66% or women have turned off films and TV programmes that have negatively stereotyped female characters. 85% of women said “sometimes I feel media and culture are blind to how much they stereotype women.”
That should make all creators for media stop and think – Film, TV, advertising and marketing.
“We think this is interesting as it shows that TV producers and film makers now have a financial imperative to make sure there are strong female roles models and characters. While many of this year’s films have female characters or leads, they are still supporting characters such as wives, mothers or girlfriend and generally act as impediment to the main male protagonist,” J.Walter Thompson said in its statement.
The findings are two of many unearthed in research by J.Walter Thompson London in partnership with the Geena Davis Institute for Gender in Media, about attitudes and beliefs of women towards the TV and film industry. The research, part of the Female Tribes Women’s Index study, showed that 51% of women in the US and 38% in the UK said that they make a point to watch a film, ad or TV show that presents a lot of female characters while 74% of US Millennials make a point of watching films / TV shows that have complex female characters.
The 1,000 women in the UK and US in the survey also called for films to have better and more diverse representation, deliver better pay for women in Hollywood and said that the reel world needs to “catch up with” the real world. 89% of US and 87% of UK respondents strongly agreeed that, “It sends a negative message to young girls/women when female actors don’t receive the same pay as men in their industry.”
79% of US and 73% of UK respondents stated they strongly agreed they are “tired of seeing the attractive, ditsy female character.” 84% also said that they wished they heard more about female achievements on a regular basis and less about the latest beauty or fashion trend.
Geena Davis, founder and chair, the Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media commented, “My Institute’s motto has always been If She Can See It, She Can Be It. Media images can have a powerful influence on girls to inspire them to pursue certain careers by identifying with a great female character on TV or in a Film; boys will come to see women in these careers as the norm and not the exception.”
Rachel Pashley, global planner at J. Walter Thompson, added, “The film world or ‘reel world’ shapes our perception of the real world, informing our unconscious bias of what a leader, or a scientist looks like. The fact is, it’s out of step with women’s role and influence in society, literally serving up ‘fake news’ and making it even harder for women to progress. If we can see it, she can be it.
“Films like Hidden Figures not only challenge our perceptions of what a mathematician ‘should’ look like, they have demonstrable commercial success – positive proof that we want to hear these stories.”
