We Should All Be Filmmakers

In the age of globalization and digitalization, the demand for universal representation in media is evident. However, women and queer people still face extreme underrepresentation in the film industry, both on-screen and off-screen. This topic has been on the public agenda for decades and mainly discussed within the realm of Hollywood. This research analyses in what ways film festivals contribute to the progress towards a gender inclusive film industry. More specifically, this study focuses on diversity and inclusion of gender through representation in contemporary cinema as part of seven Dutch film festivals. The aim of the research is to explore the programming dynamics of film festivals in the Netherlands and the ways in which they contribute to social change. The film programmer is an interesting research subject because of their expert knowledge, gatekeeping position and behind-the-scenes practice. The main research question this study strives to answer is as follows: To what extent do Dutch film festivals take gender representation into account in the curation of their film programmes? Sub-questions that are considered in the research process are: What programming strategies do festivals apply to achieve a representative film programme? What are the different motivations film festivals have to strive for gender equality? What are the implications of these measures? These research questions are answered by means of in-depth interviews with festival programmers, complemented by content analysis. The main conclusion that is drawn from the data is that Dutch film festivals and their programmers share a collective awareness on the representation of gender. The results show that the festivals have adopted their own strategies to become more gender inclusive. As legitimizing institutes, they take their responsibility to increase the visibility of marginalised gender identities. This research illustrates how film festivals and their programmers are catalysts for social change towards gender equality.