I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, splitting Best Director into gendered categories does a major disservice to women, it basically says “hey, we’ve given up in getting nominated with all the male talent out there, let’s just save us the inevitable yearly backlash and split the category into two.” Now, doesn’t that sound preposterous? It’s what “Honey Boy” director Alma Har’el has been suggesting ever since she and her female cohorts got snubbed from a Golden Globe and Academy Award directing nod.
“These are not our people and they do not represent us,” Har’el wrote, with a straight face it seems, on social media. “Do not look for justice in the awards system”, she added. And now, today, we have Har’el again preaching for a split of genders in the Director category via a written a guest post for Entertainment Weekly.
In case you didn’t know, the Best Director Academy Award nominees in 2020 are Martin Scorsese (“The Irishman”), Quentin Tarantino (“Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”), Todd Phillips (“Joker”), Sam Mendes (“1917”), and Bong Joon Ho (“Parasite”). Har’el isn’t having it, even if all five of these men do deserve to be recognized for their excellent work. She reiterates the notion that it’s time to consider creating a new Oscars directing category, so as to ensure greater inclusivity:
“I wasn’t the only woman on the Director’s Guild of America’s First-Feature list, and was joined by two women I’ve long admired, Mati Diop (“Atlantics”) and Melina Matsoukas (“Queen & Slim”),” Har’el observes. “Both women of color and important voices. However, nominees for the main Best Director category were all male. Same as the Golden Globes, BAFTA, and now the Oscars.”
Why is suggesting separating the directing category to male and female frowned-upon, while Best Actor and Best Actress is agreeable?” Har’el asks. “Are we so naive to assume we would celebrate actresses as much as we do today if acting categories weren’t separate? The status quo will always protect itself by getting women and underrepresented filmmakers to play a game they can’t win. By making us believe that anything other than breaking into the white boys’ club is failure. It is up to us to feel differently and build a new world that celebrates us.”
Does Har’el’s idea also include Writing, Editing, Cinematography, Directing, and Producing? Suffice to say, creativity should not be limited or designated by gender. The latest stats indicate that around 25% of directors in the industry are female, ditto a paltry 28% of Oscar voters. Maybe it’s time for reform of those bodies rather than criticizing, year after year, that the nominees are not inclusive enough.