Key findings from USC’s latest diversity study

Out of the 107 top films of 2015, only eight were directed by women.

The report by the University of Southern California’s Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism found that women made up a “mere 31.4 percent of the 4,370 speaking or named characters in the top 100 grossing films a year ago despite making up more than half of the population”.

Only 31 per cent of speaking roles were female, less than 1 per cent were gay, lesbian and trans-identifying characters, 12 per cent were black, 5.3 per cent were Latino and just 3.9 per cent were Asian.

According to the USC researchers, films with strong female lead roles like Star Wars: The Force Awakens and Mad Max: Road Fury had created a ‘misplaced optimism, ‘ as women are still ‘grossly underrepresented in the industry’.

In fact, women were more frequently shown in sexually provocative attire or naked than men, with 30.2% of these films featuring scenes of women in various states of undress compared to 7.7% showing men similarly outfitted. Black characters made up 12.2% of the demographic, whilst Latinos clocked in at 5.3% latino and Asians at 3.9%.

LGBT characters were even less well represented, with only 32 of the 4,370 speaking or named characters in 2015’s top films identified as such; not a single LGBT-identified lead or co-lead character featured – a proportion of representation was even lower than the 2.4% of characters that were shown with a disability.

The report illuminates why these inequalities may exist by coupling new data on 2015 films with evidence from the group’s previous reports, reaching back to 2007.

Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences President Cheryl Boone Isaacs mounted a push toward diversity in July, inviting 683 more members to become Oscar judges, the majority of which were female and people of colour.

“The findings reveal that Hollywood is an epicenter of cultural inequality”, said Smith, founding director of the MDSC Initiative.

— Four of the 107 directors in the 2015 films studied were black or African American.

“We’re seeing entrenched inequality”, Stacy L. Smith, a U.S.C. professor and the study’s lead author, told the Associated Press. Six were Asian or Asian American.

This year’s survey also introduced the tracking of characters with disabilities: 2.4 percent of the sample had some form of disability, according to the study. A-list talent might also consider including an equity rider in their contract which would make inclusive hiring a priority, and movie studios should announce similar inclusion goals so that they can be held accountable by the public.

“Film still has a way to go when it comes to representing all types of families in America”, said Katherine Pieper, who co-authored the study with Smith and Marc Choueiti. “The momentum created by activism needs to be matched with realistic tactics for creating change”. Five of these films portrayed female leads/co leads 45 years of age or older at the time of theatrical release in 2015.