Greta Gerwig Isn’t as Outraged as Twitter About Her Directing Snub

I think the thing that changes the narrative are sheer numbers. And the numbers are all moving in the right direction. According to the Annenberg study, this year is better than any other year. So you want to see the work acknowledged on the largest stage possible, and there is so much beautiful work done by female writers, producers, directors, creators. But in terms of it all moving in the right direction, that’s all we can do: continue to make the work, make the work, make the work.

So is it just that the academy is lagging behind?

There have been great strides and we’ve got to keep going: keep writing, keep making, keep doing. It’s all there.

Has it gotten any easier?

Making a film is something that is slightly impossible in any circumstance because it’s a giant undertaking, everything is unlikely, all signs point to this is a silly thing to do with your time and money. So any movie that gets made is against all odds, but I think that at this moment, there is just so much more of an effort on the part of the studios who are doing the hiring to hire women to be writers and directors and producers. And also, independent film functions differently and there is a real push by producers to make movies written and directed by women. And there is a ripple effect, because we are paying more attention to festivals, programmers and how they program, what the distributors buy and what they promote.

I keep going back to the work, the work is great and the audiences love it. That’s the whole ballgame and that’s what’s so important and what gives me so much hope.

What’s unfortunate though is what the Annenberg School often points out, which is that there are economic and commercial advantages that Oscar nominees receive from their nominations. It’s not just an accolade.

That’s something that I’ve thought about and we’ve talked about, and it’s incredibly real. It’s going to have to move. It just has to move. When you look at something like “Hustlers” [directed by Lorene Scafaria] that was wildly successful on its own. If it can’t get the bump from an award, which it should, it’s also real that it’s something audiences love. And that will eventually move the awards. I wish it would move all at once, but it is moving.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/13/movies/greta-gerwig-oscars.html?emc=rss&partner=rss