Screenplay Categories: Gender by the Numbers
Thursday, January 28, 2016 at 6:00PM
Manuel here. Much of the conversation following the nominations has deservedly been about the way this year’s nominees function in many ways as a litmus test for the larger pitfalls of the Academy and the industry at large. Take the screenplay categories. As Phyllis Nagy urged us, we should be celebrating the fact that four female screenwriters were nominated for four different films. It sounds like a cause worth celebrating until you realize a total of twenty screenwriters were cited overall. You have to admit, those are appalling (if yes, unsurprising) numbers. Actually, in the past ten years, only 17 out of 156 nominated screenwriters have been women. Three quick stats about this year's categories and how they may show we might be turning a corner.
01 The last time we had two female nominees in the Best Original Screenplay category was in 2011 when Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo earned a nomination for their Bridesmaids script. If you remember that was the first time a female duo had been nominated since Nora Ephron and Alice Arlen were cited for Silkwood back in 1983.
02 The last time two female nominees came from different films? 2007 when The Savages’s Tamara Jenkins and Lars and the Real Girl’s Nancy Oliver joined eventual winnerDiablo Cody (Juno). That was, coincidentally, the last time a female writer was on stage for a screenplay win.
03 On the Adapted Screenplay side, we have two female screenwriters coming from two different films (Room and Carol). That’s the first time its happened since 2003 when Shari Springer Berman (co-writer of American Splendor) joined eventual winner Fran Walsh (co-writer of Return of the King) in the nominee roster. And yes, you have to go back to 1995 to find a sole female screenwriter taking the gold (Emma Thompson for Sense and Sensibility), a year that also nominated Anna Pavignano for co-writing Il Postino.
Obviously, by the rule of statistical analysis -- which is foolproof and understands that subjective awards must follow mathematical calculations-- this means we're going to get a female writer up on stage this year, right?
Bets on whether Donoghue (Room), Nagy (Carol), Berloff (Straight Outta Compton) or LeFauve (Inside Out) will get to give a speech on February 28th?
Reader Comments (10)
I'd vote for Inside Out and Carol, so they obviously don't have a snowball's chance in hell.
Just want to toss this out there:
AMPAS nominated four female writers in 1938.
Out of those 4 I'd say Carol has the best chance. Unless Room pulls a Precious like curve and wins screenplay and an actress award.
I'm not sure who I would vote for - probably "Carol" but I really liked Nick Hornby's adaptation of "Brooklyn"
Why do we see so few women nominate?
In terms of the branch itself the writer's branch is dominated by men. During the past 11 years they have managed to find 28 women, 98 men to induct. (78% Male - 22% female) Even during the last 2 years when there has been a diversity push the gender breakdown:
2014 – 15 M / 4 F = 19
2015 - 18 M / 3 F =21
They haven't yet invited Tina Fey, Gillian Flynn, or Greta Gerwig which gives you an idea how little effort the writers branch puts into gender parity.
No wonder films about women have so little luck at the Oscars.
This is just painful to read. So frustrating. America doesn't care. And the tickets will continue to sell largely for films made by men and about men. White straight ones at that
Rooting HARD for Room. Hope it "upsets" so to speak.
Can't we talk about achievement for a change?
Room is based on a shitty novel that downright appalls me due to its inconsistent baby talk, the female protagonist's questionable choices, a laughable escape and the fixation on Ma's tits and Jack's cock. But this disgusting book at least had the guts to portray two not entirely winsome women (Ma and Grandma) through the eyes of a child that naturally can't question their behavior. And unfortunately, it turned out that many adult readers - most notably, Brie Larson - couldn't scrutinize the distinctly shaded characters from the novel either. Which leads us to an even bigger problem.
The motion picture industry asks for likeable protagonists - i.e. shallow and saintly ones -, especially when it comes to movies made primarily for awards consideration. And Emma Donoghue therefore had the thankless task of smoothing complex characters right up to the point where the layers behind the traumatized victim and the nice grandmother are almost undetectable on screen.
As a result, I do think that the female screenwriter did a horrible job of adapting her already misguided but at least somewhat nuanced novel for the big screen. Following this, I find an Oscar nomination for replacing challenging female characters with one-dimensional rubber dolls rather undeserved. Does that mean that I'm more sexist than the Academy now? And don't forget that I'm already a racist for criticizing Sidney Poitier's hilarious Oscar win for Lilies Of The Field.
Fran Walsh AND Philipa Boyens
LadyEdith - They didn't invite Julie Delpy after she got her first Adapted Screenplay nomination, for Before Sunset. They withheld the nomination until she got her second nomination, for Before Midnight. And she wrote and directed and a couple of films in the interim. Why the delay? Shouldn't all nominees be automatically invited? They invite so many random people into the Academy every year.
Suzanne - Not surprised about Julie Delpy in 2005 and 2006 the writers invited NO women at all, for 2 years!!
Basically I have been going over The Academy list of invitees since 2004 to see the types of choices the academy makes. I have been surprised at how obvious and systemic the sexism has been. (no Tina Fey? Gillian Flynn? Greta Gerwig?)
Another example, Michelle Williams, was not invited to the academy although fellow Brokeback Mountain Oscar acting nominees Jake Gyllenhaal and Heath Ledger were invited.
My point is that every branch is going to have to get serious about inviting talented (and in some cases overdue) women into the academy. They love that 70% male/ 30% female ratio.
I am currently working on a wish list of invitees that should be considered, are you interested or am I the only one?