Do you think there's discrimination against female film/television directors?

[DementedSheep]

For any question like this, is it a career involving childcare or customer service where half your role is to be pleasant? if no the yes because as much as people these days like to pretend they totally think everyone equal the longer you know them the longer the list of "exceptions" grows and the more apparent it becomes that behaviour dose not match. Even if a career with %80 woman you can bet that any guys that come along get snapped up for leadership positions and be assumed to be more competent unless they mind numbly awful at it. Hell in my university that idea is so accepted they'll even outright says so like it's a good thing just in case you had hope that wouldn't be the case when you graduate. You have to either accept that or blow your fucking brains out because it never going to change.

That is some military grade irony right there.

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/18.883728-What-is-your-opinion-on-women-dressing-sexy-for-Halloween#22294614

It's whore being whores, missing the spirit of events and just using as an excuse to get their tits out. Same as usual.

AH still not over that I see. What part of not liking woman who intentionally whore themselves out and thinking there is sexism in workplaces conflicts? in fact what part of thinking sexism in the workplace exist and even being sexist conflicts?

Do you know what "whore out" means? Your attempt to mix such ridiculous hyperbole in only tells me about your state of mind, nothing coherent beyond that. After that I just question the source of anything related to gender from someone who sounds like a frustrated serial killer.

You know.. They have found a link between sexism and psychological disorders..
http://www.nature.com/articles/srep14220
Yes, those who hold more sexist beliefs were shown to also be more likely to have other psychological disorders, in addition their brain scans were not the same as those who do not hold such beliefs. It is possible we have been trying all along to address a neurological disorder with a social solution.

OP: Yes, there is abundant sexism in the entertainment industry, there has been for decades and this is an old problem, not a new one. Not just in how many women are allowed to be directors, but in how much actresses are paid and how women are treated in comparison to men. Hopefully it is something we will finally see changed in our lifetime.

Absolutely, I wasn't simply being facetious. Really rabid sexism, racism, and all of that kind of thing is strongly associated with mental illness. In particular vicious misogyny tends to be the result of someone who has been neglected or abused by a strong female figure, usually the mother or primary caretaker. Often people who are obsessed with and hate "whores" are the children of actual whores. Most of those people grow up to be whatever normal is, or some variation of anxious, depressed, and addicted doing harm to no one. A few though, those with a psychopathic, sociopathic, or strongly narcissistic personality, become violent serial offenders.

If you honesty equate harsh words with 'they must be serial killer' maybe you have a problem. Not only have I have never intentionally hurt someone but when push comes to shove I still help someone when I don't like how they act.
My mother is fine if you're going to start with armchair psychology about that.

I know your mother is fine, that's not what we're talking about. Why, I just had her last night!

Oh how original. If you were trying to piss me off you need to try harder.

 

[Erttheking]

I'd say the unpopular thing that it's probably just not very attractive job for females and those who work in it would rather blame every bad thing on "sexism" and "patriarchy" rather than their lack of abilities.

Did you ever consider that it's an unpopular job because of all the sexism bullshit in the industry?

 

[Drops a Sweet Katana]

I don't know, but probably yes. Unfortunately, sex discrimination exists in some form in pretty much all industries and entertainment is no different.

 

[Gatlank]

I'd say the unpopular thing that it's probably just not very attractive job for females and those who work in it would rather blame every bad thing on "sexism" and "patriarchy" rather than their lack of abilities.

Did you ever consider that it's an unpopular job because of all the sexism bullshit in the industry?

Or maybe because there's only stories of sexism in the industry but nothing really related to it and honestly how many people here pay attention to the director's name unless it's someone famous or paid attention to it in movies like drama or even indies.

 

[Erttheking]

I'd say the unpopular thing that it's probably just not very attractive job for females and those who work in it would rather blame every bad thing on "sexism" and "patriarchy" rather than their lack of abilities.

Did you ever consider that it's an unpopular job because of all the sexism bullshit in the industry?

Or maybe because there's only stories of sexism in the industry but nothing really related to it and honestly how many people here pay attention to the director's name unless it's someone famous or paid attention to it in movies like drama or even indies.

I'm sorry, what do people not knowing the names of directors have to do with sexism INSIDE the industry? And how does that not deter women thinking of joining?

 

[Gatlank]

I'd say the unpopular thing that it's probably just not very attractive job for females and those who work in it would rather blame every bad thing on "sexism" and "patriarchy" rather than their lack of abilities.

Did you ever consider that it's an unpopular job because of all the sexism bullshit in the industry?

Or maybe because there's only stories of sexism in the industry but nothing really related to it and honestly how many people here pay attention to the director's name unless it's someone famous or paid attention to it in movies like drama or even indies.

I'm sorry, what do people not knowing the names of directors have to do with sexism INSIDE the industry?

Simply due to the fact that this seems to be a US thing. How many watch other movies except hollywood blockbusters.
Because outside of the US the proportion is more balanced and the type of movies theses female directors make seems to be related to it (which seems mostly experimental movies, drama and intrigues).
So in my opinion it's not about sexism on the industry but the interest of the directors and what hollywood companies are willing to bet on.

 

[Erttheking]

I'd say the unpopular thing that it's probably just not very attractive job for females and those who work in it would rather blame every bad thing on "sexism" and "patriarchy" rather than their lack of abilities.

Did you ever consider that it's an unpopular job because of all the sexism bullshit in the industry?

Or maybe because there's only stories of sexism in the industry but nothing really related to it and honestly how many people here pay attention to the director's name unless it's someone famous or paid attention to it in movies like drama or even indies.

I'm sorry, what do people not knowing the names of directors have to do with sexism INSIDE the industry?

Simply due to the fact that this seems to be a US thing.
Because outside of the US the proportion is more balanced and the type of movies theses female directors make seems to be related to it (which seems mostly experimental movies, drama and intrigues).
So in my opinion it's not about sexism on the industry but the interest of the directors and what hollywood companies are willing to bet on.

Well it's sexism in the US industry. There's no real getting around that. Then again there's a lot of fucked up things in America. What the directors want and the companies are willing to bet on is pretty sexist, even if they don't want to call it that.

 

[Gatlank]

Well it's sexism in the US industry. There's no real getting around that. Then again there's a lot of fucked up things in America. What the directors want and the companies are willing to bet on is pretty sexist, even if they don't want to call it that.

I think that's called capitalism and not sexism.
Hollywood goes after the money and what makes more money that an action filled blockbuster. It isn't a foreing female director with (award winning) drama movies under her belt that's going to helm such project but the guy that can make the best looking explosion.
If you want to blame someone blame the audience.

 

[Erttheking]

Well it's sexism in the US industry. There's no real getting around that. Then again there's a lot of fucked up things in America. What the directors want and the companies are willing to bet on is pretty sexist, even if they don't want to call it that.

I think that's called capitalism and not sexism.
Hollywood goes after the money and what makes more money that an action filled blockbuster. It isn't a foreing female director with (award winning) drama movies under her belt that's going to helm such project but the guy that can make the best looking explosion.
If you want to blame someone blame the audience.

Capitalism is very capable of being sexist.
Hollywood goes after the money in the same way that everyone in the games industry goes after money. Copying everyone else and not being the slightest bit original. Not to mention there's the whole self fulfilling prophecy thing. They said thing X won't work therefore they under fund it, therefore thing X doesn't work and continues the idea of it not working by default.
No I won't, because the people who run Hollywood live in their own little worlds and decide what everyone wants to see.

 

[Redryhno]

Maybe? Could also just be that women since they're children are "coddled" more in a certain way so aren't as prepared for some of the bullshit(just a general statement, not meant as a negative or whatevs)? But look at alot of directors, and you also see that they're single kids or have a bit of a gap between their younger siblings and them. So maybe that has something to do with it as well? Could honestly just be down to attitudes just not being as commonly seen in women as they are in men.

But off the top of my head, I can't really think of a huge amount of directors by name, male or female, so maybe it's not that important? Especially with the role of the Director slowly becoming more of the guy that says "again" and "no means no" than the guy that is in sole possession of the way the film and script is presented? I dunno.

Honestly,I don't know. Makes about as much sense as any other explanation I suppose.

 

[Thaluikhain]

Well it's sexism in the US industry. There's no real getting around that. Then again there's a lot of fucked up things in America. What the directors want and the companies are willing to bet on is pretty sexist, even if they don't want to call it that.

I think that's called capitalism and not sexism.
Hollywood goes after the money and what makes more money that an action filled blockbuster. It isn't a foreing female director with (award winning) drama movies under her belt that's going to helm such project but the guy that can make the best looking explosion.
If you want to blame someone blame the audience.

To an extent, but despite all the money made by female led movies, there is still the belief that female led movies don't make money. Now, sure, Hollywood might follow what they think will bring in the money, but that's very different from there not being sexism at play.

 

[9tailedflame]

I wouldn't be surprised if it existed, but I imagine it'd be difficult to figure this out definitively. My understanding is that Hollywood is usually pretty progressive, but I can easily imagine them having an "old boy's club."

Honestly, i think hollywood likes to think it's progressive, but i think it's only as progressive at the start, and since then, has progressed nowhere, lagging behind the rest of the world, and now finding itself the backwards ones.

Hollywood is pretty beyond help at this point if you ask me.

 

[Thaluikhain]

I wouldn't be surprised if it existed, but I imagine it'd be difficult to figure this out definitively. My understanding is that Hollywood is usually pretty progressive, but I can easily imagine them having an "old boy's club."

Honestly, i think hollywood likes to think it's progressive, but i think it's only as progressive at the start, and since then, has progressed nowhere, lagging behind the rest of the world, and now finding itself the backwards ones.

Hollywood is pretty beyond help at this point if you ask me.

Well...I'd not say beyond help, but it likes talking about the progress it has (legitimately, if often exaggeratedly) made, which allows it to avoid focusing on how far it still has to go. It is far from alone in that.

Sexism has become a bad word, but the desire to not be called sexist is often far greater than the desire not to be sexist.

 

[Thyunda]

?There may be some bias at work,? said Lauzen. ?On independently produced films there is the perception of there being lower risk. I think there is a notion that women are not being hired as directors on big films because they are somehow riskier hires. The problem is that?s not how Hollywood works. There?s a growing list of male directors who are relative newbies and are placed at the helm of $100 million-plus films with little feature experience.?

http://variety.com/2015/film/news/women-hollywood-inequality-directors-behind-the-camera-1201626691/


Well it sounds to me like a problem - I found this article while trying to identify the director or producer who said women can't direct films, because films require the director to be detached from their own emotions in order to convey the emotions of the characters. And, as we all know, women are far too prone to hysteria to not start sobbing loudly and trying to break up the onscreen fight.

 

[Cryselle]

Ultimately, I think it is a touch problematical to label an entire industry as 'sexist' or 'discriminatory' unless the evidence is pretty overwhelming. Is it likely that there are some extremely sexist people in Hollywood that are quite influential? Yeah, that's pretty likely. It is, as has been mentioned, a very incestuous industry. Who you are friends with can mean a lot more than how good you are. Does that mean that all studios are beyond redemption? Well, obviously not, since there are some very successful female directors.

One of the hardest things about discussing sexism in any industry or group is how easy it is to use an overly broad brush to label people who simply haven't done anything to deserve it. If wrongdoing is being done, it's being done by specific people because they're specifically not particularly wonderful people. It's not being forced on them by the nebulous 'industry'. You won't find a good person who gets into the movie industry and is like "Well shit, I have to be sexist now, The Industry said so". Blaming the industry is doubly wrong, not only does it partially absolve the people who are causing the problem, but it does so by shoving blame onto the innocent.

 

[Thaluikhain]

You won't find a good person who gets into the movie industry and is like "Well shit, I have to be sexist now, The Industry said so".

Not as such, no, but it'd hardly be the first environment where the safe move is to play by the established rules and not make waves.

 

[JimB]

Do any of you believe there is serious discrimination against women in directorial roles?

I have no specific knowledge of how the TV community is for female directors, but I have heard plenty of reports about the treatment women receive in film school, and in the movie industry as directors, actors, or crew members. It would seem absolutely magical to me--literally so, in "you ain't never had a friend like me" terms--if television directing somehow managed to be the one field that manages to escape serious discrimination against women.

So while I have no specific knowledge, I have enough general knowledge to believe I can predict a pattern.

 

[Cryselle]

You won't find a good person who gets into the movie industry and is like "Well shit, I have to be sexist now, The Industry said so".

Not as such, no, but it'd hardly be the first environment where the safe move is to play by the established rules and not make waves.

You are correct, and I'm not saying that there isn't a lot of pressure to follow a set of established rules. My point is more that there are specific individuals who made these rules, and who put pressure on others to follow them. If the rules are bad, then it better serves everyone to point a finger at the actual people responsible for them, rather than blame everyone under the vague moniker of 'the industry'.

 

[9tailedflame]

You won't find a good person who gets into the movie industry and is like "Well shit, I have to be sexist now, The Industry said so".

Not as such, no, but it'd hardly be the first environment where the safe move is to play by the established rules and not make waves.

I think the problem with the whole sexism situation is that people choose their battles entirely wrong. For instance, i think it's perfectly fine and inevitable to view another person in a sexual light, but to many, that's sexism, it's objectification, when i think that serialization is probably the most benign form of objectification there is, i think people treating women like children is much more damaging overall than people treating women like sex objects.

I think this has to do with the fact that agency is a bit of a double-edged sword. If we treat women like adults (like we really really need to and should) then women loose a lot of power. They'll start getting drafted, violence towards a woman will be treated the same as violence towards a man, they might not have some of the leniency in criminal justice they have, ect. These are all a result of objectification, and i think a lot of people aren't ready to take the leap into women being treated as agents both by society and by the law, and i think that's a WAY larger issue than inevitable sexual attraction. A lot of people who claim to be feminists, and are the louder voice of feminism, seem to run contrary to the idea that women should be treated as agents, and i think this is a problem we need to fix if we want to move forward.