Women aren’t losing out or “stooping” to directing franchises instead of indie movies, and the assertion in The Guardian that they are is ignorant in itself when there are plenty of women out there itching to direct. Some want to direct franchises like Cate Shortland’s Black Widow or Cathy Yan’s Birds of Prey. And others want to direct and premiere at SXSW, Sundance, or Outfest. Both are valid paths to creating content, worth women’s time, and help expand the number of women directors out there.
Franchises aren’t “gobbling up” women directors before they can “establish themselves,” as the article suggests. Worlds like Marvel or DC are seeing that their target audience, which is also comprised of women, want to see themselves on the big and little screen. And if you’re going to tell stories that resonate and are true representations of women and their struggle, you need women directors. It’s as simple as that, without turning it into fear tactics as if there is only a set amount of women directors out there.
Movies like Patty Jenkins’ Wonder Woman or Chloé Zhao’s Eternals aren’t creating gender disparities, either. They are creating doors and reaching their hands out to other women creators who have never had the resources or status to make movies in the first place. That’s creating a more level playing field where women and men are treated equally and given the same opportunities. It’s gender equality and what we want.
Also, contrary to popular belief, directing franchise films is serious work that deserves respect. Just because it’s part of a bigger collective doesn’t mean the movie suddenly loses its value. If anything, there’s more that the director has to work with and get to know to make sure their film fits with the overall franchise. It’s hard work, loads of patience, and probably a lot of listening and reading to get to know these franchises and their characters.
This argument about women directors doing franchise movies also brings up the question as to why men don’t get the same treatment as female directors who enter franchises? Where’s the worry for them being “gobbled up” before they can “establish themselves”? It’s not there because men have been the primary sources when it comes to directing franchise movies. There’s no worry that they haven’t filmed hit after hit before directing something at Marvel or DC, for example.
That right there is the heart of the problem. Women are entering and dominating previously male-only spaces, and it’s shaking things up in ways that they don’t like. That is creating new social systems or environments where men aren’t at the top of the food chain when it comes to franchises or directing, and where gender equality plays a bigger role. That isn’t something to disparage or set aside. That’s something to take a closer look at as more women directors enter franchises.
Because women aren’t going away. If anything, they’re striving for more when it comes to directing the films and franchises you love. And that shouldn’t make people fear what’s to come. It should make them excited for the unique journeys shared and the honest stories being told from a perspective other than their own.
(image: Warner Bros.)
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