The study of Vivendi and Laboratoire de l`égalité on

“Women in music and cinema in Europe”
November 2013
Statement of purpose
Vivendi, whose main business is to create, produce and distribute content, wields human, cultural
and intellectual influence. Vivendi has defined a number of areas for action that contribute to
creating value for the group and its stakeholders. Promoting women’s place in film and music in
Europe is part of this approach. That is why we proposed a partnership with the Laboratoire de
l’Egalité (French Equality Lab) so as to pair up its network of researchers and members to our
network of professionals: managers and colleagues of Universal Music, the Canal+ Group, artists
and actors of the cultural and creative industries’ value chain.
By confronting our mutual fields of expertise, we hope to achieve three goals:
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Reaching out to artists in order to collect their opinions and ideas on how to promote
equality of women and men in the cultural sector
Raise our stakeholders’ awareness on this societal issue
Present to decision-makers an action plan in light of our findings
We wish for this initiative, that brings together the private sector and artists as well as the
associative and academic sectors, to be the vector of a new consciousness: that women are
regularly confronted to obstacles in their artistic careers such as the persistence of stereotypes, a
lack of representation in decision-making positions or in artistic programming, and the lack of
female role models. But we also wish for this initiative to make us aware of the steps that need to
be strengthened to remedy this situation: the setting up of gender-based statistical data,
ambitious education programs, proactive appointment and nomination policies, and a strong
effort to give better exposure to the women involved in music creation and filmmaking.
We wish to express our deepest thanks to the artists who enthusiastically contributed to this
survey of which we are presenting the first conclusions today.
Pascale Thumerelle
Director for Vice President, Corporate Social Responsibility at Vivendi
Paris, November 22, 2013
Survey editorial committee : Corinne Hirsch, co-founder of the Laboratoire de l’Egalité; Anna Godard,
coordinator; Caroline Ibos, Senior Lecturer in Political Science, Université de Haute Bretagne, codirector of the Art & Flux research team, ACTE Institute, CNRS-Université Paris 1-Panthéon-Sorbonne,
member of the Laboratoire de l’Egalité; Pascale Thumerelle, CSR Vice President at Vivendi.
Thanks to Rodolphe Buet, CEO of Studiocanal Germany; Dominique Meda, sociologist and Vice
President of the Laboratoire de l’Egalité; Yann Ollivier, Managing Director of Universal Music
Classics & Jazz France; Olga Trostiansky, Secretary General of the Laboratoire de l’Egalité.
“Women in music and cinema in Europe”
November 2013
WOMEN IN MUSIC AND CINEMA IN EUROPE
Caroline Ibos*
Senior Lecturer in Political Science, Université de Haute Bretagne,
Co-director of the Art & Flux research team,
ACTE Institute, CNRS-Université Paris 1-Panthéon-Sorbonne,
Member of the Laboratoire de l’Egalité
The undervaluation of women in the cultural field, no matter how verifiable, appears to be
counter-intuitive. This may explain why it made an appearance in the public debate only much
later than other fields (industry or politics, for example). Preconceived ideas have delayed
awareness of this phenomenon. On the one hand, in their most recent representations, the skills
required to be a successful professional in the cultural sector (creativity, curiosity, sensitivity…)
are not traditionally identified as being male qualities (decisiveness, moral authority,
aggressiveness…). On the other hand, an idealized view on the artistic world sees it as being in
total opposition to the world of money and power, as it is guided by values such as selflessness
and the love of Art, and as such, is more likely to promote equality. This artistic world is also
generally considered to be on the left of the political spectrum, and would therefore be more
likely than the political right to be in favor of gender parity and equality. Finally, it is generally
considered that artists are more likely to break rules, and thus would be inclined to defy
stereotypes, including gender stereotypes.
All these representations obscure a harsh reality for women. Women are as invisible in the
cultural sector as in other fields, and are often kept away from the most prestigious positions. This
raises two important issues: that of an ethic of equality and justice between men and women, and
that of the adverse consequences that the marginalization of women has on art.
In order to effectively address this phenomenon, it is important to firstly make a thorough
assessment of the place of women in the cultural sector which entails building a quantitative
framework (Part I). Secondly, it is important to understand the different kinds of exclusion that
exist by looking at the experiences of male and female actors of the cultural field. Moreover, it
would seem interesting to address the possible specificities of arts and culture on gender relations
(Part II).
*Caroline Ibos would like to thank Marie Buscatto, sociology professor at Université Paris 1Panthéon-Sorbonne and researcher at IDHE-Paris1-CNRS, for her valuable help.
“Women in music and cinema in Europe”
November 2013
I) QUANTITATIVE FRAMEWORK
Such a framework is possible, but it remains too imprecise and sketchy to be able to make sturdy
recommendations. The data that would be required is not available, especially with regards to
artists’ training. As such, it would be difficult to recreate the conditions that lead to the exclusion
of women. There are no data available related to more technical professions, whether they are
highly regarded or looked down upon. It is therefore difficult to obtain statistical data for the
value chain in its entirety, yet this is essential in understanding the mechanisms of the sexual
division of labor, and possibly to take action on those mechanisms. Moreover, to this day, there
have no systematic statistical surveys that enable comparisons within the European framework.
Data inaccuracy and incompleteness and the unavailability of some statistics highlight that the
issue is not quite seen as a relevant social problem. In general, things that are not measured are
not visible.
Yet, a precise measurement proves to be important:
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For rhetorical ends, to support an argument: measuring the reality of discriminations
means to objectify them and to show that they are not acceptable.
For cognitive ends: only a precise measurement would shed light on the moments in
which the processes and mechanisms of exclusion and marginalization are set in motion.
The following statistics prove this:
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Since the inception in 1986 of the entrance exam to the French National School of Image
and Sound (FEMIS), there have always been more female than male candidates.
For all the graduating classes at FEMIS, 40% of the graduates are women (in what section?
There is no data that takes account of gender).
In 2012, 30% of films financed by the French National Center of Cinematography (CNC)
have been directed by women.
Since the creation of the César Awards in 1976, the César for Best Director has been given
to 39 men and one woman (2.5%).
We should aim to create this type of hard data with more accurate figures.
1. Sources
In 2005, the Egalités mission (Equality mission) was set up by the French Ministry of Culture and
Communication. In this context, two reports were drafted by Reine Prat in 2006 and 2009. It
seems these reports have not had any impact: a few years after their publication, institutions and
programs have not changed in the slightest. In 2013, the Senate committee for women's rights
and equality of opportunity published a third report.
“Women in music and cinema in Europe”
November 2013
Thus, the quantitative analysis below deals with France and is based in particular:
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(1) Brigitte Gonthier-Morin, "La place des femmes dans la culture", information report
dated June 27th 2013, French Senate.
(2) Reine Prat, "Pour l’égal accès des femmes et des hommes aux postes de responsabilité,
aux lieux de décision, à la maîtrise de la représentation, Mission EgalitéS - Pour une plus
grande et une meilleure visibilité des diverses composantes de la population française
dans le spectacle vivant", 2006.
(3) Reine Prat, "Pour l’égal accès des femmes et des hommes aux postes de responsabilité,
aux lieux de décision, aux réseaux de diffusion, à la visibilité médiatique – De l’interdit à
l’empêchement", 2009.
(4) SACD, Laboratoire de l’Egalité, Association H/F, Où sont les femmes ?, 2013-2014.
Personal research, particularly on the official websites of various cultural institutions, so
as to cross check data, recreate sequences and answer specific questions.
2. Education
Training grounds
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60% of students in art schools are women (3).
Women make up the majority of students in drama schools and academies. However, 2/3
of all parts in classical theater are men's roles (in Anglo-Saxon literature this is referred to
as the "Shakespeare problem"; the author whose plays are the most performed in Great
Britain offers 280 characters in his 10 most popular plays, 260 of which are men). From
the onset, we can see an inequality in the education and training of men and women (3).
In music, dance and drama, women represent 62% of the population at the first stage of
training, 50% of the students in higher level national conservatories; 51% of the teachers
in EMMA, ENM, CNR (the main French music schools); 14% of the people at the head of
these establishments; 0% of the people at the head of the 4 main higher education
establishments (1).
Selection
Focus on FEMIS (www.lafemis.fr):
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Since 1986, only 4 of the 22 admission juries have been headed by women.
From 1986 to 2012, 3.5% of the films used for the film analysis segment of the entrance
exam have been directed by women.
Three juries headed by women were favorable to female applicants (1989: Anne Luthaud,
President of the jury, 23 women/13 men - 1990 Anne Luthaud, President of the jury: 21
women, 12 men - 1995: Christine Pascal, President of the jury: 16 women, 15 men).
“Women in music and cinema in Europe”
November 2013
Gender and teaching
In art schools, men constitute the majority of the directors and, in general, the teaching staff (3).
Focus on Paris Conservatoire for Music and Dance (www.conservatoiredeparis.fr):
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President, Director, Associate Director: 3 men.
Director of musical studies: 1 man.
Director of choreography studies: 1 woman.
8 heads of department, including 1 woman.
Board of directors: 10 men, one woman.
Women represent 12.5% of the management team.
Focus on FEMIS (www.lafemis.fr):
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President, Director, Chairman of the Board, General Director: 4 men.
Heads of Department who select the speakers (there is no teaching staff): 16 men and 4
women (who happen to be in charge of the less prestigious departments: editing, set
design, scriptwriting).
Women represent 16.6% of the management team.
Of the 200 movies selected in the FEMIS curriculum, only 20 of them have been directed
by women.
Comments
The training grounds for women in the cultural sector already exist. It seems unnecessary to come
up with new strategies to direct women towards certain professions. However, the selections
processes are extremely unfavorable to women. The cost of accessing artistic professions and the
cost of staying with them are not the same for men and women.
It is unclear whether or not the increased representation of women in admission juries will solve
this issue. Research still needs to be done to find a possible correlation between men power in
the most prestigious teaching institutions and the results of academic and professional selection
processes.
3) Management positions
Cultural public sector institutions
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82% of management positions within the arts and culture administration (in famous
public institutions such as the French National Library, CNC, the Musée d’Orsay, etc…) are
occupied by men. Yet, these executives are appointed by the Ministry of Culture and
Communication. (1)
The French General Inspection of Cultural Affairs consists of 18 men and 2 women
(www.culturecommunication.gouv.fr).
30 men and 4 women are executives in the French National Drama Centers (CND), which
are state-run centers for the Dramatic Arts managed by artists. In other words, women
represent 12% of the management in the CND (2).
“Women in music and cinema in Europe”
November 2013
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The French National Choreography Centres, state-run centers managed by
choreographers, are led by 12 men and 4 women (or 25% of women, the number used to
be 40% in 2006, as recorded in the Reine Prat Report).
Women constitute 30% of the directors of National Theaters but the most prestigious
theaters are run by men, with the notable exception of the Comédie-Française (3).
24 Opera houses are run by men and only one by a woman (which represents 4% of Opera
houses) (3).
Focus on specific institutions
Society of Authors, Composers and Publishers of Music (SACEM, www.sacem.fr):
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All management positions are occupied by men (Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson, Treasurer,
Secretary-General, 3 Honorary Chairpersons) except for the Assistant Treasurer.
12 administrators of which 2 are women with the following professions: “author” and
“editor” (sic), or 15% women.
CNC (www.cnc.fr):
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Chairperson, Managing Director and Secretary-General are all women.
The management team is composed of 6 men and 3 women.
Women are a minority in the commissions, in particular those that provide funding,
financial aid, or advances.
Productions companies (3):
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There are no women on the board of directors of UGC.
Of 8 people on Pathé’s board, 2 are women.
Of 7 people on Europacorp’s board, 1 is a woman. Europacorp is the film company
founded by Luc Besson.
There are no women on the board of directors of MK2.
Social organizations (3):
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The French Association of Film Producers which brings together 120 production
companies has 8 men and 1 woman on its management team.
The chairperson of the French Union of Film Producers is a man, there is one woman
among the 6 vice-chairpersons, and 3 women on the board of administrators.
Comments
Since Reine Prat’s first report, there seems to be a decline of the presence of women, in particular
dance administration.
In cultural public sector institutions, a proactive strategy could easily improve this situation. The
example of the CNC will be particularly interesting to look at as it is now run by a woman. Will the
distribution of financial aid between male and female projects be more equal?
There is a glass ceiling in the management positions of famous public sector cultural institutions.
Men occupy 90% of all managing positions in all these institutions.
“Women in music and cinema in Europe”
November 2013
4) Programming, exposure and financing
CNC
From 2010 to 2012, 70% of the films funded by the CNC were directed by men (3).
Programming in national theaters and opera houses for the 2013-2014 season
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25% of the stage directors in national theaters are women (4). From 1997 to 2012, at the
Théâtre de l’Odéon, under the consecutive management of Georges Lavaudant and Olivier
Py, 97% of the scheduled shows were directed by men (4).
3% of concerts conducted by women (4).
3% of the pieces of music performed were composed by women (4).
15% of the instrumental soloists scheduled are women (4).
20% of the plays performed in public theaters were written by women (3).
In the Fine Arts
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15% of the works of art in public museum collections were made by women (2).
Over 70% of all the works acquired by FRAC (Regional funds for contemporary art) have
been made by men (3).
5) Remuneration
In film (2011)
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10 actors have earned over 1 million Euros, compared to only 2 actresses.
Combined earnings of the 10 highest paid actors: €21.6 millions.
Combined earnings of the 10 highest paid actresses: €6.97 millions (ranking published in
Le Figaro daily newspaper on March 23rd 2012 based on the contract clauses of actors and
actresses).
According to Reine Prat’s report, the average cost of a show can double depending on
whether it is directed by a man or woman (2).
Comments
It would be revealing to estimate the average cost of a long feature film whether it is directed by a
man or a woman, but this data is not available. In general, there is very little data recorded on this
financial issue (budget and remuneration). Yet this is an essential aspect of gender relations,
especially in terms of recognition.
“Women in music and cinema in Europe”
November 2013
6) Artistic success and recognition
Cannes Festival (www.festival-cannes.fr)
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In 2012, not a single woman was selected.
In 2013, of the 20 films selected, only one was directed by a woman.
Since the Festival started in 1945, only one woman has won the Palme d’or (Golden
Palm): Jane Campion tied with Chinese director Chen Kaige who directed Farewell My
Concubine (1993). Only 1.3% of all the Palmes d’or has been awarded to women.
Over the last 20 years, only 4 women have been presidents of the jury, and they are all
actresses (Liv Ulmann, Isabelle Adjani, Jeanne Moreau, and Isabelle Huppert).
In comparison, the Oscars have only given Academy Award for Best Picture to one film
directed by a woman since they were created in 1929: The Hurt Locker (2008) by Kathryn
Bigelow. She also received the Academy Award for Best Director for this movie, which was the
first time that the award was given to a woman.
César Awards (www.academie-cinema.org)
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Since 1976, the César Award for Best Picture was given to a man 34 times and 4 times to a
woman (10.8%).
Since 1976, the César Award for Best Director was given to a man 39 times and once to a
woman (2.5%).
Victoires de la Musique (www.lesvictoires.com)
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From 1985 to 1998, the Album of the Year Award was given 13 times to men or mixed
duets. The award was cancelled in 1998. 0% of women have received this award.
Since 2001, the award for Popular Music Album of the Year has been given to 11 men and
3 women. 15.3%.
Since 2001, the award for Album Révélation of the Year has been given to 8 men and 4
women. 33%.
Since 2001, the award for Rock Album of the Year has been given to 10 men and 2
women. 16.6%.
Since 1985, the award for Original Cinema Soundtrack of the Year has been given to 21
men and 1 woman. 4%.
Since 1985, the award for the performer of the Original Song of the Year has been given
to 21 men, 1 woman and 2 mixed duets. 4%.
Since 1985, the award for the writer of the Song of the Year has been given to 25 men (or
groups of men), 1 woman and 2 mixed groups. 3.5%.
Comments
These figures underline a system of awards and distinctions that is very unfavorable to women.
An artistic work created by a woman literally cannot be recognized as being the “best” (1.3% of all
the Palmes d’Or at Cannes has been awarded to women…).
“Women in music and cinema in Europe”
November 2013
Even if these numbers are rough, they still address the legitimate issue of the distinction between
academic and “popular music”: the Victoires de la musique show us that popular music is as
discriminatory to women as more highbrow academic music, even if we assume that the field of
popular music requires a different type of recognition and legitimization.
7) Additional information to the quantitative analysis
In order to have a better quantitative framework, we would have to systematically use two
different analysis tables: one that seeks to highlight segregation (“male professions”, “female
professions”) and another that highlights hierarchies. The hypothesis being that in “male
professions”, women are marginalized (composers, conductors, playwrights, stage directors…). In
“female professions”, however, men appear to be in higher positions. For example, in the film
industry, the wardrobe designer position is considered a woman’s profession to the point that its
French denomination is feminine (une costumière). There is however no comprehensive data
available. On the other hand, the position of “wardrobe master” also exists. At the César Awards,
since 1986, 16 women and 10 men have won the Best Costume Design Award. In other words,
just about 60% of women have won this award. On the Wikipedia page for costume design, 7 men
and 2 women are mentioned in the “greatest costume designers” paragraph (which means that
women represent 22% of the costume designers mentioned).
The anonymity rule is very favorable to women. Female instrumentalists were integrated into
orchestras thanks to “blind” auditions. Similarly when the rule was enforced at the National
Center for Literature (CNL) in order to fund literary projects, it led to a majority of women getting
funding. A group of female playwrights demanded that the rule be enforced at the National
Center for Theater (CNT), but their demand was not met.
“Women in music and cinema in Europe”
November 2013
II) QUALITATIVE ANALYSIS
1. Research method
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A sample of artists, men and women, chosen on the basis of two criteria: their
professional success, and their attachment to the issue of gender equality.
Responses to a survey drafted by the Laboratoire de l’égalité and sent out in August 2013.
2. Artists who took the survey
Cristina Branco
Cristina Branco is a Portuguese singer born in 1972. She was preparing for a career in journalism
when she discovered Fado while listening to an Amalia Rodriguez record at age 18. She performed
in her first concerts in the Netherlands, where she recorded her first live album in 1999. She has
since recorded 12 albums, among which Corpo illuminado (2001), Kronos (2009), Fado Tango
(2011), and Alegria (2013), with Universal Music. She gets inspiration for her traditional Fado
songs as well as her own compositions from Portuguese and Dutch poets as well as French
songwriters.
Stéphane Cazes
After ten years of research and hard work, Stéphane Cazes (born 1983) presented the movie
Ombline to the public. In this film, Cazes depicts the bleak reality of the prison system while at the
same time highlighting maternal love. With an acute sensitivity, he tells the story of a young
mother, played by Mélanie Thierry, who gives birth to a child in prison. With this sudden surge of
shared love, she will have to find the strength to overcome her incarceration. Ombline won many
awards in various international film festivals. Cazes, who is a graduate of the ESRA film school,
had already won several awards for his first short film L’Echange des regards (2005).
Laurence Equilbey
Laurence Equilbey, the conductor and musical director of the Insula orchestra and Accentus
ensemble, is famous for her demanding nature and artistic sense of adventure. Her work in the
symphonic and oratorio repertoire over the last 15 years and her expertise in opera have given
her a prime position among conductors today.
Laika Fatien
Born in Paris to an Ivorian father and Spanish-Moroccan mother, Laika Fatien is both a jazz singer
and actress. With training from a variety of jazz schools in the Paris region (ARIAM, CIM, LACP),
she got her start in Claude Bolling’s big band while at the same time pursuing her acting career in
Paris and Madrid. In addition to many other shows, she has performed in A Drum is A Woman, a
musical by Orson Welles and Duke Ellington (Palais de Chaillot, 1996). In 2004, she started her
solo career with her album Look at me now. This album was followed by Misery (2008), Nebula
(2011) and Come A Little Closer (2013).
“Women in music and cinema in Europe”
November 2013
Bernard Foccroulle
Born in Liège in 1953, Bernard Foccroulle started his international career as an organist in the mid
1970’s, performing a vast repertoire spanning from Bach to the contemporary era. He has
composed a great amount of works for the organ, but also vocal works and compositions for
orchestras and instrumental ensembles. In January 1992, he succeeded to Gérard Mortier as
managing director of the Théatre royal de la Monnaie. Since 2007, he also runs the Aix-enProvence Festival.
Juliette
Juliette (pen name of Juliette Noureddine) is a French singer and songwriter. Born in 1962, she
first gained notoriety at the Printemps de Bourges Music Festival. She has recorded twelve albums
since 1991 and has received many accolades including the Victoire de la musique for Female Artist
of the Year in 2006. Impossible to classify on the French musical landscape, her lyrics and voice
are a tasteful blend of poetry, political consciousness and humor. She collaborates and writes for
other artists as well, particularly Olivia Ruiz.
Ema Kugler
Ema Kugler is a multimedia artist who was studying economics when she discovered her passion
for art in the 80’s and directed her first film in 1993. She is a director, screenwriter and producer.
Her multimedia art (video, artistic installations, performances, costume and stage design, music)
is defined by its home-made aspect due both to her artistic choices and to the financial
constraints of independent work.
Natasha Le Roux
Natasha Le Roux is a singer, saxophonist, and songwriter who created the first all-female band
acid jazz, hip hop, reggae big band in the early 90’s. She played with the band, called Zarmazones,
both in France and abroad. At the same time, she was studying jazz at Arpej in Paris,
ethnomusicology at Paris X Nanterre University, to be a choir director at the Conservatory for the
Aubervilliers – La Courneuve region, and opera singing in Romainville. Today, she is choir director
and teaches singing in conservatories in the Seine-Saint-Denis area.
Caroline Link
Caroline Link (born 1964) is a German director and screenwriter. She started her career as a
screenwriter and assistant director at the Bavaria Film Studio after graduating from the Munich
Academy for Film and Television. Her first feature film, Beyond Silence, tells the story of a deaf
couple and their musically gifted child and earned her an Oscar nomination for best foreign film in
1997. She ended up winning that award in 2003 with her movie Nowhere in Africa. Annaluise and
Anton (1999) and Exit Marrakech (2013) are among her other feature films.
Radu Mihaileanu
Radu Mihaileanu, who is a French producer, screenwriter and director of Romanian origin, left
Romania in 1980 at the age of 22 to escape the Ceausescu dictatorship and find refuge in France.
There, he studied film at the Higher Institute for Cinematographic Studies (IDHEC). In 1993, his
first feature film, Trahir, which depicts a Romanian poet confronted with the authoritarianism of a
Stalinist regime, won accolades in several film festivals, including Montreal. But it was in 1998,
with Train of Life, that his international reputation really grew. In addition to many others, he won
awards at the Venice Film Festival as well as an Audience award at Sundance. His next feature
film, Live and Become, collected the 2006 César for best original screenplay as well as the Prize of
the Ecumenical Jury, the Audience Award and the European Prize at the Berlin Film Festival in
2005. He then continued with Le Concert, a hit with audiences worldwide that was nominated at
the 2008 Golden Globes and The Source in 2011, which was in the official selection of the Cannes
Film Festival that year.
“Women in music and cinema in Europe”
November 2013
Blandine Pélissier
Blandine Pélissier is a stage actress and theater translator (she is a member of the Maison Antoine
Vitez – International Center of0 Theater Translation), who is deeply attached to the rights of
translators and to the discovery of young English-speaking writers. She also switched to stage
directing for a play written by a woman that she translated.
Robyn Slovo
Robyn Slovo is a film producer born of anti-apartheid militants in South Africa. She moved to
Great Britain with her family as a political refugee in 1964. Here, she started her career writing
and producing plays before getting a job at the BBC in 1993 as a development director for the
Single Drama/Films department. She then became a producer at the Company Picture Studios as
well as at Working Title. Throughout her career, Robyn Slovo has produced, among many others,
Morvern Callar (2000), Catch a Fire (2006) and Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011).
3. Quotes and analysis
3.1 The assessment
Faced with inequalities and discrimination in the cultural sector, artists call for a much needed
change.
Laurence Equilbey: “Arts and culture sector is one of the most closed off to women, especially
with regards to artistic programming”.
Blandine Pélissier: “The same discriminations can be found in the arts, and they are exacerbated
by the heavy symbolic weight of creators”
Bernard Foccroulle: “The issue of gender equality is not just about women: we all need more
female artists, especially when it comes to creators. They bring something special and absolutely
necessary to our perspective on the world. It is essential for contemporary cultural life as well as
for the world of tomorrow.”
3.2 The obstacles
Stereotypes
Artists find that roles in the cultural sector are extremely gendered. Some careers are exclusively
male (orchestra conductors, stage directors) while others seem to be reserved to women (jazz
singers). Moreover, the perception of women is often that of sexual object.
Stéphane Cazes explains that “the majority of female roles in film have one goal only: to please a man”.
Laika Fatien underlines “the stereotype of the jazz singer”.
“Women in music and cinema in Europe”
November 2013
Natasha Le Roux highlights the “obligation to hypersexualize artistic expression (…) and the
stereotypes associated with being an instrumentalist, a conductor, or a composer which are
perceived as being male professions”.
Blandine Pélissier recalls the “eternal muse/genius, creator/procreator duality”.
Caroline Link points out that “very much female creativity is held back because women think too
much about how they are perceived. We worry about being ‘good girls’…Being determined and
demanding is not a very ‘sexy’ way to be a girl”.
The lack of female role models
Artists agree on the fact that female role models are too rare as well as on the lack of visibility of
women in the cultural sector.
Radu Mihaileanu: “I would be lying if I told you that the most influential movie makers in my
career path were women”.
Blandine Pélissier: “I would have tried stage directing earlier, considering that it was always
something I had wanted to do, but I had very few women to emulate. It seemed so out of reach,
like it wasn’t for me”.
Robyn Slovo:” I am a producer in the film industry specialized in creative development together
with writers and directors, and most of the influences in this field were and are male influences.
Most screenwriters, directors and producers are men – and thus it was their work which inspired
me. However, I also learned much of my job by working with my sister, who is a screenwriter and
has definitely been a role model.”
The female influences and examples cited by the artists were writers Marguerite Duras,
Marguerite Yourcenar, Simone de Beauvoir, Virginia Woolf, Sylvia Plath, Ana Blandiana, Elif
Shafak; choreographs Raducanu, Pina Bausch, Anne-Teresa De Keermaker, Trisha Brown;
composers Nadia and Lili Boulanger, Mel Bonis, Betty Jolas; artists Marie Laurencin, Camille
Claudel; stage directors Mnouchkine, Deborah Warner, Katie Mitchell; organist Marie-Claire Alain;
directors Jane Campion and Margarethe von Trotta; singers Annie Cordy and Linda Lemay; rock
groups and artists like The Cranberries, Garbage, KChoice and Bjork.
The lack of women in higher ranking positions
Artists’ perceptions are in line with the results of the quantitative survey that shows the absence
of women in positions of higher responsibility in the field of culture.
Laurence Equilbey: “Women are very seldom in charge of institutions and arts festivals. This has
an impact on the artists and the selection of works”.
Radu Mihaileanu: “There is very little opportunity for women to get to managing positions in
cultural activities”.
“Women in music and cinema in Europe”
November 2013
Bernard Foccroulle: “The nomination processes need to be clarified. If lobbying and power
politics are dominant then women will necessarily be discriminated against in an environment
that is mostly controlled by men”.
Juliette: “Indeed, I believe that recognition is easier to obtain if you are a man, because of male
complicity, their tight grip on decision-making, and their ‘boys club’ culture”.
Women’s lack of legitimacy
If legitimacy is defined as being implicitly considered to be competent without having to prove it,
as if it were evident, then artists realize that the legitimacy of women is systematically
questioned.
Blandine Pélissier: “Women are not taken as seriously and have to prove themselves more than
men”.
Ema Kugler: “Being a film ‘director’ (a very masculine kind of word) involves huge sums of money.
So there is very little chance for women to get to this position. If you want to make movies, you
are going to encounter many obstacles and barriers, and you have very little chance to get to
what you strive for”.
Laurence Equilbey: “The main difficulty I had to deal with as a woman was to be taken seriously
or respected, the disinterest. And the disinterest for me.”
The insufficient awareness of inequalities
Robyn Slovo: “Personally, the main obstacle I faced is making myself grow out of the very
common ‘women’s position’ in the industry – which is to say that of an assistant, and then of a
development officer, slaving behind the scenes and providing notes and insights to my (always)
male bosses. I am delighted to have moved quite some way from that. […]
I decided to go freelance and independent, so I could assert and establish myself as a woman
producer. I think it’s much harder for women to assert themselves within institutions because
gender roles and glass ceilings are so clearly defined in companies of any particular size. I am now
in the position of having no boss and thus can ask for what I want”.
Cristina Branco: “Rights should prevail above all, and although moderated, and silent most of the
times, the truth is that women are neglected and misunderstood. As a singer, I owe it to myself to
have my own opinion and to transmit it”.
Stéphane Cazes: “I get the impression that in the film industry, as in the rest of society, nobody is
aware of the discrimination against women”.
Natasha Le Roux: “There is no awareness especially among male musicians. And as for female
musicians, they believe that the success of their careers depends solely on their talent”.
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November 2013
3.3 The proposals
Fostering awareness
Awareness appears to be essential in order to reach a consensus on the necessity to act in favor
of more gender equality. The publication of scientific data on the issue as well as more visibility of
women in the world of arts and culture could foster this awareness.
Bernard Foccroulle: “The first thing to do is obviously to put the spotlight more on successful
women whose artistic skills and abilities are unanimously respected […] To give the title of
European cultural ambassador to renowned and respected female artists”.
Stéphane Cazes: “These inequalities can only disappear with a cultural change, because we live in
a chauvinist culture. So yes, when a screenwriter is writing, he should question his portrayal of
women and what idea it projects.”
Natasha Le Roux: “Studies and research on music education with regards to gender issues should
be financed”.
Cristina Branco: “If showbusiness reacted differently to motherhood, if it allowed us to lead a
normal life alongside the bling and the public exposure, then I would be enthusiastic proclaiming
this art and its benefits. But it remains a men’s world”.
Education
The artists agree that education is an important tool to change minds and to affect how “male”
and “female” roles are internalized which in turn gets in the way of promoting women in the
artistic sector. Teachers, as well as the actors of the cultural and artistic sector, should be aware
of and trained on gender issues.
Stéphane Cazes: “We have to drill it in the heads of little girls that they should be ambitious, and
tell little boys to make a personal effort to fight against these discriminations”.
Juliette: “There are already quite a few female pop artists! There are fewer female composers
however, for reasons I can’t explain. Can laws ‘create’ artists ? I don’t think so. What we need is to
educate society as a whole so that women are not discriminated against in their career choices.
And this also applies for all traditionally ‘male’ professions”.
Natasha Le Roux: “We need a proactive strategy that starts right at the beginning of school so
that little girls have role models they can identify with”.
Caroline Link: “If we want to change the situation, we must teach our daughters that expressing
our creativity and demanding the right to do so, can be just as well a female objective and goal!”.
Bernard Foccroulle: “Raising the awareness of both young boys and girls on artwork by great
female artists (…). To make this type of career a possibility in a woman’s imaginary is crucial”.
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November 2013
3.4 Legal, political and economic incentives
For this change to happen, the artists also recommend proactive measures and legal, political or
financial incentives. If gender equality was addressed by the European Union, that would also
allow for a better understanding and handling of the issue on a larger scale.
Radu Mihaileanu: (On the European level), “the least we could do is finance women’s rights
groups, apply gender equality to appointments, support efforts in favor of teaching women’s
rights.”
Stéphane Cazes: “A girl whose dream is to become a director needs to have the same
opportunities as a boy. Maybe the CNC could give specific funding to projects by women?”
Natasha Le Roux: “Gender equality hiring policies in national orchestras. Gender equality in the
administrative and technical staff as well as in festivals and state-funded venues (musicians,
composers and writers included). Gender equality in the teaching staff of higher level
conservatories. Gender equality in the juries that award diplomas and public funding for
creation.”
Laurence Equilbey: “Public institutions should have precise guidelines on a fair representation of
women in all branches of our sector, and mostly in decision-making positions.”
Bernard Foccroulle: “It would be useful to make a directory of women whose potential has been
noted and who haven’t yet gained recognition in order to both accompany them in their
development and help them promote themselves.”
4. Outcome
4.1 Observations
The artists surveyed here believe and regret that women do not have an important enough role in
arts and culture. They appear to agree on various mechanisms at work in the art world: a
mechanism that makes women invisible, one that distinguishes the career paths of men and those
of women, and one that takes legitimacy away from women.
According to them, this lack of visibility has something to do with how women are erased from art
history when it is taught, as much as with the marginalization of contemporary female artists.
They also observe gender inequality when it comes to starting up as an artist or when it comes to
surviving as one and pursuing a career. They tie these inequalities to the dominance of men in
selection juries, the existence of efficient male networks, and to the effect on women of specific
domestic and family constraints.
According to them, the inherent masculinity of the world of culture contributes to take legitimacy
away from women. They constantly have to prove their abilities while men’s abilities are taken for
granted.
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November 2013
4.2 Analysis
To explain these observations, the artists agree that gender stereotypes do play a role, but they
might also bring up other arguments.
The main stereotypes mentioned have to do with the representation of women in art and the
gender of artistic professions. Firstly, as artists, women seem to be stuck in specific roles: muses
or performers. They are not the ones who create, but always exist thanks to a male creator. Then,
in artistic content, women are too often presented as objects of male desire above anything else.
Therefore, the image of women is degraded and even sometimes degrading. Actresses are
subjected to the unfair tyranny of youth and beauty which excludes from the profession many
women who are regarded as not young or beautiful enough. Finally, the professions that are most
valued and that are most creative (orchestra conductors, directors) are dominated by men.
Nonetheless, the artists express different opinions, depending on their “feminist conscience” or
their degree of feminist activism.
According to some of them, men and women combined, extremely talented women overcome
the mechanisms of marginalization and exclusion and manage to have a career in arts and culture.
For other artists – in this case, women -, women have absorbed and internalized some of the
limits they face in the artistic world. In order to overcome them, they first need to fight against
themselves. That is how they will free themselves from the norms that society tends to impose
them.
According to male and female artists who are feminist activists, the environment of art and
culture is male-centric, in an equal amount or even more than in any other social field. For them,
inequalities result from actual discrimination processes. Some among them denounce the
existence of a kind of double-speak in the artistic and cultural worlds. The skills that are actually
necessary to succeed in arts and culture are not the ones advertised: sensitivity, selflessness, and
hard work count less than aggressiveness, ruthless ambition, arrogance and self-promotion. And
these character traits are socially taught to men rather than to women, who tend to undervalue
them.
4.3 Solutions
The suggested solutions depend on the analysis of this phenomenon’s roots. All the artists
surveyed agree that education should play a part, especially in breaking down stereotypes and
teaching the history of arts.
Other solutions can be divided in three categories that can be combined with one another:
“individual approaches”, collective strategies, and a call for regulation.
Artists who consider that the limitations on women are mostly internalized often believe that the
solution is personal and tied to the individual path of the artist. Each one has to fight, first against
herself, so as to internalize the codes of the artistic and cultural world and then to assert her
talent “in a man’s way”.
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November 2013
For other artists, only a collective concerted effort would raise global awareness in society. The
goal is therefore to put the issue in the public eye, to demand gender equality, to have statistics,
to publish reports, to systematically apply anti-discrimination laws. One of the results of raising
consciousness should be that authorities will change the rules that govern the cultural sector and
sustain gender inequality (quotas, gender equality as a condition for funding, transparent hiring
practices, etc…).
5. Conclusion: the specificity of the cultural world?
The responses of the artists in this survey underline one obstacle to gender equality specific to the
artistic and cultural world: the deep attachment, for men as much as women, to the obviousness
of talent, a belief that is heralded as a fundamental ethical principle. The symbolic price of the
renunciation of this belief appears to be very high.
Overall, this study seems to confirm the state of scientific works on social interactions between
sexes in the artistic and cultural sectors. These seem to be quite traditional, and not as subversive
as one might expect. Just as in other areas, the correlation between inequalities and the
persistence of gendered stereotypes creates a double division of labor that is unfavorable to
women: a horizontal division that separates male professions from female professions and a
vertical hierarchical division within these professions. Finally, art does not give an example of
norm transgression or subversion as it is rather the global social environment that can influence
the artistic and cultural world towards greater justice and greater gender parity.
“Women in music and cinema in Europe”
November 2013
Annotated bibliography
Marie Buscatto, Femmes du jazz. Musicalités, féminités, marginalisations, Paris, CNRS Editions,
2007.
Based on an extensive ethnographic study, Marie Buscatto’s research analyses the unfavorable
situation of women in French jazz. Only 8% of jazz musicians are women. The writer unravels the
social processes that lead to the exclusion of women from certain types of professions (horizontal
segregation) on the one hand, and see themselves banned from higher positions in the hierarchy
on the other.
Sylvie Cromer, « Le masculin n’est pas un sexe : prémices du sujet neutre dans la presse et le
théâtre pour enfants », Cahiers du genre, 2010/2, p.97-115.
Basing herself on the representations of gender in performances targeting younger audiences, the
author analyzed 729 performances given in public or private institutions during the 2006-2007
season. Her findings show a dissymmetry in role distribution: 45% for men and 17% for boys –
28% for women and 12% for girls, as well as an imbalance in how gender is addressed: the
extension of traditionally “male” qualities to female characters who have agency– and the erasing
of traditionally “female” traits that are never extended to male characters and tend to devaluate
female characters. The author concludes that children’s shows project a dominant male subject
with claims to be universal.
Christine Fontanini, « Genre et Education, les représentations des métiers par les élèves de cycle 3.
Permanences et perspectives d’évolution », Recherche et Éducation, December 2009, p.163-177.
This study, conducted on students from ages 9 to 11, shows that at this age artistic professions
are more chosen by boys than by girls. 12% of girls consider having artistic jobs later against 18%
of boys. As opposed to boys, girls consider performance professions first (dancer, singer, actress)
or technical professions (hair stylist) rather than creative professions (writer, orchestra conductor,
film director, painter…).
Claudia Golding, Cecilia Rouse, “Orchestring Impartiality: The Impact of ‘Blind’ Auditions on
Female Musicians”, The American Economic Review, 90 (4), 2000, p.715-741.
This article demonstrates that “blind” auditions have not only increased the number of women in
symphonic orchestras, but have also shown the gender bias that exists in hiring processes – which
is extremely difficult to prove.
Launay Florence, Les musiciennes: de la pionnière adulée à la concurrente redoutée : bref
historique d’une longue professionnalisation, Paris, Armand Colin, 2008.
This article shows the world of academic music as an ideal observation point to recreate, with a
historical perspective, the rationale for professional discrimination on the basis of sex and gender.
Female musicians’ access to professions traditionally considered to be “male” appears to be
particularly difficult. To this day, female orchestra instrumentalists, conductors and composers
are denied any kind of legitimacy and are confronted to discrimination mechanisms.
“Women in music and cinema in Europe”
November 2013
Laura Mulvey: “Visual pleasure and narrative cinema”, Screen, Autumn 1975, p.16-18.
This article is considered fundamental to the feminist critique. The author shows how, through
purely cinematographic means, classic Hollywood movies brought the spectator to identify with
the main character, the one who acts and is always a male, while the female character is
relegated to being an object of desire. According to Laura Mulvey, woman is a sexual object under
a double gaze: that of the fictional male hero, and that of the spectator.
Delphine Naudier, Brigitte Rollet (dir.), Genre et légitimité culturelle : Quelle reconnaissance pour
les femmes, Paris, L’Harmattan, 2007.
This collective work addresses the relationship between gender and cultural legitimacy. The
different contributions show that historical and social stakes influence how artists are recognized.
In painting, literature and film, the invisibility of women can be explained by the refusal of men to
award them any legitimacy as they dominate the artistic scene. This appears to be particularly
evident in film, where a major director like Alice Guy, who is considered by some historians to be
the first female French filmmaker, does not appear in any anthology or major book on French
cinema. Her name and her work have literally been erased from history.
Griselda Pollock, Vision and Difference: Feminity, Feminism and the History of Art, London,
Routledge, 2003.
The author marks and annotates the male-centric and ethnocentric “cannon” of legitimate art
history. According to her, art history investigates a subject but actually contributes to impose this
particular subject; the artist; , who is male and western, as universal.
Hyacinthe Ravet, « Professionnalisation féminine et féminisation d’une profession. Les artistes
interprètes de musique », Travail, Genre et Sociétés, 9, 2003, 173-195.
The author analyzes the place of female instrumentalists in orchestras. She shows that, even if the
classes from higher education institutions have gender parity, only 22% of women become
performers. The other women turn to teaching, which is not as valued either symbolically and
financially. In the orchestral hierarchy, women are rarely soloists, and the proportion of women
decreases as the prestige, exposure and recognition of the orchestra increases.