Bigelow and What Her Oscar Means

Kathryn Bigelow recently made headlines as the first woman to win an Academy Award for Best Director for her film, The Hurt Locker, the story of an EOD unit in Iraq.  Bigelow has said that she doesn’t want to be considered a “woman director” just a “director” and I understand that desire completely.  I find it interesting that she has gone in the opposite direction of directors like Nora Ephron (Julie & Julia and Sleepless in Seattle) who make “chick flicks” or films about women for women.  Bigelow’s filmography leans towards crime and war dramas with an emphasis on action and probing the human psyche.  A detective story junkie myself, I appreciate her tastes and I get the idea of a woman being fascinated by violence and crime, so I guess my critique lies less with her and more with the Academy.  Why does it take a women with traditionally “male” taste in subject matter to win best director?  The Academy has been handing out awards for 82 years and this is the first time a woman has won best director.  In fact, it’s only the fourth time a woman has even been nominated for Best Director. 

That seems insane, except when you stop to consider how few women directors there are.  You could probably count the well-known modern American female film directors on one hand; apart from Bigelow and Ephron, there is, Sophia Coppola (Marie Antoinette and Lost in Translation), maybe throw in Valerie Faris (co-director of Little Miss Sunshine), Julie Taymor (Frida and Across the Universe), and Penny Marshall (Riding in Cars with Boys and Big).  There are some notable foreign and indie directors such as Jane Campion (Bright Star and The Piano).  Ask people in the business and you get a decent list of names such as Mimi Leder, Floria Sigismondi, Penelope Spheeris, Allison Anders...  But ask the uninitiated, the average Joe, and the only one they can name is “oh that woman who did The Hurt Locker, didn’t she just win an Oscar, what’s her name?” 

This site presents some findings of a 2002 study by Martha Lauzen, a media studies professor at San Diego State University, who examines the overall lack of women in the film business.  She found that in 2002 of the top grossing 250 films only 7% employed female directors.  Possibly even worse was that only 1% employed female cinematographers. Granted this was 8 years ago, but her 2009 numbers were published in this recent NY Times article about Bigelow and Lauzen found, again, only 7% of the top 250 grossing films employed a female director.

The barriers for woman seeking to direct are manifold according to this Salon.com article.  Some coincide with the traditional barriers women face everywhere: demanding schedule which is tough on family, older men have control over the industry and seek out young men who remind them of themselves to direct their films, and women themselves often feel they cannot succeed in this role.  The article also suggests that film school professors openly discourage female students from even considering directing or cinematography.  This article also discusses, what seems to be a more systemic problem, that studios and investors don't have confidence in women to direct films with traditionally “male” subject matter and they think that films with traditionally “female” subject matter don’t make money, a premise which the article refutes numerous times. 

What does it mean then, that Bigelow has now won the coveted prize?  Some say it means there is progress, others, such as professor Lauzen, say it means little because the stats are still so poor.  The overall picture is still the same as far as she is concerned.  I'm not sure what it means, I guess it's too soon to tell.

I don't want these thoughts to be divisive or turn any male readers away.  I simply wanted to collect some figures which bothered me.  I don’t believe individual people are to blame (except for any professors male or female who would outright tell female students not to try to do something).  We all have a responsibility, men and women, to examine these numbers and consider what they mean.  More than anything it just feels like a missed opportunity to me.  Women do make up, after all, 50% of the world’s population.  We definitely have disposable income to burn, but more importantly I think, we have ideas and stories to share.

Check out the articles below for more:

Jamie Portman, "The Hurt Locker director Kathryn Bigelow: Don't mess with her" Vancouver Sun

Manohla Dargis, "How Oscar Found Ms. Right" New York Times

Michelle Goldberg, "Where are the female directors?" Salon.com 

Priscilla McClay, "Kathryn Bigelow is no 'bad boy'" Guardian