This week new pitching initiative ‘Breaking Through The Lens’ was born at the Cannes Film Festival, catching the attention of top film financiers and the worlds press.
In the last year there has been a seismic shift in the industry in terms of the treatment of women in front of and behind the camera. But talk is meaningless if it isn’t backed up by action. This year there are just three films by female directors in the festival. this is a pattern seen not just at Cannes, but one reflected in cinemas and festivals around the world. Despite what some would have you believe, this isn’t due to lack of female interest or talent – the almost gender parity coming out of film schools prove this. Women are not being connected with the opportunities to complete these prestigious features. It’s a widespread, often unconscious, process of exclusion at ever y level but it begins, most powerfully, with funding. Female filmmakers will never shine at these festivals if they aren’t given the funding to make their vision a reality - if they keep being judged as ‘high-risk’ financially simply because of their gender. This is a moment of change and it is our responsibility to harness the momentum and turn our words into real change.
The first event was a huge success, showing a real appetite for these kind of film projects in the industry. Breaking Through The Lens will be returning to the festival in 2019, with an even more ambitious scope.