Gender equality in Hollywood — or the lack thereof — is all over the news in recent days. This week the Sundance Institute released a study that looks at, among other things, why so few women directors graduate from small, independent films to big studio movies.
Now the women behind a project called Make It Fair have released a music video that’s dripping with irony, with the most high-profile voice in the video belonging to actress Rita Wilson. The clip decries the fact that, over the past few years, a mere 93 percent of popular movies were directed by men. And only 80 percent were written by them.
The lyrics of the musical chorus:
"We stand here together
And together we'll break down this wall
We won't relent 'til it's 100 percent
It's only fair that men should have it all"
Other stats noted in the video:
- Women are naked in movies twice as often as men
- 70 percent of speaking roles in films are given to men
- 88 percent of box office hits feature a man in the lead
- The Best Original Screenplay Oscar has gone to men 68 out of 76 times
- All 13 new plays on Broadway last year were written by men
The stats move on to men in politics, business and advertising, and notes the pay disparity between men and women — despite women being a significantly higher proportion of college graduates.