed to promote filmmaking in Iraq.

WMM films have been aired by major broadcasters around the world, including HBO/Cinemax, PBS, Sundance Channel, IFC and international broadcasters such as ZDF, Arte, KBS Korea and TV Globo Brazil.