It is no question that women and women of color are finally getting the recognition they deserve in directing and filmmaking that have been previously ignored. However, a study done by USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative shows that there is still a long way to go in diversifying this industry.
In total, only seven women have been nominated for an Oscar in the Best Director category, according to an article from Variety.com. Across the Golden Globes, the Directors Guild of America Awards, Critics’ Choice Award and the Academy Awards, only 9% of women have received recognition, and for women of color, the number is even less, says Variety.com. The numbers reflect a correlation across hiring practices and box office hit statistics.
The rise of streaming services is opening doors for these directors and their work that was never possible in traditional media. In honor of these directors and to all emerging female directors, here are quotes that will leave readers with a sense of who these women are and how they navigate their art.
Chloe Zhao
“What I love about America is not necessarily the American Dream but the fact that there’s so much spirit of fighting to continue to dream once the dreams are broken.”
Chloe Zhao
Known for Nomadland and being an award-winning powerhouse director, Zhao has many amazing quotes about the intersection of her Eastern and Western cultures. While there are flaws in the American Dream, the fighting spirit that exists in the broken dreams of many communities is very real and what keeps many of us going.
Ava DuVernay
“As a Black woman filmmaker I feel that’s my job: visibility. And my preference within that job is Black subjectivity. Meaning I’m interested in the lives of Black folk as the subject. Not the predicate, not the tangent. [These stories] deserve to be told. Not as sociology, not as spectacle, not as a singular event that happens every so often, but regularly and purposefully as truth and as art on an ongoing basis, as do the stories of all the women you love.”
Ava Duvernay
Ava DuVernay, known for Academy Award winning works such as Selma and 13th, speaks to the unfortunate responsibility that many directors of color have to take on to represent their people and their stories because no one else will tell those stories. However, this doesn’t mean every story needs to be a tragedy. More and more we are seeing stories on black love, black art, black intellect and black power that represent positives in the lives of the black community.
Stella Meghie
“I cannot represent everything to everyone — and neither do I want to. I represent women like me when I’m at my best and writing honestly.”
Stella Meghie
Known for films like The Photograph, this quote comes from a Variety feature where Meghie spoke about the heavy pressure of being a women of color in film. As the minority, she has a weight on her shoulder to tell specifically black stories in specific ways in order to fill the lack of them. She speaks her truth on how she cannot be the only representative force for black women and can only direct her work authentically, telling the stories she wishes to tell, no matter what they represent.
Jennifer Yuh Nelson
“[An] 8 year old young girl came up to me when I went to speak at an elementary school, and she gave me a drawing. It was great and she said ‘I want to be just like you when I grow up and direct movies.’ And that just made me choke up. It was so cute, and the reason why she’s looking at me is I look like her.”
Jennifer Yuh Nelson
Known for directing some of the Kung Fu Panda films and the movie Darkest Minds, Nelson describes some of the reasons her position is so important. She is the hope for so many young women who want to tell stories and create a new world in film. It is a paradox, in the same way she inspires others, she is inspired by them to represent herself in her work.
Jane Campion
“There is a different kind of vulnerability when a woman is directing.”
Jane Campion
Known for many works, from The Prince to her current Academy nomination The Power of The Dog, Champion is famous for her exploration of female empowerment in film. This quote, although short, speaks a thousand truths on the life of a female director — the scrutiny, the looks, the critics — because they are not the majority. Their every move matters in making a name for themselves in a white-male-dominated field.
Sofia Coppola
“Forget the audience, make what you want to see”
Sofia Coppola
Sofia Coppola, known for movies like Lost in Translation, The Virgin Suicides and The Bling Ring, gives the most important advice for young female directors and filmmakers: make your art the way you want it made. Do not be afraid to tell your truth. You deserve to speak your vision, and that will show you your success.