Fempire Inspiration
The 'Fempire' is a term coined by 4 women screenwriters who are huge inspirations to us. They share our philosophy that women should be helping other women in this industry instead of competing with them. They includeDana Fox (What Happened in Vegas, Ben and Kate),
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Why do we care about women in film?
The most obvious reason is that we're both women who want to make films. We want role models to look up to who can reassure us that our dreams are possible. When we see work by Nora Ephron, Tina Fey, or Diablo Cody, we see a possibility that our work might have an audience someday too. Movies with women writers, directors or female leads give us something to aspire to, they give us hope for success.
Do we have male role models too? Of course! But for the most part, the boys are already getting a ton of exposure. If they want a blog about men in film, they can write it themselves. We'll probably read it, but it’s just not our #1 jam, ya know?
There is an underlying idea men aren't interested in women’s stories but women are interested in men’s – therefore stories about men are more likely to sell. Women make up half of the population. Their experiences deserve to be told and they deserve to be told right. The more women who are working behind the camera, the more chances there are to prove that theory wrong.
I want to be able to go to the theater any weekend and see a movie that reflects my own life experience as a woman. Right now, I can't do that.
When it comes right down to it, nothing is more powerful than the stats. Yes, in 2013 there were some great movies about women – the Hunger Games, Gravity and Frozen to name a few – but they were still outnumbered significantly. Out of the top 50 movies of the year, 10 had a female lead or co-lead.
In the top 250 movies of 2013, women accounted for 16% of directors, writers, executive producers, producers, editors and cinematographers. That number was 17% in 1998! Here we are 15 years later and no real progress has been made, it’s frustrating.
So to wrap it up - we don't hate men or movies by men, but we want to be a part of the movement to get women a bigger foothold in Hollywood. We want to tell stories about girls who are like us and not feel like we need to gender swap the main character to be taken seriously. Just like feminism as a whole, we want equality.
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Sarah Stack: Raised by wolves in the vast wilderness of Newfoundland, Sarah is trying to adapt to urban life. Like any classic fish-out-of-water, she spends her time offending the locals, asking for directions, and looking for love in all the wrong places. The only things she's learned to say in Ontarian so far is "Remember that Ikea Monkey?" and "What happened to Andre?" Sarah is rarely seen without her tiny wolf-dog.
@Sarah_253
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Alyssa Wooldridge: Alyssa has become a recluse choosing to live on an abandoned potato farm on the Island of Prince Edward (she calls it a "writing sabbatical"). Her heroes include Beyonce, Oprah and Lindsay Lohan. @AlyssaWool
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