’FEMPOWERMENT’: PROMOTING FEMALE DIRECTORS AND ACTORS
Welcome to the Swedish Human Rights Film Festival 2020! Every year we unite movies with human rights through panel discussions with international experts. This is the fifth year for the film festival which is organised by Raoul Wallenberg Institute and Kino in Lund, Sweden.
Gender Equality is high on the agenda; and will be for many years to come. As UN Secretary General says: ‘achieving gender equality and empowering women and girls is the unfinished business of our time, and the greatest human rights challenge in our world’.
In the film industry, the question of equal rights has gained momentum lately. This industry is a high profile cultural sector – and remarkably unequal.
Film has a strong effect on people and is a powerful tool shaping our societies. Hence, it is key that films are made by a variety of people. Since we, Kino and the Raoul Wallenberg Institute, promote diversity and gender-parity, we give space for female directors and actors this year.
Women constitute at least half of moviegoers. Yet, in Europe, only one in five films are directed by a woman. Roughly sixteen percent of the funding goes to films directed by women. On a global level, the number of women is even lower: out of the top 100 grossing films during 2019 a mere twelve percent were made by women. A fifth of the screen writers were women. Twenty-five percent of the producers were women. In total, two percent of the cinematographers were women.
On Sunday March 8, it is the International Women’s Day. Let’s start highlighting women in the film industry already today.
The festival takes place between March 5 and 7. Each of the films we have the pleasure of showing represent important human rights. Check out the time table, enjoy the trailers and pick an urgent film, or two, to see.
Join the discussion afterwards!