Eighty two women working in the film industry, including Cate Blanchett, Ava DuVernay and Jane Fonda have taken to the Cannes red carpet in silent protest at the lack of female directors at the festival.
The group, which also featured Kristen Stewart, Wonder Woman director Patty Jenkins and Salma Hayek, walked in silence along the red carpet before stopping halfway up the steps of the entrance to the Palais des Festivals, the conference centre which hosts the events. The gesture was intended to signify the difficulties for women “to climb the social and professional ladder”.
At the conclusion the protest, Blanchett and veteran documentary-maker Agnes Varda read a collective statement from the group that called for institutions to provide safer working conditions for women, and for governments to uphold equal pay laws.
“Women are not a minority in the world, yet the current state of our industry says otherwise,” the statement said. “As women, we all face our own unique challenges, but we stand together on these stairs today as a symbol of our determination and commitment to progress.”
“We stand together on these steps today as a symbol of our determination and progress. The stairs of our industry must be accessible to all. Let’s climb,” it concluded.
The red carpet protest was organised by 5050x2020, a collective that seeks to address gender disparity in the film industry. In a statement the group said that the number of women present was chosen to match the total number of female film-makers whose films have appeared in competition at the festival in its 71-year history. In that time 1,645 male directors have seen their films selected in competition. Jane Campion remains the only woman to have won the festival’s top prize, the Palme D’Or.
The official selection for this year’s festival, meanwhile, features three films directed by women out of a total 21, a figure that has prompted widespread criticism. At a press conference on Monday, festival director Thierry Fremaux said that Cannes would look to select a higher proportion of films directed by women in future.
Further initiatives will be announced at a 5050x2020 event on Monday featuring Fremaux, French Minister of Culture Françoise Nyssen, and representatives of the Time’s Up movements.
