The Oscar-winning director is against sexism in term of hiring film and television directors, saying women should be judged by their work and not by their gender.
- May 13, 2015
AceShowbiz - Kathryn Bigelow spoke out against Hollywood sexism in the film and television industry. It followed the ACLU letter to federal and California civil rights which content is to ask for an investigation of "the systemic failure" to hire women directors. Becoming the only woman to win an Oscar for Best Director for "The Hurt Locker" in 2010, Bigelow said that the system of hiring director should be fair.
"I have always firmly believed that every director should be judged solely by their work, and not by their work based on their gender. Hollywood is supposedly a community of forward thinking and progressive people yet this horrific situation for women directors persists," Bigelow said in a statement to TIME. "Gender discrimination stigmatizes our entire industry. Change is essential. Gender neutral hiring is essential."
The ACLU sent three letters to the federal government Tuesday, April 12, asking for an investigation into institutionalized sexism in the industry. It is written in the letter that "women are systematically excluded from or underemployed in directing jobs." They obtained the information after conducting a study which included interviews with 50 female directors.
According to Ariela Migdal, senior staff attorney for the ACLU's Women's Rights Project, and the letters, the industry often refused women as directors, saying, "We don't hire women," or, "We tried hiring a woman once." Migdal said that female directors were often considered to work only for particular projects such as romantic comedies and commercials for "girl products." On the other hand, men are favored to direct horror, action, and superhero films and television shows.
