July 14, 1998
Directors Guild President Jack Shea today released the Guild’s annual report on women and minority hiring, a report which shows a decline in the percentage of total days worked by DGA women and minority directors.
The report indicates the percentage of total days worked by DGA women and minorities versus the number of total days worked by all DGA members in 1997, as well as in each preceding year since 1983, the first year that women and minority hiring statistics became available to the DGA from employers. The report is divided into two categories: film (including both theatrical and television) and tape. In 1997, DGA women and minority film directors showed a marked decrease in their total days worked, both percentage-wise and in absolute numbers.
"Anyone reading these numbers has to be shocked that the major studios and production companies hire so few women and minority directors," commented Shea. "Employers simply must do a better job, and the DGA remains committed to doing whatever it takes to help companies improve their hiring record in these areas."
DGA women film directors dropped from 8.8% of total number of days worked by DGA film directors in 1996, to 7.0% in 1997. The actual number of days worked by women directors also declined, from 4233 to 3411.
DGA minority film directors went from 6.9% of total days worked in 1996 to 6.4%, and saw their number of actual days worked drop from 3163 to 3090.
The decline in absolute numbers is particularly alarming because the total number of days worked by all DGA film directors increased, from 45,955 in 1996 to 48,659 in 1997.
DGA First Vice President Martha Coolidge echoed Shea’s views. "It is outrageous that in a year in which all DGA directors worked almost 3,000 days more than in the previous year, women and minority directors actually lost nearly 900 days worked," Coolidge said. "There is clearly a problem that needs to be immediately rectified."
While minority tape directors actually increased their numbers, the statistics for women tape directors are as poor as the statistics for their film directing counterparts. DGA minority tape directors almost doubled their percentage of days worked, from 7.6% in 1996 to 14.2% in 1997. In absolute numbers, this meant a rise from 1361 total days worked in 1996 to 2771 in 1997.
DGA women tape directors worked 20.3% of the total days worked in 1997, down from 23.9% in 1996. Their total number of days worked was 3959, a decline from 4267 the year before. Again, this drop came despite the fact that the total number of days worked by DGA directors in tape rose from 17,868 in 1996 to 19,525 in 1997.
"The companies need to accept responsibility for these statistics," stated DGA National Executive Director Jay D. Roth. "This lack of progress is a disservice not only to women and minorities, but to the entire entertainment industry."
The following charts and graphs track the percentage of total days worked in film and tape by female and minority DGA members since statistics became available:
