In addition to being just a great filmmaker, Jane Campion is a trailblazer. People may have forgotten that she is the first woman to win the top prize at Cannes, the Palme d’Or. So, she knows a bit about how women are treated in this business. When she says it’s an “exciting” time to be a female filmmaker, we should listen.
Speaking at the Locarno Film Festival (via Deadline), Jane Campion talked about the current state of filmmaking as it relates to being a female filmmaker. Generally, Campion says it’s exciting because more and more women are making films, but also that these women are succeeding.
“It’s so exciting that not only are they making films, but they are succeeding at the top,” said Campion.
Obviously, the biggest example of this is last year’s “Barbie” from writer-director Greta Gerwig. Campion talked about how that success has really paved the way for more female filmmakers to get larger budgets.
She added, “That’s fantastic. For once we have a film that’s not about Marvel characters but a humorous and very creative take on the Barbie and Mattel story. And [Greta Gerwig] is the first woman who has made a historical bundle out of it. It meant women can be trusted with money, finally.”
Often, when you hear someone like Campion say that women can now be “trusted with money,” your first reaction is to think that maybe it’s hyperbole. Surely, women are given those sorts of chances. But honestly, as she mentioned, the only time you really see women with large budgets for films, it’s with the superhero genre. People like Patty Jenkins, Nia DaCosta, and S.J. Clarkson are just some of the recent examples of women directing huge superhero films. Outside of that, it’s a lot rarer.
Even though it’s only been a year since “Barbie” debuted, you kinda get the feeling that Gerwig’s film will continue to be iconic and meaningful in ways we don’t fully understand yet. It’s a film that broke so many records and barriers. It’s clear why Campion is so excited by it.