Kristen Stewart Expresses Fury Over The Film Industry's Backsliding for Women
The renowned actress and filmmaker has declared she is “furious” that progress for female directors in the film industry have gone backwards after a brief period of positive change post the MeToo movement.
Stewart, who helmed the upcoming film her latest project, gave an impassioned address at a female-focused event in Los Angeles hosted by the Oscars organization.
“The backsliding from a brief moment of progress is statistically devastating,” she told the audience. “A disappointingly low figure of films from the past year have been directed by female filmmakers.”
A yearly study that monitors the presence of female filmmakers revealed that eleven of the top 100 films of last year were directed by women, down from sixteen in the year 2020.
‘Boys’ Club Business Model’
In her address, Stewart said: “After the MeToo movement, it seemed possible that stories made by and for women were finally getting their due. That we might be allowed or even encouraged to express ourselves and our common stories, all of our experiences without filter.
“But I can now attest to the intense struggle that it requires at each stage when the content is too grim, too taboo, when the frankness with which it presents insights about experiences routinely experienced by women, frequently provokes aversion and dismissal.”
She continued: “We can talk about wage gaps and menstrual product taxes and measure [inequality] in many measurable forms. But the violence of silencing, it’s like we’re not even supposed to be angry. But I can eat this podium with a utensil and sharp tool. I’m furious.”
Attendees listening to Stewart’s speech included a number of well-known female stars.
Stewart was met with multiple ovations over the course of her seven-minute speech.
“I appreciate you,” she said. “I do not thank a boys’ club business model that pretends to want to hang out with us while siphoning our resources and diminishing our genuine viewpoints. Let’s try and not be tokenised. It’s time to create our own value.”
New films from a few women filmmakers are in the running for the forthcoming Oscars race, but the best director category is once again expected to be male in majority.