MACMILLAN Gender Inequality in Screenwriting Work

This is the first book to critically examine the recruitment and working practices of screenwriters. Drawing on interviews with screenwriters and those that employ them, Natalie Wreyford provides a deep and detailed understanding of entrenched gender inequality in the UK film industry and answers the question: what is preventing women from working as screenwriters? She considers how socialised recruitment and gendered taste result in exclusion, and uncovers subtle forms of sexism that cause women’s stories and voices to be discounted. Gender Inequality in Screenwriting Work also reveals the hidden labour market of the UK film industry, built on personal connections, homophily and the myth of meritocracy. It is essential reading for students and scholars of gender, creative industries, film and cultural studies, as well as anyone who wants to understand why women remain excluded from many key roles in filmmaking. Review “This is an outstanding book, which unequivocally demonstrates the sexism still rife in the British film industry. Using a case detailed and engaging case study of screenwriting, the book punctures the ‘common sense’ of screenwriting, including the myths of meritocracy, the gendering of good taste, and the exclusion of motherhood. Beyond the richness of the empirical data, there is also an important theoretical contribution rethinking Bourdieu and gender for the study of creative industries. The book will act as a call to arms for those fighting for change, and the data and excellent analysis should shame those standing in the way.” (Dave O’Brien, The University of Edinburgh, Scotland) “As a female screenwriter I’d like to applaud and thank Natalie Wreyford for writing this book. For too long, we’ve been told we’re exaggerating the problem and there is no real gender disparity in our industry. ... Now Natalie has proved by meticulous research that this inequality is a reality and part of a systematic problem that needs addressing and changing. Women’s stories have been neglected for too long. By talking to women writers, listening to them, advocating for them, Natalie has given us voice. Most crucially, she points to a way forward for real change. Every producer, executive, commissioner, and financier should be given a copy to read, then act on. Time is most definitely up. “ (Andrea Gibb, screenwriter and Co-Chair of the Film Committee at The Writer’s Guild of GB, UK) “Natalie Wreyford’s work on women in the film industry is authoritative and ground-breaking. The Writers’ Guild of Great Britain has recently laid bare the shocking absence of opportunities for women screenwriters. This book strips away the myths and addresses the reality. It could not be more timely.” (Kate Kinninmont MBE, Chief Executive of Women in Film & Television, UK) “This book makes a timely and important intervention in ongoing debates about women's participation in the UK screen industries, exploring exactly how and why female screenwriters are still underrepresented in British film production, and what can be done about it. Using statistics, interview data, and clear-eyed analysis to bust some persistent myths, it is absolutely essential reading for everyone who has a stake in making British cinema a place of greater fairness, diversity, and enrichment.” (Melanie Williams, University of East Anglia, UK) “A must-read study of inequality in cultural work.  Based on unique access to the UK film industry Wreyford exposes the multi-layered systemic barriers to gender equality in screen writing. A nuanced analysis that provides inspiration and conceptual direction for future research, on film and gender and beyond.” (Doris Ruth Eikhof, Deputy Director, CAMEo Research Institute for Cultural and Media Economies, University of Leicester, UK) “I've been tracking the numbers of female filmmakers for over a decade. The numbers are still abysmally low. Natalie's book looks at the intersection of employment pract