introduction

why women do(n't) make films

in the beginning there was...

evolutions

new century movements

an interesting question of gender

sponsorship & volunteers

WOMEN OF MOTION

PROGRAMMES

bibliography

links

introduction page 1

"It has been five years since the release of the survey in 1987 of women's participation in the film, television and video industry. That survey painted a depressing picture; women were underrepresented in all the key creative roles and had a considerably lower representation in the film industry than in the Australian workforce." (What Do I Wear For A Hurricane?, p. 5)

Throughout its more than decade long existence WIFT(victoria) has initiated and run a number of events and projects which aim "to improve the status and representation of women in screen based industries". As well as lobbying various government and private bodies on specific issues, WIFT(victoria) has run a job referral service, a newsletter (The Networker), and numerous seminars and networking events for its members. In addition to these activities WIFT(victoria) has also run a number of events over the years which attempt to address the imbalance in the gender representation within the industry, and in its training grounds - film school.

In 1989 WIFT(victoria) started Women Applying to Film School which was a specifically targeted program trying to address the problem of the underepresentation of women at an entry level in film schools. As well as running this program to assist women WIFT(victoria) developed an event which was designed to reveal the possibilities of a career in film or television to young women who may not have even contemplated the idea of applying to film school. In 1990 WIFT(victoria) launched Women in Motion a film festival and careers forum which was aimed specifically at secondary school young women. A combination of a film festival full of short dramas, documentaries, comedies or animations made by women, and the opportunity to hear women working in the industry, Women In Motion opened up a world of possible careers to a generation of young women who were only beginning to explore their futures.

In 1990 the first Women In Motion film festival and careers forum was held over three days at the State Film Centre (now Cinemedia at the Treasury Theatre). The success of the event was such that it went on to run for another six years, and after a brief retirement in 1998 and 1999 was resurrected in May of 2000. Each year the festival ran it reflected not only the films produced by women in that year, but the tastes of the women who coordinated it, and the changing nature of the film and television industries in Australia. The women involved in WIFT(victoria) and Women In Motion decided to do something about what they saw as an imbalance in the participation in, and control of, an industry that has a major influence on the way in which information is sent and received in the 20th and 21st Centuries. "The results still show an industry which is gender segregated, where there are differences in the jobs men and women do, the skills they have, their levels of seniority, pay levels, training, the products they work on and their experience in the workplace." (What Do I Wear For A Hurricane?, p8)