This unit was important for understanding that is a correct thesis proposal structure. Nigel navigated us through each part of the structure and described what everything means. Thought the unit I was able to define my project title, methods and outline.
Final thesis proposal:
Does changing gender representation in the animation industry influence representation on screen?
Key words:
Gender-segregation, animation industry, feminism.
Introduction:
From the inception of the animation industry, female representation in animated films has been minimal. The same is true for the representation of females in the industry itself. Although representation both in the production workforce and on screen has significantly increased over time a direct connection between these two is unproven. This research aims to understand if increased number of females working in the industry results in better gender representation on screen.
To address this question, it is important to study the history of the industry from the perspective of gender, alongside considering which positions within the industry influence the creative direction of the animated films. This will help to determine whether the presence of women in the positions they have taken has increased diversity of gender representation on screen.
Literature review:
The following literature review is going to be divided into three parts. The first part will cover the topic of the underrepresentation of females in the industry and its improvement over time, as well as the importance of certain roles in the creative process; the next part covers the increase of female representation in animated films; and the last part will evaluate a connection between gender representation in the industry and on screen.
Jobs in the animation industry have long been gender-segregated. The creative departments in most studios were handled by men, while women were limited to the drawing and painting department, where the work was mostly uncreative (Furniss, 1998). Over time women began to occupy a wider range of positions, however inequality still exists. A report by the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative found that in 52 of the top animated films released between 2014-2018, males outnumbered females by 8.5 to 1 in 9 key roles or unit head positions. They also noted a larger gender disparity in roles such as directors, writers and producers. It is clear therefore that although the number of women in positions of influence in the industry has increased, substantial gender inequality still persists.
In early animated films, women were represented in a very stereotypical way with the exaggerated features and primarily as supporting characters. Although, only 17 % of the top 120 animated
features from 2007-2018 had a female lead or co lead (Smith et al., 2019), the number of female leads, as well as female representation in general, in animated films leads have increased.
The third part of the paper will focus on the analysis of the top animated films from the year 1937 to 2022 according to the IMDb online database. The main point of interest is the percentage of women working on these films and specifically taking leading roles in the industry and the presence of female/male leads and/or better female representation in the films. To understand which films have a better female representation, the research will be guided by the exposition of the female look, subjectivity and desire in the film described in “Feminist Film Theory” (Smelik, 2007).
The conclusion of the paper, with the help of theory in the first three chapters and statistics in the last chapter, will sum up if there is a connection between increase of women taking positions in the industry and female representation on screen.
Research design, methods, and schedule:
The research will combine both qualitative and quantitative types. However, the principal component will be a quantitative analysis of the percentage of women working on films correlated with data showing female representation on screen. To support these statistics, literature will be analysed to extract data collected by other researchers.
The type of the research is correlational as it is investigating a connection between increase of women working in the industry and female representation in the animated films.
Data for the quantitative part of the research will be taken from the online database IMDb, looking at animated feature films from the years 1937 to 2016, and up to three top feature animation films for each year from 2017 to 2022 based on the gross, rating and number of votes on IMDb online database. The value of such a database is that it is possible to identify animated films which likely had the strongest influence on viewers owing to their strong commercial presence and popularity.
General outline of each chapter:
1. Underrepresentation of women in the animation industry
1.1. The early history from a feminist perspective
The first chapter will go through the early history of the animation film industry from a feminist perspective. It will describe the reasons that led to the underrepresentation of women.
1.2. The increase of representation over time
This chapter will discuss the reasons that led to the increase in gender representation over time and the position of women in the industry in modern times.
This chapter will help to see the positive dynamics of gender representation over time. It will also mention the representation in different departments, top positions and creative roles in the early stages of the industry development through to the present.
2. Who can influence the representation on screen
A second chapter will focus on the inside of the industry production and what roles can influence an idea and a final piece. This chapter will go through creative roles as modelers/animators and top positions such as directors, producers, screenwriters. The purpose of this chapter is to see what roles need to be taken by women to enrich an animated film with a better female representation.
3. Female representation in animation film
3.1. Female representation in animation film
This chapter will go through the representation of women on screen over the years to evaluate its development.
3.2. How to define a good female representation on screen
This chapter will define criteria which will help to identify whether female representation in animated films is in a healthy state. The criteria will relate to the definitions of the female look, subjectivity and desire in the narrative of the story. It will help the process of categorising animated films in the statistics presented in the next chapter.
4. Does the increase of females in the industry has a direct relationship to a female representation on screen
The last chapter will focus on data which numerically describe the correlation between the percentage of women working on films, particularly in creative and leading positions, and the presence of a better female representation in the films.
5. Conclusion
In the conclusion the result of the quantitative research will be summed up with the theory in the first chapters. The outcome will answer the main question of the research – whether the gender representation in the industry influences representation on screen.
A draft chapter:
1. Underrepresentation of women in the animation industry 1.1. The early history from a feminist perspective
Segregation on the basis of gender has always existed in the world as it was useful for a patriarchal society as a source of low-income or free labour. Persistent unfair inequality led to the birth of feminist movements. First wave of feminism can be characterised as the period between the second half of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century, it achieved formal equality of both sexes, but this equality remained only indicated on paper (Koroleva, 2013). In fact “women remained a small minority at all levels of political life, they were strikingly absent from high professional positions, they were discriminated against in all areas of employment, they were paid less than men, and many women certainly did not share the benefits of their newly affluent society” (Bryson, 1992).
Gender-segregation was also very common in the animation industry. The creative departments in most studios were handled by men, while women were limited to the drawing and painting department, where the work was mostly uncreative and repetitive (Furniss, 1998). Kirsten Thompson in her 2014 article notes how ink and paint departments usually consisted of hundreds of female workers with the lowest pay in the industry, while male supervisors would walk around and urge them to work faster (Thompson, 2014).
Discrimination on a gender basis have always existed in the society and an animation industry is not an exception. Women have been always put in the lower positions with a “glass ceiling”. However, women’s awareness of their own discrimination was gradually embedded in the minds of the majority, which led to the emergence of other types of feminism, new “waves” and thereafter a better position in the workplace.
Bibliography:
Bryson, V. (1992) Feminist Political Theory. London: Macmillan Education UK. doi: 10.1007/978-1-349-22284-1.
Furniss, M. (1998) ‘Issues of representation’, in Art in Motion, Revised Edition. John Libbey Publishing, pp. 229–248. doi: 10.2307/j.ctt2005zgm.15.
Koroleva, T. A. (2013) ‘Women’s Movement: Genesis and Evolution’, Bulletin of Tomsk State University, 368, pp. 44–50.
Smelik, A. (2007) ‘Feminist Film Theory’, in The Cinema Book. Bloomsbury Publishing Plc. doi: 10.5040/9781838710484.0065.
Smith, S. L. et al. (2019) Inclusion in the Director’s Chair: Gender, Race/Ethnicity, & Age of Directors Across the Top Films From 2007-2018. Available at: https://assets.uscannenberg.org/docs/inclusion-in-the-directors-chair-2019.pdf.
Thompson, K. (2014) ‘“Quick-Like a Bunny!” The Ink and Paint Machine, Female Labour and Color Production’, Animation Studies, 9. Available at: https://journal.animationstudies.org/kirsten-thompson-quick-like-a-bunny/.
Suppositions and implications:
This research will show that female representation in the industry has been developing towards greater equality although it still remains. It will also prove that gender equality is a right way to move forward, as it benefits the animation industry by creating a more diverse representation in the films and increases options for narratives and archetypes.
