womeninfilm - Jezebel

posts about #womeninfilm more →
Things Not Getting Better For Women In Hollywood
Will Strong Female Characters Ever Make A Comeback On The Big Screen?
Oh My God, I Think Megan Fox Is Winning Me Over
Meryl Streep: "Men Run The Studios And Live Their Own Fantasies Through Them"
Women In Film
Kiefer Sutherland To Turn Himself In
Hollywood's "Women In Film" Look Lovely, Leggy
Sunshine Cleaning Cleans Up At Weekend Box Office
Debra Winger: "Women Don't Write Enough"
Is It Awful To Hope That Jennifer Lopez Is Expecting A Boy?

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nyc-caribbean-ragazza
11/20/09

In reply to Things Not Getting Better For Women In Hollywood
That NBC got rid of original programming at 10:00 p.m. doesn't help with the lack of TV writing jobs.

I know the stats are terrible. Clearly a unicorn would have a better chance of sustaining a career than a black female feature screenwriter but we keep writing. We have to.
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Sweet Panda Love
11/20/09

In reply to Things Not Getting Better For Women In Hollywood
As a working female writer, I just want to say - don't badmouth Lifetime. At least they make things written by, starring and aimed at women.
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nyc-caribbean-ragazza
11/20/09

@Sweet Panda Love:
hearted
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genevievep
11/20/09

In reply to Things Not Getting Better For Women In Hollywood
Amen. As a woman trying to get going as an action/comedy writer in Hollywood since I Dec. 2006 I've had absolutely no luck. I recently started submitting under a masculine name and immediately began winning contests and gaining interest. Then the interested parties call and realize I'm not a male and ... poof, there goes the interest. Another problem is that the best way to get an agent or a manager through referral--and there is a definite boys club mentality. It's incredibly, incredibly, incredibly discouraging. Especially since this has been my life-long dream.
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Irin
11/20/09

@genevievep: Hey, am interested in hearing more about this -- can you email me? irin@jezebel.com
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Alexis
11/20/09

In reply to Things Not Getting Better For Women In Hollywood
I'm a black female wanting to get into TV writing and this info comes at no surprise to me. It's beyond sad, but in a weird way, encouraging. It gives me something to strive for.
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anthony.sheila
11/20/09

In reply to Things Not Getting Better For Women In Hollywood
I worked as a sitcom writer. Men do not want you in the room. I was lucky, but stories of verbal abuse abound. Incidentally, in TV it's the writers who do the hiring. Also, before the existence of the WGA half of all working Hollywood writers were women.
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elysium_kitschen
11/20/09

In reply to Things Not Getting Better For Women In Hollywood
I work for a production company that makes huge tentpole (heh) movies and I think Myers is absolutely spot on. Almost everything that studios buy and greenlight is based on IP and existing material and it's mostly comic books and video games. And when they do purchase an original idea, those are also mostly action/sci-fi/blockbuster types. The people running the studios have no vision anymore. They can't see beyond the huge monetary numbers that a Transformers or a 2012 can bring in, so they will continue to make them until audiences stop going to them.
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elysium_kitschen
11/20/09

@elysium_kitschen: And I forgot my main point: most studio execs and producers assume women can't write those types of movies so they don't hire them. Period.
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NoelleBlue
11/20/09

@elysium_kitschen: How very sad that is! Men can write all the romantic comedies they want, and yet women: supposedly we fail at writing action. Feh.

Do you mind me asking which aspect of production you work in? This is just as a cinema dork who is curious!
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elysium_kitschen
11/20/09

@NoelleBlue: Producer's assistant. I'm on every phone call so I hear it all from all aspects of the industry. And sometimes it's scary.
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WestMantooth
11/20/09

In reply to Things Not Getting Better For Women In Hollywood
Well, it's scientific fact our guy brains... have... much...many more great... stuff in it. Wait what was I saying?

I guess if you're a minority woman don't even try. It's like seeing a unicorn or something.
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Batatinha
11/20/09

In reply to Things Not Getting Better For Women In Hollywood
Sigh. Whenever I bring this issue up to someone, they usually just tell me that there probably aren't enough good women writers. Because, of course, there is no possible way that there are more difficult obstacles that these writers have to face!

Mm... Mad Men. The fact that its writers are mostly female only sweetens the Hamm in my television.
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Sleuthy Sleuthstein
11/20/09

In reply to Things Not Getting Better For Women In Hollywood
I'm sad that The Wire is on the list of shows with 0 women writers. Although I guess I shouldn't be surprised, considering that acting roles for women on the show were few and far between.
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Hooplehead promoted this comment

Hooplehead
11/20/09

@Sleuthy Sleuthstein: I really would have thought that a show with as well-written a part as Kima's (and to a lesser degree, Snoop's) would have had a lady pulling some of the strings. Then again, Rhonda, Cedric's wife and Beadie were fairly two-dimensional, so I guess it's not that surprising.
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bluebears
11/20/09

@Sleuthy Sleuthstein: and apparently only 1 minority writer.
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Clare116
11/20/09

@Sleuthy Sleuthstein: Here's a GREAT article on women in The Wire:

[www.popmatters.com]

Simon admits that he's not great at writing women because he's a dude, but as the author points out, he didn't use that excuse when writing excellent African-American characters.

Also, he could have HIRED a woman writer and farmed those characters out.
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Sev
11/20/09

In reply to Things Not Getting Better For Women In Hollywood
Are there any Jezzie TV writers out there? How does one break into this business (besides writing a spec script and praying somone reads it)? How do you make sure your stuff gets read?

I'd love to break into TV writing but I have no idea where to start looking. Also, I don't know anyone close to the entertainment industry, so it's not like I'm going to get someone to make a phone call on my behalf.
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the_poptart
11/20/09

@Sev: It's really, really difficult to break into. You...pretty much have to a) get lucky and b) know somebody. I know a guy from my graduating class who worked on the Sony lot, knew a guy who knew an agent, got his script read, was signed to said agent, rewrote a script for somebody, got paid...hasn't worked (as a writer) since. I don't even have an agent -- been here 2 years. It's rough, yo.
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RisaPlata
11/20/09

@Sev: I knew a production coordinator once who said making it as a writer was as hard as making it as an actor.

Also, I remember something Ron Moore once told a class I was in (okay, two somethings): 1- Everyone he knew had gotten their break at some point. Not all of them had taken it, either because they had given up already or were unprepared or just couldn't, but the opportunity had come for everyone. And 2- If you make it in 10 years, you're an overnight success. I use that as my benchmark, and as long as it hasn't been 10 years, I can say it's okay.

This is going to seem like silly advice, because I certainly would have thought it was a few years ago, but eventually I noticed that a lot of the people who started at the same place as me but were moving ahead so much faster also had masters' degrees. I can't afford to go back to school full-time, but I'm taking UCLA extension classes and it's been helpful. So take classes. At the very least, even if you do already know everything, it's motivation to actually finish your scripts and it's a networking opportunity. Good luck!
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nyc-caribbean-ragazza
11/20/09

@Sev:

I work in features but my former assistant is a writer's assistant on a big show.

That is a great way to break in. Long hours but you learn a lot.
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schlegs84
11/20/09

In reply to Things Not Getting Better For Women In Hollywood
I'm on the outskirts of the community where writers like this cut their teeth (at least the comedy minded ones). It sucks. The boys club mentality, people flat out saying "women aren't funny", extreme body snarking, opening acts staying to mock your show (after their 10 minutes of poop and then rape jokes).

Our head writer/director is a chick and she's wonderful but she has to fight three times as hard to get a leg up. I wonder how many women can stand it long enough to get to the level they could be writing for TV?
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TransFat
11/20/09

@schlegs84: I wish I could say that that's a unique situation, but I'd say it's pretty standard. The worst part of all is that while your head writer may be awesome, in my experience the worst, most closed minded, and dismissive producers and one writer/director I can think of, are women. It's almost as if they made a devils bargain that once they conquered the "boys club" they would keep it that way to preserve their own achievement. But it's certainly not all. Before I landed my current position I was lucky to have no less than 4 amazing producers help me break in and all of them were women.

So, we're here. We're trying. We're eager to help (someone have a button maker?).
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schlegs84
11/20/09

@TransFat: I would appreciate buttons!!

But even with all the crap, it'll take more than a bunch of barely post-adolescent idiots to discourage me.

*DOUBLE GUNS*
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i'vemadeahugemistake
11/20/09

@TransFat: I'd love to hear about how you broke in (yeah, I'm another one of those nutty people trying to get into TV writing). We should totally have a Jez TV writers meet-up...
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TransFat promoted this comment

TransFat
11/20/09

@i'vemadeahugemistake: Let me scale back in saying I haven't, "made it" by any stretch of the imagination. It's an assistant's life for me. But my black booted foot is wedged in the door and I'm making a modest name by paying those infamous dues.

I would be happy to pass on some advice and the advice I've been given. One I can throw out there to anyone (insert your art where appropriate and forgive the cliche), just keep writing. You can say you are a writer or want to go into writing all you want. But you're not unless you actually do it. Good luck out there!
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Diziet_Sma
11/20/09

In reply to Things Not Getting Better For Women In Hollywood
Yeah, depressing. I'm not sure about the logic of singling out The Sarah Silverman Program for criticism just because Sarah Silverman is a woman, though.
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clevernamehere
11/20/09

@Diziet_Sma: The argument people make for the all/mostly male staffs in late night is that all the hosts are male. The idea is men write better for other men. Based on that you'd expect Silverman to have a mostly/all female staff.
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Diziet_Sma
11/20/09

@clevernamehere: Well, that's so obviously a bogus argument - if she adhered to that she would be supporting it.
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ardentlilac
11/20/09

@Diziet_Sma: Of course, she might be bogus -- so many women step on the hands of other women hanging onto the cliff. It's a possibility.
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Diziet_Sma
11/20/09

@ardentlilac: Absolutely. I'm just saying the producers of her program are just as culpable as the producers of any of those other shows - but not more so, if you see what I mean. It seems wrong to single her out, if you ask me. But hey.
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ardentlilac
11/20/09

@Diziet_Sma: I agree and though it might be seen as reverse sexism to expect her to be extra-vigilant about hiring women, I don't care: I think she should. Because she's presents as a strong ball-buster in a world that allows few women like that into positions of power.
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Triana Orpheus
11/20/09

In reply to Things Not Getting Better For Women In Hollywood
I hate that some people think that violence = suspense. I've never been more tense watching something in my life than when I watched Betty confront Don about his box or when they fought on the season finale. Seriously, Hollywood, enough Hostel and Saw and more portrayals on conversations and situations that people have in real life every day.
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Hooplehead
11/20/09

@Triana Orpheus: Or on the Sopranos when Tony and Carmela were breaking up. There was one part of the scene where it actually got physical, the rest was them tearing each other to pieces verbally. My heart was in my throat the whole time.
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bluebears
11/20/09

In reply to Things Not Getting Better For Women In Hollywood
30 Rock only as 3 and I'm assuming one of them is Tina Fey. Boo.
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kellybones
11/20/09

@bluebears: yeah if the number of female writers on TGS as shown on 30 rock is any indication, there ain't many women that's for sure.
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bluebears
11/20/09

@kellybones: plus the actual chart shows there are zero minority writers on the show and I'm a bit disappointed in them for that.
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bananaballs
11/20/09

In reply to Things Not Getting Better For Women In Hollywood
CALIFORNICATION, in which women's clothes practically fall off within 5 seconds of sight of the show's protagonist, is mostly written by women????!

I just can't get past that. I'm shocked. Wow.
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Zombie Ms. Skittles
11/20/09

@bananaballs: Yes, but the protagonist is David Duchovny, so in that case it's actually a realistic depiction of what happens when most women actually see him.

(I jest...kind of)
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ozu
11/20/09

@bananaballs: Well the Hank character is a lot more nuanced than that.

He's certainly promiscuous but I can't recall him ever being disrespectful or misogynistic when it comes to the women on the show, except for Mia, but she sort of deserved it.
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jabcrosshook
11/20/09

@Zombie Ms. Skittles: I hear that girl! ;) I thought I was gonna hate that show but his character is so hilarious even though he does terribly sleazy things. And that man can still deliver a line like nobody's business!
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Zombie Ms. Skittles
11/20/09

@jabcrosshook: Trufax: Just looking at a picture of David Duchovny is enough to make the average woman's skirt fly over her head and in rare cases has caused panties to spontaneously combust.
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whynotshesaid
11/20/09

@bananaballs: I actually love the show a whole bunch and find it rather raunchy and hilarious. I was very pleased to see that so many women writers work on it, because it is just brimming with the sex-and-dick jokes that are actually way funny.

Take that, Chris Hitchens!
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whynotshesaid
11/20/09

@ozu: He's a manslut, but he's an ethical manslut. Plus, his one-liners are awesome.

I'm a big fan of the show.
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ardentlilac
11/20/09

@whynotshesaid: I was blown away by the pilot and have tried to watch every episode since. It's so nuanced that I'm not surprised that women write it (reverse sexism, so there). The scripts just won't allow simplistic knee-jerk takes on the situations and characters (wronged woman who can sometimes be a bitch, sleazy guy who uses but also cares for many women in his life, a vulnerable but manipulative child etc.)
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whynotshesaid
11/21/09

@ardentlilac: Yeah, when I first started watching it I fully expected it to be some extended wet dream, but it has been so much funnier and more nuanced than that. Plus, the writers gave us Marcy, who might be my all-time favorite character on any TV show, ever. (And I love Pam and Eric from True Blood and Joan from Mad Men as much as I love my future children, so that is saying something.)

Of course, when I take Kathleen Turner's character into consideration, I realize that women had to have a hand in creating her character. I think most men would have made her just seem pathetic and sad instead of hilarious and slightly terrifying.
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ardentlilac
11/21/09

@whynotshesaid: I have to catch up on Hulu! OK, this:

[www.youtube.com]

*Help me embed, somebody!

The casting is terrific, and the direction must be excellent as well. And what about Mia? Serious, the kid has only roamed the earth 16 years but she's learned a lot about how to screw people.

#tips
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whynotshesaid
11/21/09

@ardentlilac: Oh man, that is some classic Marcy shit. Thanks for sharing it with me - I just laughed my ass off. You are now hearted.

YouTube doesn't have much but this one made me laugh, too: [www.youtube.com]
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ardentlilac
11/21/09

@whynotshesaid: His angry inch -- harhar. This is great stuff - she deserves an Emmy or two. I loves me some Evan Handler though, so I can't be mad at him. Ugz ugz! Jazz hands! Amen!
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