Monday, October 16, 2017
What It's Really Like to Be a Woman in Entertainment
The Mary Sue: These frank testimonials may ring familiar with women in many other industries, too.
Yesterday, a Facebook friend of mine who works in film and TV production began a thread that prompted, “being a woman in the entertainment industry is …” and then she and her friends and colleagues began to fill in the blanks in the comments.
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6 comments:
This article was an important read because it brings to life real stories of sexism in an industry I would like to break into. The comments published come from real stories, and that is what saddens me the most. It is so hard to break into a male-dominated industry, and it might be even harder to stay there, because the second you call men out for sexism, is the second you get cut from the business. Harvey Weinstein's death is creating a discussion around this topic that I think is incredibly important, because the entertainment business can change, they really can, it just takes the loss of power to so many men. It shouldn't be amazing to find women directors and designers, but it is, it should be normal, it should be a 50/50 ratio, but no, it's a male industry and there has to be a change, and that change may have been ignited by Weinstein's death.
I can’t say that I have not experienced some similar things in this industry already. All girls going into the technical world are warned that they will be overshadowed and smothered. That in and of itself is saddening and disheartening. We are not necessarily discouraged, but forced to have an insanely tough skin and be able to keep our chins firm and not show any emotion, while also being yes-women in order to climb. The entertainment industry can be one of the most progressive industries worldwide, and yet internally there is incessant and generally unnoticed sexism. Reading these stories is just another slap in the face to prepare me for my time entering the theater and film world. I think it’s important that women become comfortable vocalizing these stories so their male colleagues can become more aware of their actions and the daily exhaustion that comes with being a woman who simply enjoys working behind the scenes (and has some pretty great ideas, too).
This article, as mentioned in the first line, highlights the biggest issues that any woman in any work force or industry faces every single day that they spend going into work. Since I have come to Carnegie Mellon (after attending an all-girls school for six years), I have already faced some of these comments on my appearance, ideas, etc. However, the most jarring thing to me in this article are not the blatantly sexualized comments or horrifyingly obvious misogyny, but instead the comments on needing women to be less emotional. Emotions are part of the human experience, no matter what your identity is. Being "less emotional" (i.e. not crying when you become frustrated, etc.) does not mean being less weak. When someone is less emotional, they are often less aware of where they stand in the world, how they are feeling, and how their relationships to other people are being affected. Be emotional! Be human! And stand up for your feelings!
I greatly appreciated this article. It was powerful, eye opening, and really damn honest. Women have been dealing with sexism for a really long time. The fact that recent events have uncovered the reality of women’s workplace experience in the entertainment industry is frustrating because this is not a new issue. Somewhere along human evolution women were deemed inferior and ever since it has been ever present. We deserve to be treated as equals. Everyone deserves to be treated as equals. No one should have to hide the fact that they have a husband in the workplace or deal with insinuations about sex. The stock photo at the end of the article is also so telling. As women, we need to redefine how we are viewed in general society and in the entertainment industry. But in redefining ourselves we need help from men to realize that this isn’t a one sided issue. We want GENDER EQUALITY.
I really like how the author of this article began. Many times we do hear about the challenges that actors and actresses face when it comes to harassment in the entertainment industry, but we don't often talk about how it is truly everywhere. This movement has certainly opened a lot of peoples eyes, even mine. The other day in class while discussing this problem one of my female professors said that it was sad that we have all had experiences like this and if we haven't yet, we will. A friend of mine who is not even out of college yet was telling me about how she can never work with a certain prestigious designer because he had started to message her on Instagram telling her that she was beautiful. SHE DIDN'T EVEN GET THE CHANCE. It is easy to become angry and depressed by all of these stories coming out, but to me, and for many other women, I find them to be uniting. Now women know that they are not alone. Not if ever, but when ever I find myself in a situation like, I'll be comforted by the fact that my voice won't go unheard, that accepting it is not my only option.
Yup. I once had one of the over hires at CMU explain to me how to use a hammer. It was unenlightening, seeing as I was already a declared technical director and had been working in the shop for two years. Also – hammers aren’t that hard to figure out. I’ve also been referred to as “little miss” while shopping in a Home Depot (I’m 5’10” – not that little). When people offer to help me carry things I’m never sure if they just think I’m weak because I’m a woman, or if they are coming from a place of sincerity. I have also never actually met a woman who is a technical director in “the real world” and isn’t a student. None of this should be the case, but it is for every woman in the entertainment industry I have spoken to about this. I most days I can handle the snide comments and the asking if I’m in costumes (not to belittle costumes – it is a very difficult skill set who I have much respect for and suffers from the same problems with sexism as my field) because I’m a woman and they assume costumes. Just because I can handle it and starve off the anger until I get home doesn’t mean it should continue.
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