The first Wonder Woman was a milestone for women behind the camera, breaking the box office record for best opening by a female director. And now, Wonder Woman 2 is carrying on that tradition as the first film to implement the brand-new guidelines for sexual harassment prevention from the Producers Guild of America (PGA). Vanity Fair‘s Rebecca Keegan tweeted about the announcement from last night’s PGA Awards.
Wonder Woman 2 will be first film to officially adopt new #PGA policies on sexual harassment, PGA presidents announce at #PGAwards
— Rebecca Keegan (@ThatRebecca) January 21, 2018
The new guidelines were ratified and then released on Friday, in advance of yesterday’s PGA Awards. “We provide key leadership in creating and sustaining work environments built on mutual respect,” said PGA co-presidents Gary Lucchesi and Lori McCreary, “so it is our obligation to change our culture and eradicate this abuse. While the PGA is a voluntary membership organization, the PGA’s Anti-Sexual Harassment Guidelines are sanctioned as best practices for our members.”
“Producers really do set the tone on sets,” said Lucchesi.
Lucchesi and McCreary both gave credit to Time’s Up for its help in developing these guidelines, and they emphasized that PGA will continue to work with them and other groups to refine their approach. “We will continue to work with them, the industry-wide Commission led by Anita Hill, and other organizations in our community until sexual harassment is eliminated from the entertainment workplace,” they said.
The PGA’s recommendations, as shared by Deadline, include the below recommendations.
- All productions are advised to “comply with federal and state laws regarding harassment,” and to consult with their lawyers if they have any questions about compliance.
- In-person anti-sexual harassment training should be offered to all members of the cast and crew. It should take place before production starts on a film, or before each new season of a TV show, and it “should not be simply focused on avoiding legal liability, but must be part of a culture of respect that starts at the top.”
- Production teams should be “vigilant” about sexual harassment during filming, working to “maintain awareness of harassment on an ongoing basis.” Suggestions for doing so include “periodically adding sexual harassment to the assistant director’s safety briefing.”
- Reporting procedures that “provide a range of methods and multiple points-of-contract, including contacts at different organizational levels and in different geographic workplaces” should be in place. PGA suggests “designating at least two individuals, ideally of different genders, that cast/crew members can approach.”
- If anyone on the cast or crew reports harassment, the report should be taken seriously. The production should reassure the person making the report and move quickly to address the issue with “as much transparency as can be provided.”
You can read more of the recommendations, including their list of reporting resources and the points that they incorporated from the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, at Deadline.
Wonder Woman 2 is scheduled to open on November 1, 2019.
(Via ComicBook.com; image: Warner Bros.)
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