Research on Directors: UCLA Hollywood Diversity Report
Women and people of color remained underrepresented among film directors in 2021, despite the gains posted by both groups over the years, according to the 2022 Hollywood Diversity Report published by UCLA.
"Between 2011, the first year examined in this report series, and 2021, women’s share of directors increased more than fivefold – from 4.1% to 21.8%. Despite these significant gains, women remained underrepresented by a factor of more than two-to-one in this employment arena in 2021."
Dr. Darnell Hunt and Dr. Ana-Christina Ramón
Co-Authors, UCLA Diversity report
Though women had also made significant advances among film directors in recent years, 2021 saw women barely gain any ground relative to their male counterparts. Meanwhile, among White, Black, Latinx, multiracial, and MENA directors, women lagged their male counterparts in 2021; among Asian and Native directors, however, women approached or reached parity.
(excerpt from the Hollywood Diversity Report 2022)
Read the Report
Graph from the UCLA Hollywood Diversity Report 2022
Replicating findings from the previous report, films directed by people of color or women in 2021 tended to feature more diverse casts than those directed by White men; these films were also more likely to have smaller budgets than those directed by White men.
As noted in the previous report, these findings raise the question of whether the industry may be relegating women directors and directors of color to women themed and minority-themed projects, thereby limiting their opportunities in this critical employment arena.
Learn More
Graph from the UCLA Hollywood Diversity Report 2022
