Fartun Issaq

K.C Jensen

Film and Culture

May 5, 2017

Women in Film

The Hunger Games character Katniss Everdeen is changing women in films. In the past,

women had a measure of power or staying power in Hollywood. The representations of female

character have gone up to top the grossing films every year. Women in films and television have

been underrepresented. Study by Dr. Martha Lauzen the Executive Director for the Center for

the Study of Women in Television and Film at San Diego State University has reported The

Chronic underrepresentation of girls and women reveal a kind of arrested development in

mainstream film industry,

For many years women have been unrepresented in films. Racial minorities were the

same too. White men were more likely to be overrepresented in films. Over the last 20 years,

character representation in the film has been related to the demographics of audience viewing. A

study has been examined how the depiction of women in contexts of social gender movements of

the last two decades will. The study provides a deeper understanding towards the attitudes

toward a female character. The facts have shaped up the themes and representation that appeared

in popular films.

The study had a purpose, it was to examine the relationship between sexual objectification of

women in films and race. It began as the content analyzed and would measure the amount of

provocative skin that was shown by the major and minor of female characters in the top grossing

film across the last 20 years. It compared the result to determine the objectification that varied
between races in amounts and the context. When the research started it determined the number of

films of in the chosen sample has verified that women that were featured in significant roles were

too low to permit statistical comparison. The study has also provided the implication and

recognizing the few minority women in popular film and compare it to caucasian women.

The findings of this study have provided the historical and cultural context for what makes

some films popular and how other unrepresented groups lie women and racial minorities fit into

popular films. It examined the messages and these depiction sending to the audience. The

attitude toward women has shaped the future of gender representation and equality.

The study has stated back in 2013, women have consisted less than a third of speaking parts

in the top domestic film and were and 15% of the protagonist. most of the successful were

female-led films in the recent year. Dr. Martha Lauzen said that in the latest films, the female

character was two times more likely to be identified by life-related role and they are usually

younger than male. They were rated portrayed, formal leaders. For example, a film that came out

recently The Hunger Games, the leading character was a female character who was strong and

the movie Divergent was viewed as the impression that women were often represented equally in

films. The research has revealed that women in films are overwhelmingly valued based roles

they played in real life. Such as being mothers, wife or lover. Women have been portrayed as

depended on other character and they are over-emotional and have been confined to low-status

jobs and compared to enterprising, successful male characters. Now that women in films have to

be indicated as a feisty, successful women than the last decade what they were viewed as.

In 2016, the protagonist of the female has increased to 29%. This represents that the increase

has increased to 7 percentage from 2015. Females have accounted a major role of 35% by

increasing 3 of the percentage on 2015. Overall these results have indicated audiences were more
likely to see male characters than a female character. Female characters now represented better in

the last couple of years.

People now are realizing that women in the film are being unrepresented. Because in the film

industry have shown in 2014 85% had no female directors and 80% had no female writer and

33% had female cinematographer. The topic has been noticed by media and receiving an

attention.

Femme fatale represented that had an attack on traditional womanhood. Usually, femme fatale

were film noir, women in those films dont play the role of a devoted wife and loving mother that

society describes for women. Those characters find marriage to loveless and dull. The character

uses cunning and sexual attractiveness to gain independence. The quality of the character was

fearless and independent even when the character faces her own destruction. she leaves behind

the image of a strong, exciting, and unrepentant woman who defies the control of men and

rejects the institution of the family. The classic femme fatale murder to free herself from an

unbearable relationship with a man who tries to possess and control. The attitude is not the

women to lose themselves. the character sometimes feels like they are trapped by husbands or

lover who treat them like equipment.Marriage for film noir is associated with unhappiness,

boredom, and the absence of romantic love and sexual desire. You will usually expect an unusual

turn with the character and the outcomes are always different a

nd unexpected.

Seductive women who attracted men in perilous by a way of charisma and mystery. The films

exist in numbers of variety ways and can be found in virtually in every society or culture

throughout history. Femme fatale has the aura of mystery, temptation, and charms that have
proven the intense magnification of deadly female character. The use of beauty and sexuality in

the characters of femme fatale are what ultimately attempt by man to eat a forbidden fruit and

risking himself to an eternity of pain, suffering, and death. In 1940 were the era of women in

films. One of the exciting times and representation of character pathology. All because of the

characteristic of that women.

From my own conclusion, the fact that gender underrepresentation has not died yet. But the

progress that women are now shown more in films. The demographics of women and their actual

preferences should be considered more seriously in film-making to influence more inclusive to

all women. Over the years films have included more female character as the main character.

Trying to erase that gender stereotype. The film industry has made progress every year showing

women as the main character every year and the qualities. Some movie has made women

characters feel independent and strong.

Work Cited:
Cipriani, Casey. "Sorry, Ladies: Study on Women in Film and Television Confirms The Worst."
IndieWire. Penske Business Media, 10 Feb. 2015. Web. 06 May 2017.

Snyder , Scott . "PERSONALITY DISORDER AND THE FILM NOIR FEMME FATALE."
Albany. Journal of Criminal Justice and Popular Culture, n.d. Web. 5 May 2017.
"No Place for a Woman: The Family in Film Noir." No Place for a Woman: The Family in Film
Noir (Low-Graphics Version). N.p., Apr. 1999. Web. 06 May 2017

A. O. Scott and Manohla Dargis. "Representation of Female Characters in Movies Is Improving."

The New York Times. The New York Times, 03 Sept. 2014. Web. 06 May 2017.

Lang, Brent. "Women Comprise 7% of Directors on Top 250 Films (Study)." Variety. Variety
Media, 27 Oct. 2015. Web. 06 May 2017.

Petreikis, John. "Research." Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film. Center for the
Study of Women in Television and Film, 16 June 2016. Web. 06 May 2017.

Reviewessays. "Femme Fatales of English Literature - Research Paper." ReviewEssays.com -

Term Papers, Book Reports, Research Papers and College Essays. Review Essay , 26 Nov. 2016.
Web. 06 May 2017.