Gender Politics in the Film Industry

Gender Politics 

History of Gender Inequality in Film

Gender inequality in film is a large talking point in today's society, although it has been largely debated and talked about for many decades. The idea of gender inequality in film surfaced as what is known as "feminist film theory", influenced by second wave feminism and developments of women's studies across the western world. Feminist film theory was first brought to the attention of the general public through the works of feminist scholars, such as Majorie Rosen's 'Popcorn Venus: Women, Movies, and the American Dream' (1973) (left) and Molly Haskell's 'From Reverance to Rape: The Treatment of Women in Movies' (1974) (right). Feminist scholars such as Rosen and Haskell were the first to take cues from second wave feminism and turn the ideas of the movement as a whole towards film and began analysing how women were portrayed in film and how it linked with the broader historical context, as well as the stereotypes depicted and how much screen time was given to women.

Current Statistics

New York Film Academy

Plenty of research has been undertaken to analyse different aspects of the extent of women in films. One piece of research I looked into is by the New York Film Academy which gives a visual interpretation of some statistics focusing gender inequality in film (right). Some of the statistics the study showed were that:

• on average, only 30.8% of speaking roles are given to women
•  28.8% of women in film wore sexually revealing clothes (while 7% were men)
• 26.2% of female actors get partially naked (while 9.4% of men do) 
• only 10.7% of films featured a balanced cast where half of the characters are female and half are male
• the average ratio of male actors to female actors is 2.25:1 
• the percentage of teenage females depicted with some nudity has increased by 32.5% from 2007 to 2012.

These statistics show that although gender inequality in film was first debated and talked about almost four decades ago, it is something which is very common in today's film industry and its severity, in some aspects, is increasing a huge amount in a little amount of time.

The video below is from an Australian News Channel, 'Sunrise', which gives a brief debate concerning the disparity of men and women in film. Much of the content of the video focuses on statistics very similar to that shown in the study by the New York Film Academy. 

A study by griid.org, similar to that of the New York Film Academy, presents information which highlights male dominance and gender representation in the film industry, focusing on some of 2012's biggest Hollywood blockbusters. 

• A statistic gathered by griid.org which shows clear gender inequality in films is displayed visually (right). The statistic shows that in 2012's top grossing films, only 12 of the films' main characters were female whereas 55 of the films' main characters were male. This clearly shows the extent of male dominance in the film industry and how unbalanced the ratio of male to female main character in major films.  

Target audience

We have decided on various aspects regarding the target audience for our film opening, taking into account demographics of recently-distributed existing films. Details of our film opening's target audience:

• We have decided that the age certificate and minimum viewing age of our film opening is 15. This is because we feel that some of the possessed parts of the sequence are inappropriate for anyone under this age. We also decided on this age certificate because many similar, recently-distributed existing films of the horror genre hold a 15 certificate. These films include 'The Conjuring', 'The Possessed' and 'The Cabin in the Woods'.

• The age demographic of our target audience is 15-30. The maximum age of 30 is because we feel that the film opening is likely to mainly attract a younger demographic due to the 'jumpy' content designed to scare the audience. 

• Individuals who are enthusiastic and have interest in the supernatural horror genre. This means our film opening is primarily aimed at people who enjoy supernatural horror films and have experience in viewing this type of film. 

• Although both genders are included in the target audience of our film opening, male individuals are more narrowly targeted than females of the demographic age of 15-30. This is due to the results of a survey we carried out which showed that males are more likely to choose to watch a film of the horror genre than females are. Despite this, we ultimately felt that our film opening should be aimed at both genders in order to attract the largest audience. 

Final Film Opening

Sounds To Use

After further researching into legal free sounds, I found a website appropriate for what my group and I needed. The website I found is known as 'Incompetech', below is a step by step process of what I did in order to receive the ideal sound for my groups' opening.

I selected "Royalty-Free Music".

The website then gave me an option box which allowed me to select a genre - horror. The options also offered me certain "feel(s)" for my sound. I selected "dark, eerie, intense (and) suspenseful".

Here are the names of the sounds I received. "The House of Leaves " is the one I chose.

 

At 1.10s, the non-diegetic sound begins.

Evaluation:

• The sounds I found are more suitable with our opening. The sound my group and I used is effective in creating the suspenseful atmosphere we needed.

Target Audience + Genre Conventions research

Before we even started to plan our film opening in any detail, we had to decide on a target audience. As we decided to make a horror film, it was almost impossible to have the age rating as under 15 because horror films are almost always scarier and more intense than any other genre. As well as this, we looked at our sub-genre, supernatural horror and took inspiration from their age rating certificates.

Some of the big supernatural horrors at the moment and their minimum age ratings are:

• The Possession - 15
• The Conjuring - 15
• The Exorcism of Emily Rose - 15
• Paranormal Activity - 15

Clearly, a common age minimum is set at 15. This means our target audience ranges from 15-25, teenagers to young adults as this would seem most appropriate for our film genre. 

So what kind of content can we show and what can we do to attract the target audience? 

• As we have quite a young age group (15) it would be more appropriate for there not to be as much gore as a slasher film and also this would not be conventional for our genre
• We also have no swearing or foul language as this would make it age appropriate and allow the 15 rating.
• We also decided to use a little girl as the main character as this is conventional and would attract the intended audience. Another convention we stuck to is the use of a 'jump' at the end of a long sequence, to thrill and shock the audience, which is something the audience expects.
• We also decided to name our piece 'The Possessed' as this is clear and conventional, the article 'the' is a conventional word to use in the title for a supernatural horror and so it is clear to the audience the genre of the film.

How can we represent the social group (age)?

• We are using a young girl in our piece and so we wanted to think of ways to represent her. One commonly accepted view of little girls is that they are vulnerable and so need protection. 
• Clearly, a possessed girl shows huge signs of vulnerability and perhaps the audience will feel sympathy at first.
• But during our sequence we wanted to make it seem like she was no longer a little girl on the inside, so we used non-diegetic growling noises, non-diegetic bone clicking noises. This all helps the audience see the little girl as a threat and as dangerous instead

Research Into Un-copyrighted Sounds For Opening

After my initial research into existing sounds used for Supernatural Horror openings, I had to find un-copyrighted music, which would potentially be used for our opening. In order to ensure the music I found did not have copyright, I searched for "royalty free" music. Below are possible theme music choices which could be used.

This soundscape would be effective between the transitions of our existing title production companies. The sound has dark connotations, which would match the graphology in terms of the gloomy colours in our existing title production companies. The non-diegetic sound gradually increases in volume, creating suspense. This suspense effectively places audience in a position of fright.

The music box tends to be a convention commonly used in supernatural horror films e.g. "The Conjuring". The sound could be a signifier of a young age group, which would be appropriate for our opening, as we have a young girl as the victim of possession.



This sound clip uses the music box again but this one however, sounds more sinister. The sound at 0.22 seconds sounds rather eerie and would therefore be appropriate for our opening. 

 The following is an exorcist theme sound.







Evaluation:

• After carrying out my secondary research, I found it was quite hard to actually find un-copyrighted music.
• After compromising with my group, we agreed that we needed a sound more eerie. Now I shall go and find a website specialising in sounds.

Editing main title

The main title is a very important part of an opening sequence, especially those of films in the horror genre, as it acts as a bridge between the opening sequence and the main body of the film. It also acts as a conclusion to the opening sequence which is designed to pull in the audience from the start so they have interest in the rest of the film. This means that how the main title is edited and presented is crucial in how it carries the rest of the film.

For our main title, I decided to use the editing technique 'bad TV' on the Mac program Final Cut Pro. One of the main reasons I decided to use 'bad TV' was because I had to keep the aesthetics of the title very similar to the previous titles which show the cast and crew of our opening.

*insert screenshot of bad tv*

This use of bad TV makes the title seem mysterious and almost as if it is being possessed itself, conforming greatly to the supernatural horror genre.

I also decided to keep the main title visually similar to the previous titles which are shown during the opening sequence by adding different titles in different areas of the screen and showing them in rapid succession so they seem to jump around the screen.

*insert screenshot of multiple titles*

This creates a jolting and uneasy effect which makes it seem like the title is out of control which reflects the events and manner of the possessed character during the opening sequence. I found that adding the same title in different positions is a simple yet effective method to create an appropriate effect which conforms to the eerie and relatively disturbing conventions of the supernatural horror genre.

I also added the 'flashing' effect to the title which makes it seem as though the title is flaring up.

*insert screenshot of flashing*

Although this effect creates an eerie feeling and atmosphere, I feel that it does not quite conform to the supernatural horror genre with the same effect as the bad TV, for example. This is because I feel that the effect it creates is too soft and contrasts too greatly with other editing effects such as bad TV. This also means that the 'flashing' effect makes the title subvert from the conventions of the supernatural horror genre.