proportion of fiction films with a woman in a key role 2000-2016

In 2013, the Film Institute was tasked with attaining the desirable aim of an even gender distribution – 50/50. This was eventually achieved in 2016 for nearly all types of funding (see Figure 5). Quite unsurprisingly, the chart shows that for all three key roles – screenwriter (44 %), director (49 %), and producer (54 %) – support has been more equally distributed for films funded through the Film Institute. A quick comparison between the 2006-2012 and the 2013-2016 periods indicates that support for women directors funded through the Institute has increased substantially, from 29 % to 49 %. Interestingly, a positive evolution is also taking shape for films funded outside the Institute, most notably for producers – from 23 % to 29 % – even though not at the same pace as for films supported by the Institute.
The Film Institute acknowledges that decisions to use gender equality quotas often morph into discussions about quality or the lack of it. However, if the gender equality goal has not been achieved, the Institute would have considered using quotas. Sweden has nevertheless consistently shown that with a methodical and systematic approach it is possible to achieve gender equality without compromising quality.