INCLUSION IN ANIMATION?

INCLUSION IN ANIMATION?INVESTIGATING OPPORTUNITIES, CHALLENGES, AND THE

CLASSROOM TO THE C-SUITE PIPELINE USC ANNENBERG INCLUSION INITIATIVE

@Inclusionists

FEMALES ON SCREEN IN ANIMATED STORYTELLING

ANIMATED AND LIVE ACTION FEMALE PRODUCERSPercentage of female producers across 1,200 films Animation Live Action

ANIMATION LIVE ACTION37% 15%

‘07 ‘08 ‘09 ‘10 ‘11 ‘12 ‘13 ‘14 ‘15 ‘16 ‘17 ‘18

12

3337

64

22

52 50

40

50

34 31

16 14 13 14 15 16 17 15 19 1713

26

15

OVERALL

120 Animated Films

1717%

Female Cast

Depicted a Female Lead or

Co Lead

39%

100 Animated TV Series

3%

% of roles for women of color

12%

Film

TV

© 2019 DR. STACY L. SMITH

ANIMATION LIVE ACTION5% 1%

WOMEN OF COLOR

@wia_animation

Percentage of animated films with a female lead or co lead and female cast in TV series

Percentage of Females in the pipeline to directing animated feature filmsPIPELINE PROBLEMS: CAREER PROGRESS STALLS FOR FEMALES

FILM DIRECTORS TV DIRECTORS

3%

1%

13%

2%WOMEN WOMEN

WOMEN OF COLOR WOMEN OF COLOR

FEMALE DIRECTORS ARE RARE IN ANIMATIONDirectors by platform across film & TV


STORY DEPT.18%

DIRECTORS3%

ANIMATORS16%

HEAD OF STORY7%

WRITERS9%8%

HEAD OF ANIMATION

WOMEN BELOW THE LINE IN TOPANIMATED TV SERIES

Percentage of female producers across 100 top animated series of 2018FEMALE PRODUCERS BY POSITION

20%EXEC

PRODUCERS

17% CO-EXEC

PRODUCERS

34% PRODUCERS

71 women6 women of color



STORY EDITOR

HEAD OF EDITING

ANIMATION DIRECTOR

LEAD ANIMATOR

LEAD CHARACTER DESIGNER

LEAD STORYBOARD ARTIST

TOTAL

28%

18%

16%

20%

24%

11%

19%

1%

4%

8%

13%

7%

3%

7%

WOMEN

WOMEN OFCOLOR

17%CREATED BY/

DEVELOPED BY



EXECUTIVE RANKS AT ANIMATION FILM & TV COMPANIES

PRES/CEO/CCO

CHIEF/EVP

VP/HEAD

50% 6%

29% 14%

50% 37%

68% 42%

FILM TV

SVP

GENDER GAPS IN FILM PRODUCTIONKey Roles by Gender across 52 Top Animated Films from 2014-2018in percentages

92 9085Film

EditorHead of

AnimationHead ofLighting

Char EffectsSupervisor

98 91MRST

Supervisor

15 87 14 9

Female Male

86 79

2 21

ArtDirector

ProductionDesigner

93

10

Head ofStory

89

11

Head ofLayout


Women in leadership positions across major film and TV animation companies

Women of color filled 6% of executive roles in film and 9% in television.

THE PIPELINE IS PLENTIFUL IN EARLY CAREER

20172016 2018

33%

67%

35%

35%90%ASPIRE TO

LEADERSHIPROLES

41%AIM TO BE A

SHOWRUNNER

18%WANT TO

DIRECTASPIRE TO BEINGAN ART DIRECTOR

AIM FOR EXECUTIVE ROLES

WHAT ARE WOMEN’S AMBITIONS IN ANIMATION?Career goals of 38 early-career women interviewed

Percentage of animated short films with women directors attached at prominent film festivals

51%

49%

60%

40%


WOMEN WRITERS OF ANIMATED FEATURE FILMS

TOTAL

423

40OUT OF

% OF WOMENWRITERS

0

0

‘08

7

10

‘09

0

0

‘10

0

11

‘11

0

15

‘12

0

6

‘13

0

7

‘14

0

9

‘15

0

3

‘07

2

12

‘16

2

11

‘17

4

19

‘18

% OF WOMENOF COLOR

Short film programs at Sundance Film Festival, SXSW, Tribeca Film Festival, New York Film Festival, and Telluride were included in the analysis.

24%OF EARLY-

CAREERWOMEN

ALL 3

CITED THE HISTORICALLEGACY OF THE

ANIMATION INDUSTRY AS

A REASON FOR EXCLUSION

RESPONSES STATING A MASCULINE CULTURE EXISTS IN ANIMATIONin percentages

37

Directors General Employment

32

19

50

GROUPS OF PARTICIPANTS

WOMEN’S INTEREST IN DIRECTING IS QUESTIONEDPercentage of interview and survey respondents explaining the lack of women film directors due to interest

35%OF DECISION-

MAKERS

21%OF GUILDMEMBERS

2532

Early Career Women Decision-Makers Animation Guild Members


ACROSS 120 TOP ANIMATED FILMS AND

100 EPISODES/SEGMENTS OF TOP ANIMATED TV SERIES.

ALL OF THESE WOMEN WERE ASIAN.

UNDERREPRESENTED FEMALES ARE INVISIBLE AS DIRECTORS

ONLY 4 WOMEN OF COLOR WORKED AS FILM OR TV DIRECTORS

SET TARGET INCLUSION GOALS REDUCE AMBIGUITY & SUBJECTIVITY IN EVALUATION

FOSTER BELONGING ENSURE ENVIRONMENTS DO NOT TRIGGER STEREOTYPES

CREATE INCLUSIVE CONSIDERATION LISTS

STRATEGIC SOLUTIONS TO FOSTER SYSTEMIC CHANGE THROUGHOUT THE INDUSTRY

MAKE INCLUSION A GOAL FOR EVERYONE


1

InclusioninAnimation?InvestigatingOpportunities,Challenges,andtheClassroomtotheC-SuitePipeline

USCAnnenbergInclusionInitiativeThepurposeofthepresentstudywastoexaminetheecosystemofanimationforgenderinclusionquantitativelyandqualitatively.Tothisend,weassessedgenderandthepercentageofwomenofcolorworkingabovetheline,belowthelineinkeyroles,andintheexecutiveranksofboththefilmandTVanimationindustry.WealsomappedouttheU.S.pipelinefrom2016-2018,examiningthepercentageofwomenenrolledorattending5prestigiousanimationprogramsandscreeninganimatedshortsatthe5topfilmfestivalsinthiscountry.Qualitatively,weinterviewed75earlycareerwomeninanimationaswellasexecutivestounderstandthebarrierstoinclusionandbelongingintheindustry.These75indepthinterviewsweresupplementedwithasurveyfromover250menandwomenintheanimationguildinvestigatingreasonsforthelackofgenderparityinthisindustry.Solutionstoinequalityinkeypositionsaretackledinthereportandawayforwardtocreateanorganizationalandindustrywidecultureofbelonging.Belowhighlightsthequantitativeandqualitativekeyfindings.

KeyFindings

AbovetheLineIntermsofcast,only20(17%)ofthe120topanimatedfeaturesfrom2007-2018hadafemaleleadorcolead.Threeofthesefilmsdepictedafemaleofcolor(3%)astheprotagonist.Thenumberswerebetter–butnotequal–acrossthefirstepisodeorsegmentofthe100topanimatedTVseriesonbroadcastandcable.Just39%(n=431of1,105)ofthecreditedcastwasfilledwithgirlsorwomen.Only12%ofthecastwerefemalesofcolor.Lookingagaintothe120filmsample,only2.5%(n=5of197)ofdirectorswerewomen.Fourwomenheldthesefivejobs.Only1wasawomanofcolor(Asian)whoworkedtwice.TurningtoTV,13%(n=16)oftheepisodesor1stsegmentscodedweredirectedbywomen.Only3or2%werehelmedbyawomanofcolor.All3underrepresentedfemalesdirectorswereAsian.Across120topanimatedmoviesreleasedbetween2007and2018,37%(n=91of249)ofproducers("Producedby"only)werewomen.Only5%(n=12)ofallproducerswerewomenofcolor,however.Fifteenpercentofliveactionproducers(n=520outof3,398)across1,080movieswerewomen.Acrossthesametimeframe,only1%ofproducerswerewomenofcolorontheseliveactionproductions.Therehasbeennomeaningfulimprovementinthepercentageoffemaleproducersinliveactionfeaturesover12years.Inanimation,therehasbeenasignificantincreaseovertime.Whileyearlytrendsfollowedacurvilinearpattern(i.e.,linearincreasesfollowedbyabruptdecreases),thelowestpercentagesimprovedsubstantiallyandlinearlyevery3-4years.Theproducersofthe100topanimationseriesof2018alsowerecaptured.Femalesheldonly20%ofEPsand17%ofCoEPsacross100animatedtelevisionshows.Only6womenofcolorheldEPtitles.No

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coEPtitlesinthesamplecreditedawomanofcolor.Morewomen(34%)werecreditedasproducersbuttherewerefewwomenfromunderrepresentedracial/ethnicgroupswiththistitle(8%).Just17%(n=24of145)of“Createdby”or“Developedby”creditswereheldbywomenandonly3ofthosewomenwerefromunderrepresentedracial/ethnicgroups.Ninepercentofwriters(n=40outof423)acrossthe120topanimatedfilmswerewomen.Only6or1%ofthesewriterswerewomenofcolor(4Asian,1Latinx,1multiracial).In100animatedTVseries,25%ofthewriters(n=198)werewomen.Tenofthesewomenwerefromunderrepresentedracial/ethnicbackgrounds(6Asian,2Latinx,1Black,1multiracial).BelowtheLineAcross52ofthetopanimatedfilmsfrom2014-2018,thegenderratioofmalestofemalesacross9keyrolesorunitheadpositionswas8.5to1.Intermsofspecifictitles,only7%(n=4)ofheadofstorypositionswerefilledwithwomen(6%womenofcolor,n=3),15%(n=10)ofeditors(3%womenofcolor,n=2),8%(n=6)ofanimationheads(3%womenofcolor,n=2),14%(n=7)ofartdirectors(4%womenofcolor,n=2),2%(n=1)ofheadoflayout(0womenofcolor),21%(n=10)ofheadoflighting(0womenofcolor),11%(n=5)ofproductiondesigners(0womenofcolor),9%(n=6)ofcharactereffectssupervisors(3%womenofcolor,n=2),and10%(n=14)ofcharactercompositionsupervisors(3%womenofcolor,n=4).Lookingatthestorydepartment,only18%(n=111of605)ofteammemberswerefemalewithroughlythesamelevelofparticipationforwomeninanimation(16%,n=511of3,140)andslightlyhigherparticipationforwomeninart(23%,n=128of544).Aboutaquarterofthelaborpoolwasfemaleincharactereffects(24%,n=251of1,061)andcomposition(26%,n=408of1,571).ForthebelowthelinekeyrolesinanimatedTVseries,femalescomprisedonly28%(n=20)ofstoryeditors(1%womenofcolor,n=1),18%(n=24)ofeditors(4%womenofcolor,n=5),16%(n=21)ofanimationdirectors(8%womenofcolor,n=11),20%(n=26)ofleadanimators(13%womenofcolor,n=17),24%(n=10)ofleadcharacterdesigners(7%womenofcolor,n=3),and11%(n=4)ofleadstoryboardartists(3%womenofcolor,n=1).Wetookadeeperdiveintothegendercompositionofdepartmentsinanimatedtelevisiontoo(n=1,721employees).Justoverathirdofanimatorswerewomen(35%,n=330of937).Incomparison,asimilarpercentagewasfoundofwomenincharacterdesign(33%,n=98of300)andalowerpercentageofwomenasstoryboardartists(24%,n=75of312).Ofthe172storyboardrevisionistslisted,fullyhalf(54%,n=93)werewomen.ExecutiveRanksTheexecutiveranksof10filmand14TVcompanieswereexaminedforgenderandtherace/ethnicityoffemaleleadersasofearlyJune2018.Overhalf(52%,n=53)ofallanimationexecutivesinfilmwerefemaleand39%(n=66)intelevision.Fewerwomenofcolorwereexecutives,withonly7infilm(6%)and16(9%)intelevision.Clearly,theexperiencesofwhitewomenandwomenofcolorarevastlydifferentonthecorporatesideofanimation.

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Thedistributionforfilmandtelevisionexecutivesbygenderwerequitedifferent.Atthetopoffilm,fullyhalfoftheleadershippositions(e.g.,CEO,CCO,Presidents)wereheldbywomenwhereasonly6%ofthemostprestigiouspostsintelevisionwere.AcommonpatternwasalsofoundacrosstelevisionandfromVPleveltoEVP/Chieflevelinfilm:aspowerincreases,females’participationdecreases.Allbut2ofthe23womenofcolorexecutiveswerefoundattheSVPlevelandbelow.PipelinefromClassroomtoCareerAcross5esteemedanimationprogramsintheU.S.(USC,UCLA,CalArts,Ringling,SVA),welloverhalfofallthoseattendingorenrolledwerefemale.Cuttingacrossgraduateandundergraduateprogramsevaluated,65%ofstudentsenrolledintopanimatedprogramswerefemalein2016and69%in2018.Turningtothe5topfilmfestivals(SundanceFilmFestival,SXSW,Tribeca,NYFF,Telluride),47%ofallanimatedshortsevaluated(n=69outof146)hadatleastonefemaledirectorattached.Thepercentagesincreasednotablyacrossthethreeyearsevaluated(2016=33%;2017=51%,2018=60%).Thus,thereisastrongandfemale-tippingpipelinecomingoutoftopanimationprogramsandfilmfestivalsinthecountry.Whilethisrepresentsthepipelinepriortoenteringtheindustry,executivesindicatedthatthepathwaywithinfilmanimationtobecomingadirectorwasthroughstory,animation,orwriting.Only7%ofthoserunningstorywerewomenfollowedby18%ofthestoryteam.Ifthepathisthroughanimation,thenumbersareequallyproblematicfromunitheads(8%female)to16%ofanimators.Last,somedirectorscomethroughwritingandonly9%ofcreditedwriterswerewomenacross52topanimatedfilms.ThesametrajectoryinTVwasnotpossibletoilluminate,giventhevastdifferencesincreditingdomesticallyandinternationallyintheindustry.Clearly,thedropoffinfemaleparticipationisbetweenFestivalscreeningsandworkingwithinanimationcompanies.Femalesdonothavethesameaccessandopportunityasmalesanddonotseemtobemovinguptheranksasquicklyinthespace.QualitativeFindingsResultsfrominterviewsandsurveyspointtothreemajorimpedimentsfacingwomen.First,thatacultureofhomophilypreventswomenfromfeelingasenseofbelongingandmovingforwardintheircareers.Responsesfrom50%ofearly-careerwomen,32%ofdecision-makers,and25%ofAnimationGuildmembersindicatedthata‘boy’sclub’interferedwithwomenbecomingdirectors.Thissentimentwasalsoconveyedby37%ofearly-careerwomen,19%ofdecision-makers,and32%ofAnimationGuildmemberswhendiscussingthereasonsforthelackofwomenacrosstheanimationindustry.Second,womenreportedbeingvaluedlessthantheirmalecounterpartsandthatgenderstereotypingplaysaroleintheircareerpath.Whendiscussingdirectors,37%ofearly-careerwomen,57%ofdecision-makers,and26%ofAnimationGuildmemberscitedwomen’sexperienceandaperceptionofriskinessasreasonsthatpreventmorewomenfromascendingtorolesasadirector.Aculturethatdoesnotvaluewomenwasidentifiedby47%ofearly-careerwomen,and19%eachofdecision-makersandAnimationGuildmembersasareasonforthegenderimbalanceinemploymentmorebroadly.Third,womenareperceivedtolackambitionorinterestinthefield.Roughlyone-quarterofearly-careerwomencitedthisexplanationforbothdirectorsandwhendiscussinggeneralemployment.Thirty-fivepercentofdecision-makersclaimedwomen’sambitionwasareasonforthelackofwomendirecting,and30%gavethisreasonforwomen’semploymentoverall.Finally,21%ofAnimationGuildmembersstated

4

women’sintereststeeredthemawayfromdirecting,while20%offeredthisexplanationforwomen’sparticipationacrosstheindustry.Incontrasttothesestatements,90%ofwomeninterviewedstatedthattheyaspiredtoleadershippositionsinanimation,includingbeingashowrunner,director,artdirector,orotherkeyroles.Thefinalsetofresponsesfocusedontheuniqueexperiencesofwomenofcolorintheindustry,namelytheirstatusastokensandtheresultingissuesthatcreated.Two-thirdsoftheearly-careerwomenofcolorwhoparticipatedintheinterviewsstatedthatnegativeconsequencesemergedfromtheir“token”statusintheindustry,includingisolationandloneliness.

5

InclusioninAnimation?InvestigatingOpportunities,Challenges,andtheClassroomtotheC-SuitePipeline

USCAnnenbergInclusionInitiative

Theconversationsurroundingwomen’sparticipationinentertainmenthasreachedafeverpitchinthelastyear.Animportantaspectofthedialoguehasbeenworkplaceequity,illuminatingalackofinclusiononscreenandbehindthecamerainkeyproductionroles.PreviousresearchhasdemonstratedthatfemalesareunderrepresentedintheC-suiteofmediaentertainmentcompaniesaswellasonproductionsetsinrolesasdirectors,writers,andproducersinbothTVandfilm.1Individualsfromunderrepresentedracial/ethnicgroupsalsofaceemploymentdisparitiesacrosstheseplatforms,particularlywomenofcolor.Just4%ofthe1,335directorsoftop-grossingfilmsreleasedbetween2007and2018werefemalesandonly9werewomenofcolor.

Whiletheabovestatisticsareshocking,theyrefertofeaturesinbothliveactionandanimatedformats.Littleisknownaboutwomenworkingaboveandbelowthelineinanimationspecifically,asthisartformrarelyreceivesthesamelevelofempiricalscrutinybyacademicsandadvocacygroupsasdoesitsliveactioncounterpart.Forinstance,theDirectorsGuildofAmericapublishesyearlythetotalnumberofwomenandpeopleofcolordirectingepisodesofscriptedliveactionseries.2Animatedprogramsarenotincludedintheirtallies,makingitimpossibletotrackthecareerprogress–orlackthereof–ofhiringwomendirectorsacrossthisformofentertainment.Pastdirectors,weknowverylittleaboutotherkeyrolesinanimationsuchasproducing,editing,storyorcharacterdesign.Clearly,acomprehensiveassessmentisneededtonotonlyunderstandthecurrentstateoftheunionasitpertainstodiversity,inclusionandbelongingintheanimationindustrybutalsoamapofthewayforwardtowardchange.Thisreportisintendedtofillthisvoidusingbothquantitativeandqualitativemethodologies.Quantitatively,weassessthegenderofemployeesworkingaboveandbelowthelineacrossthetopanimatedfilmsandTVshows.Thescopeofourresearchisnotlimitedtoproductionandcreativeroles,wealsoexaminethegendercompositionofC-suitesandorganizationalchartsofthemajoranimationcompaniesworkinginthemovieandtelevisionspacesaswellasthepipeline(e.g.,animationprograms,filmfestivals)fromclassroomtocareer.Wehighlightthepercentageofwomeninthesepositionsaswellasthosefemalesfromunderrepresentedraces/ethnicities.Qualitatively,weconducted75indepthinterviewswithexecutivesandleadersinanimationaswellasthosefemalesemployedatcompaniesand/ordoingfreelanceworkinthespaceforroughly2-7years.Thegoalherewastoexamineperceptionsofthebarrierstoentry,promotionandretentionamongwomenaswellasobstaclesandopportunitieswithintheanimationindustrytoacceleratingchange.Tofurtherilluminatetheresultsfromtheinterviews,weconductedashortonlinesurveywithover250maleandfemalemembersoftheAnimationGuildaskingopen-endedquestionsaboutthelackofgenderequityintheindustry.Thereportconcludeswithsummarizingtheresearchandofferingsolutionsforchange.Overall,thismulti-prongapproachwillbegintopaintapictureoftheanimationecosystem.Wheneverpossible,webreakouttheresultsforwomenbyunderrepresentedstatus(no,yes)asweknowwomen’slivedexperienceswithinentertainmentvarygreatlybyrace/ethnicity.Onlydifferencesof5percentage

6

pointsorgreaterareindicatorsofchangeinthisreport.

QuantitativeAnalysisBelow,wewilldocumentthegenderandrace/ethnicity(whencaptured)ofindividualsworkingabove(directors,producers,cast)andbelowtheline(unitheads,keyroles,crewwithinspecificdepartments)infilmandthentelevision.3Notallanalysesarecompletelyreplicatedacrossthetwoplatforms,duetothedifferencesinthetypeofanimationtypicallyused(3Dvs.2D)andtheissuesofonestoryvs.multipleepisodesandsegmentswithinseries.MovieorTVcreditsappearingatthebeginningandendofstorylines,segments,orepisodeswereusedtomakedeterminations.Putdifferently,wedidnotrelyonindustrydatabases(IMDbPro.com,VarietyInsight)toascertainwhowascreditedinfilmandTV(saveoneposition,writersinfilm).AbovetheLineFourabovethelineoccupationswereexplored.Thefirstwascasting(seeTable1).Acrossthe120topanimatedfilmsfrom2007-2018,weexaminedthepercentagewithafemaleleadorcoleaddrivingtheaction.4InTV,weassessedthegenderofthecreditedcast/voicetalentacrossthefirstepisodeorsegmentofthe100topanimatedTVshowsof2018targetedatchildrenand/oradults.5NeitherfilmnorTVisanywhereclosetoparity.Only20(17%)ofthetopanimatedfeatures(n=120)hadafemaleleadorcolead.Threeofthesefilms(Smurfs:TheLostVillage,Moana,ThePrincessandtheFrog)featuredafemaleofcolor(3%)voicingorappearingastheprotagonist.ThenumberswerebetterinTV,butstillfarfromequal.Just39%(n=431of1,105)ofthecreditedcastwasfilledwithgirlsorwomen.6UnpackingthefemalesonscreeninTVwasimportant,as27%werewhitefemalesand12%werefemalesofcolor.

Table1Leads&CreditedCastsinAnimatedFilms&TVShows

Measures AnimatedFilms AnimatedTVShows%w/women 17%(n=20) 39%(n=431)%w/womenofcolor 3%(n=3) 12%(n=132)Total 120 100

Note:Forfilms,thepercentagesshouldberead“thepercentageoftopanimatedfilmswithafemaleleadorcolead.”ForTV,theresultsareframedas“thepercentageofthecreditedcastthatisvoicedbywomen/girls.”

Thesecondpositionabovethelineevaluatedwasdirecting(seeTable2).Lookingagaintothe120filmsample,only2.5%(n=5of197)ofdirectorswerewomen.Fourwomenheldthesefivejobs,asJenniferYuhNelsonworkedtwiceacrosstheKungFuPandafranchise.Theother3femaledirectorswereallCaucasian.TurningtoTV,13%(n=16)oftheepisodesor1stsegmentscodedweredirectedbywomen.7Only3or2%werehelmedbyawomanofcolor.AllthreeunderrepresentedfemaledirectorswereAsian(i.e.,NikiYang,LynnWang,AoiUmeki).

7

Table2

PercentageofWomenDirectorsinAnimatedFilm&TVShows

Measures Film TV

%ofdirectorsthatwerewomen2.5%(n=5)

13%(n=16)

%ofdirectorsthatwerewomenofcolor1%(n=2)

2%(n=3)

Total 197 127Note:Thetotalsamplesizewas120animatedfilmsandthefirstepisodeorsegmentcodedacross100animatedTVseries.Fiveepisodesdidnotcreditadirector.

Thethirdabovethelinepositionassessedisproducing.Becauseofthenotabledifferencesbetweenfilmandtelevision,wewilldiscussthemseparately.Forfilm,weonlyexaminedthegenderofthosewith“Producedby”credits(seeTable3).Across120topanimatedmoviesreleasedbetween2007and2018,37%(n=91of249)ofthesecreditswereheldbywomen.Only5%(n=12)ofallproducerswerewomenofcolor.Incomparison,15%ofliveactionproducers(n=520outof3,398)werewomen.Only1%(n=40)ofproducersacrossthissamplewerewomenofcoloronliveactionproductions.

Table3PercentageofWomenProducersinAnimatedvs.LiveActionFilms

Measures Animation LiveAction%ofproducersthatwerewomen 37%(n=91) 15%(n=520)%ofproducersthatwerewomenofcolor 5%(n=12) 1%(n=40)

Hasthepercentageoffemaleproducerschangedovertime?Examining1,200liveactionandanimatedfilmstheatricallyreleasedbetween2007and2018revealedtwomajortrends,asshowninFigure1.First,thepercentageoffemaleproducersinliveactioncontent(15%)hasremainedaflatlinefor12years.Therehasbeennomeaningfulchange,probablyduetolargelyexplicitbiases.8Second,notonlyisthepercentageoffemaleproducers22percentagepointshigherinanimatedfilms,butthepatternofhiringincreasesanddecreasesovertime.Mostnotably,thelowestpercentagesacrossthestudytimeframehaveincreased(12%,22%,26%,31%)suggestingtheanimationindustryinfilmmaybeatworktowardsmoreinclusivehiringpracticesintheproducerranks.

8

Figure1WomenProducersbyPlatformType:2007-2018

Thecreditingprocessandhierarchyofproducersisslightlydifferentinanimatedtelevision.Here,weassessedthegenderofexecutiveproducers,coexecutiveproducersandproducersacrossthe100topanimationseriesof2018.Femaleswereonly20%ofEPsand17%ofCoEPsacross100animatedtelevisionshows(seeTable4).9Only6womenofcolorheldEPtitles(i.e.,4Asian,1MiddleEastern/NorthAfrican,1Latinx)andnoneheldcoEPtitlesinthesample.Morewomen(34%)werecreditedasproducers,butfewofthesewomenwerefromunderrepresentedracial/ethnicgroups(8%;12Asianwomen,2Blackwomen,2Latinxwomen).10Additionally,only17%(n=24of145)of“Createdby”or“Developedby”creditswereattributedtowomen.Only3(2%)ofthosewomenwereunderrepresented(i.e.,1Asian,1MiddleEastern/NorthAfrican,1Black).

Table4

PercentageofWomenbyProducerTypeinAnimatedTVShows

MeasuresCreated

byExecutiveProducers

CoExecutiveProducers

Producers

%women 17%(n=24) 20%(n=71) 17%(n=10) 34%(n=64)%womenofcolor 2%(n=3) 2%(n=6) 0 8%(n=16)Total 145 352 57 190

Thefinalpositionwaswriting.11Across120films,9%ofwriterswerefemale(n=40)andonly6of423werewomenofcolor(1%).Ofthe6womenofcolor,4wereAsian,1wasLatinxand1wasmulticultural.Lessthanafifthofwriterswerewomen(19%)in2018whichishigherthan2007whenonly1femalewriterwascreditedacrossthetheatricallyreleasedanimatedfeatures(seeTable5).Numerically,thehighestnumberofwomenworkingwasin2012butnoneofthesejobswereheldbywomenofcolor.For

12%

33%

37%

64%

22%

52%50%

26%

40%

50%

34%31%

13%17%

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18

Animation

LiveAction

9

television,198writerswerecreditedacrossthe100topanimatedseries.12Aquarterofthewriterswerewomen(n=50)andonly10werewomenofcolor(5%).SixofthesewomenwereAsian,2Latinx,1Black,and1multiracial.

Table5PercentageofWomenWritersinAnimatedFeatureFilmsbyYear

Measures 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18%womenwriters 3% 0 10% 0 11% 15% 6% 7% 9% 12% 11% 19%%womenofcolorwriters 0 0 7% 0 0 0 0 0 0 2% 2% 4%TotalWriters 36 23 41 16 55 45 35 29 21 43 52 27Insum,fewwomenparticipateonscreenorabovethelineinanimatedstorytelling.ThisistrueforfilmandTV.Thepercentageandnumberofwomenofcolorwithaccessandopportunityonscreenandabovethelinewasatthefloor.However,therewasonemajorbrightspotintheresultsofthissection.Thepercentageoffemaleproducersinanimatedfilmmakingwasstrongandincreasing.However,mostofthesepositionswerefilledprimarilybywhitewomen.BelowtheLineTheprocessesbelowthelineforfilms(3D/CGI)andtelevisionshows(2D/handdrawing)arevastlydifferent.Assuch,wereportonthesepositionsseparatelybelow.Startingwithanimatedfilms,welookedatthegenderofindividualsholding9keyrolesaswellastherace/ethnicityofwomeninthesepositions(underrepresentedvs.not)across52ofthetopanimatedfilmsfrom2014-2018.13AsshowninTable6,therangeoffemaleparticipationbelowthelineisfromalowof2%toahighof21%.Forwomenfromunderrepresentedracial/ethnicgroups,thereiscompleteabsenceinsomepositions(i.e.,HeadofLayout,Lighting,ProductionDesigner)andlessthan7%inallothers.

Table6Women’sParticipationBelowtheLineinAnimatedFilms

Department %Women %WomenofColor TotalHeadofStory 7%(n=4) 6%(n=3) 54FilmEditor 15%(n=10) 3%(n=2) 67HeadofAnimation 8%(n=6) 3%(n=2) 76ArtDirector 14%(n=7) 4%(n=2) 51HeadofLayout 2%(n=1) 0 53HeadofLighting 21%(n=10) 0 48ProductionDesigner 11%(n=5) 0 45CharacterEffectsSupervisor 9%(n=6) 3%(n=2) 67MRSTSupervisor 10%(n=14) 3%(n=4) 135Total 11%(n=63) 3%(n=15) 596

Note:MRSTreferstoModeling,Rigging,Surfacing,Texturingorcharactercomposition.Weconductedadeeperdiveintothegendercompositionofdepartments(n=6,921)thatmightbeimportantforpipelinepurposesinfilmanimation.14AnonlinenameandgenderdatabasewasqueriedwithanAPIfortheseanalyses,sorace/ethnicitywasnotcaptured.Instory,only18%(n=111of605)of

10

teammemberswerefemalewithroughlythesamelevelofparticipationforwomeninanimationdepartments(16%,n=511of3,140)andslightlyhigherparticipationinart(23%,n=128of544).Aboutaquarterofthelaborpoolwasfemaleincharactereffects(24%,n=251of1,061)andcomposition(26%,n=408of1,571).Turningtothe100topanimatedTVseries,weilluminatethepercentagesandnumbersofwomenworkingacross6keyroles.15TwoparticulartrendsemergeinTable7.Femaleparticipationrangesfromalowof11%(leadstoryboardartists)toahighof28%(storyeditors).Focusingonwomenofcolor,justoverhalfofallfemaleanimationdirectorswereunderrepresented.Acrossthesewomentherewaslittlevariationbyrace/ethnicity,asall38underrepresentedwomenwereAsiansavethree.

Table7Women’sParticipationBelowtheLineinAnimatedTVSeries

Department %Women %WomenofColor TotalStoryEditor 28%(n=20) 1%(n=1) 72HeadofEditing 18%(n=24) 4%(n=5) 132AnimationDirector 16%(n=21) 8%(n=11) 135LeadAnimator 20%(n=26) 13%(n=17) 132LeadCharacterDesigner 24%(n=10) 7%(n=3) 41LeadStoryboardArtist 11%(n=4) 3%(n=1) 36Total 19%(n=105) 7%(n=38) 548

Note:Notallshowscreditedleadsorunitheads.Ifthesamplesizeisbelow100,thefindingsshouldbeinterpreted withcaution.Lead/supervising/keyweretermsalltreatedsynonymously.Similartofilm,wetookadeeperdiveintodepartmentsusingavailableinformationonthegenderofteammembersonline(n=1,721).Justoverathirdofanimatorswerewomen(35%,n=330of937).Incomparison,asimilarpercentagewasfoundforwomenincharacterdesign(33%,n=98of300)andalowerpercentageasstoryboardartists(24%,n=75of312).Ofthe172storyboardrevisionistslisted,fullyhalf(54%,n=93)werewomen.Overall,thepercentagesoffemalesinfilmandTVworkingbelowthelineasunitheadsandinkeyrolesdonotdifferthatdramatically.Whereweseemorefemaleparticipationisatthelowerlevelsbelowtheline,particularlyinTVanimation.There,femalestakeupfromaquartertofullyhalfofthespaceonteams.Thus,2Danimationseemstobemoreopentowomeninbelowthelinerolesthan3Danimation.ExecutiveRanksHere,weexamined24ofthetopfilm(n=10)andtelevision(n=14)studiosandproductioncompaniescreatinganimatedcontent.16Eachoftheorganizationalchartsorexecutiveranksforthecompanieswerepulledfromthecompany'swebsiteorVarietyInsight,iftheywerepubliclyavailable.Then,wesoughttoverifythecurrentorganizationalhierarchyofeachcompanywithmembersoftheanimationcommunity,humanresourcesdepartments,ortheirbusinessexecutives.Eachnamewasexaminedforgenderandunderrepresentedracial/ethnicstatus(no/yes).Itmustbenotedthatifacompanyproduces/distributesbothfilmandtelevisioncontentanddidnotdifferentiateteamswithineachplatform,theexecutiveswereputinthefilmcolumn.

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Table8Women’sParticipationAcrossFilm&TVAnimationCompanies

Measures FilmExecutives TVExecutives%womenacrossallranks 52% 39%%womenofcoloracrossallranks 6% 9%

AsshowninTable8,theexecutiverankswerefilledwithwomenasofearlyJune2018.Overhalf(52%,n=53)ofallanimationexecutivesinfilmwerefemaleand39%(n=66)intelevision.Fewerwomenofcolorwereexecutives,withonly7infilm(6%)and16(9%)intelevision.Clearly,theexperiencesofwhitewomenandwomenofcolorarevastlydifferentonthecorporatesideofanimation.Theabovepercentagesdonotrevealhowwomenweredoingacrosstherangeofexecutivetitlesatanimationcompanies.Tothisend,theexecutiveranksaredisplayedinTable9.Thedistributionsforfilmandtelevisionwerequitedifferent.

Table9Women’sParticipationAcrossExecutiveRanksinFilm&TVAnimationCompanies

Rank%WomenExecutivesin

FilmAnimation%WomenExecutivesin

TVAnimationCEO,CCO,President 50% 6%Chief/EVP 29% 14%SVP 50% 37%VP/Head 68% 52%DirectorEquivalent 50% 42%

Atthetopoffilm,womenheldfullyhalfofthetopleadershippositionswhereasonly6%ofthemostprestigiouspostsintelevisionwere.AcommonpatternwasalsofoundacrosstelevisionandfromVPleveltoEVP/Chieflevelinfilm:aspowerincreases,females’participationdecreases.Allbut2ofthe23womenofcolorwerefoundattheSVPlevelandbelow.PipelineforWomeninAnimationWeassessedthepipelineintwoways.First,wewereinterestedinfemales’participationinanimationprogramsacrosstheUnitedStates.EnrollmentorattendancedatapertermoryearwascollectedfromschoolofficialsattheUniversityofSouthernCalifornia;UniversityofCalifornia,LosAngeles;RinglingCollegeofArtandDesign;SchoolofVisualArts;CaliforniaInstitutefortheArts;andRhodeIslandSchoolofDesign.17Thedatawerecollectedatboththeundergraduateandgraduatelevelfor2016,2017,and2018.AcrosseveryyearatboththeBachelor'sandMaster'slevels,femalesclockedinathalformoreofenrolledorattendingstudentsinanimationprograms.Averagesrevealthatbetween65%in2016and69%in2018oftheanimationstudentbodyacrosstheseinstitutionswasfemale.Thus,roughlytwo-thirdsofthestudentbodyinthesefeederschoolsarewomen!Thesecondindicatorofinterestwastoexaminethepercentageofanimatedshortfilmswithafemaledirectorattachedacrossthesametimeframe.18Here,everyanimatedshortfromSundanceFilmFestival,SXSW,Tribeca,NewYorkFilmFestival,andTelluridewasevaluatedbetween2016and2018.Overall,47%ofallanimatedshortsassessed(n=69outof146)hadatleastonefemaledirectorattached(seeTable

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10).Further,thepercentagesincreasednotablyeachyear(2016=33%,2017=51%,2018=60%).Thepipelinedoesn'tseemtobecrackingorleakingfromtheclassroomtoexhibitingshortsinthebroaderU.S.animationecosystem.

Table10PercentageofAnimatedShortFilmsDirectedbyWomenAcross5U.S.Festivals:2016-2018

Measure 2016 2017 2018%w/womendirectorsattached 33% 51% 60%Total 54 47 45

Whilethesemaybestandardwaystoframeabaseline,wealsowantedtoassessthepipelinefordirectingpositionswithincompanies.Thenumbersforfemaleparticipationin3Dand2Danimationarelow,asnotedabove.Forfilm,thepipelineortracktodirectingisprimarilythroughstoryandwritingbutalsoanimation.AsshowninTable11,thereisasmallpoolofwomenattheheadofstoryandanimationandslightlymoreinthoseteams.Butthepercentagesarewellbelowevenafifthofthecurrentworkforce.EffortsareneededtoencourageandacceleratewomencomingoutofschoolsandFestivalprogramsontoteamswithinthesetrackssothattheycanoccupyleadershiprolesovertimeleadingtodirecting.

Table11TracksLeadingtoDirectingAnimatedFilms

FilmDirectors(2.5%)

↑HeadofStory(7%) ↑HeadofAnimation(8%) ↑Writing(9%)↑StoryDepartment(18%) ↑Animators(16%) n/a

Examiningthepipelinetodirectinganimationintelevisionisfarmoredifficult.Notallshowscreditstoryeditorsorthoseleadingorsupervisingstoryboardartists.Ifthetracktodirecting(13%)isthroughstoryinTV,thepipelineemergedfromstoryboardsupervising(11%)andstoryboarding(24%)ononehandorfromtheheadofstorydepartmentontheother(28%).Roughlyaquarteroftheworkforcewasheldbywomenintwoofthesepositions,thoughthevastmajorityofthesefemaleswereCaucasian.Thesefindingsshouldbeinterpretedwithcaution,giventhatnotallshowscreditaboveorbelowthelinetalentconsistently.Takentogether,thepipelinefromtheclassroomtosustainablecareerfallsoffinthetracksorrankswithinanimationcompanies–notbefore!Whilethisistrueforwomenoverall,thelackofracial/ethnicdiversityamongwomenisaparticularchallengetotheanimationindustryasinclusionisastrongcharacteristicofGenZorthosecurrentlyenteringtheworkforce.19Giventhesetrends,itbecomesimportanttounderstandthehowandwhywomen'sparticipationdeclinesincertainareasandwhytheyarethrivinginothers.Towardthisgoal,weinterviewedandsurveyedwomen–andmen–intheindustrytounderstandwhereimpedimentstobelongingandinclusionareoccurringandwhattodoaboutthem.Theresultsofthesestudiesarethefocusofthenextsectionofthereport.

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QualitativeStudy

Itisimportanttounderstandthereasonswhytherearefewerwomenandespeciallywomenofcolorincertainrolesthroughouttheanimationindustry.Tosupplementthequantitativeportionofthereport,aqualitativestudythatconsistedofthreecomponentswasundertaken.In-depthinterviewswereconductedwith38early-careerwomen(1.5to12yearsofexperienceintheindustry,32%fromunderrepresentedracial/ethnicgroups),withanaverageageof29.20Anadditionalsetofin-depthinterviewswereheldwith37decision-makers(30%male,19%underrepresented,averageage=51).21WesupplementedthesetwosetsofdatawithanonlinesurveyofAnimationGuildmembers.Morethan250individualsansweredquestionsdesignedtoascertainperceptionsaboutthelackofwomenworkinginvariousindustryroles.Nearlyhalf(48%)weremale,32%werefromunderrepresentedracial/ethnicgroups,andthesamplehadanaverageageof43.22

Theinterviewsandsurveycoveredthreemainareas:reasonsforthelackofwomenasdirectors,producers,andworkingthroughouttheindustry.Inaddition,actionstakenbycompaniesandothergroupstofacilitatechangewerediscussed.23Responsesfrominterviewandsurveyparticipantswereanalyzedandgroupedintofouruniquecategoriesthatilluminatethemes.Below,eachoftheseareaswillbediscussedalongsidecontextuallyrelevanttheoreticalandempiricalinsightsfromotherorganizationsandacademicdisciplines.#1WomenareHamperedbyHomophilyAlthoughtheanimationindustryemploysmorementhatwomeninitsranks,responsesfrominterviewsandsurveyspointedtomorethansimplyanumericalimbalance.Theexistenceofwhatparticipantscalledthe“boy’sclub”—amasculineculturethatfavorsandpromotesmenduetosimilarity—washighlightedaslimitingwomen’sworkandascensionthroughtheindustryranks.

Figure2ResponsesIndicatingtheExistenceofABoy’sClubasAnImpedimenttoWomen’sCareers

50%

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Directors GeneralEmployment

Early-CareerWomen Decision-Makers AnimationGuildMembers

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Labellingtheindustrya‘boy’sclub’tellsusverylittleaboutthereasonswomenareleftoutofanimation,otherthanpointingtoanumericalimbalancethatskewstowardmen.Instead,lookingdeeperattheresponsesrevealsthattheprimaryissuefacingwomenisalackofbelongingtoanorganizationalcultureinwhichpreferenceisgiventomaleemployees.Thiswasevidentinresponsesthatcenteredaroundmen’sconsciousandunconsciousbiasesandallegiancestoworkwithothermen--whichalignswithanempiricalconceptcalledhomophily,theideathatindividualsformrelationshipswithotherpeoplewhoaresimilartothemonakeytrait(e.g.,gender,race,etc.).24

Beyonddifficultyinaccessingpredominantlymalenetworks,alackofculturefitmayreducewomen’ssenseofbelonginganddesiretoworkintheanimationindustry.Researchinthedomainofcomputersciencerevealsthatwhenwomenareconfrontedwithstereotypicalrolemodelsorenvironments,theyreportlessinterestinjoiningthefield,lowersenseofbelonging,andreducedperceptionsoftheirsuccess.25Inthesestudies,rolemodelscanbemaleorfemale,whilestereotypicalenvironmentsconsistofroomswithscience-fictionpostersonthewall,artifactsonshelves(e.g.,toys,robots,sciencefictioncharacters)orwithvisibletechequipment.Itispossiblethatthemale-skewedenvironmentsofanimationcompaniescreateasimilarfeelinginwomeninthisindustry.Eighteenpercentofearly-careerwomennamedthemale-dominatedcultureasapersonalbarriertotheircareer.Oneeffectofworkinginanindustrywherewomenexpecttoexperiencethreatstotheirgenderidentityisrelatedtotheirattention.Atleastonestudyshowsthatwomenmaydevotemoreattentiontoenvironmentalcueswhentheyanticipateinteractingwithasexistman.26Ifwomenareallottingattentionandenergytoremainingvigilantregardingpotentialidentityharms,thismayreducetheirabilitytodevotefocusandattentiontotheirwork.Inthisway,themale-dominatedenvironmentsormaleculturesinwhichwomenworkmayhavedetrimentaleffectsbeyondwomenthemselvestoinfluencetheirworkproduct.

…systemsinplaceinherentlyfavormen,whiletheaggressivecompetitivenatureoffindingworkcanbeunfairlydiscouragingtowomen.Studiosaremorelikelytotreatwomenunfairly;nothiringthemforleadershippositions,lesspayforthesamejob,requestingextrawork/dutiesofwomenratherthanmenbecause[of]womenbeingmoreinsecureandgoingwiththeflowisexpected.Meninchargegivejobstopeopletheyfeelcomfortablewith(othermen)anddon'tseewomenascapableleaders.Becausewomenaregivenlessopportunitiesanddonotbenefitofthemalesupportthatguysprefertogivetoeachother.

AcrosssurveyandinterviewresponsestoquestionsaboutleadershipandGuildemployment,anadditionalfactoremerged.Thelegacyoftheanimationindustry,orhistoricalpracticesfromtheinceptionofthemedium,weresaidtohavebirthedanenvironmentwherewomenwerenotwelcome.Thisbecameevenmoreclearwhenresponsestothequestionregardingthelackoffemaledirectorswasexamined.CitingtheearlydaysofanimationandtheNineOldMenatDisney,respondentsstatedthatwomenhadbeenkeptoutofmasculineoccupationsandrelegatedto“inkandpaint”roles.Notincludedinthiscategory,butrelevanttothediscussionwereresponsesthatreferencedhowmorerecent

15

historicalindustrytrends(e.g.,pastfewdecades,generations)favoredmeninleadershipormoregeneralroles.

Historicalbiasesinanimationwerementionedby24%(n=9)ofearlycareerwomen,22%(n=8)ofdecision-makers,and6%(n=14)ofAnimationGuildmemberswhenspeakingaboutthelackofdirectors.ThisexplanationwasalsoprovidedwhendiscussingGuildemployeedisparities.Twenty-onepercent(n=8)ofearlycareerwomen,35%(n=13)ofdecision-makers,and13%(n=36)ofAnimationGuildmembersstatedthattraditionsfromearlyanimationaffecttoday’sgenderimbalance.

Whilewomenhavemadestridesinrelationtowheretheybeganintheanimationindustry,relyingonthisindicatorasanexplanationforbiasinthepresentisinsufficient.Researchevidenceshowsthatcomparingprogressforwomenwithatimepointinthepastreducesperceptionsofcurrentdiscriminationrelativetodrawingacomparisonbetweenpresent-daytreatmentofmenandwomen.27Toensurethatindividualsaccuratelyestimateprogressforwomen,providingdataonwomen’sparticipationinthecurrentmomentisessential.

#2WomenareViewedasLessValuable

Asecondpatternthatemergedacrossinterviewsandsurveyssurroundedtheviewandtreatmentofwomeninanimation.Acrossparticipantsandquestions,answersrecountedthewaysinwhichwomenaredoubted,discredited,orlessvaluedbyindividualsandinstitutions.Theresultsrevealthatthewaywomenareperceivedandtheresultingbehaviorstheyfacepresentakeyimpedimenttoprogress.

Figure3ResponsesRegardingtheLackofFemaleDirectors

Women’scapabilities,experienceandpresenceinthetalentpipelinewerecalledonasexplanationsforthelackoffemaledirectors.Additionally,elevatingwomentotheroleofdirectorisseentoincurriskforstudiosandevenforindividualswhoadvocateforwomen’sascension.Thirty-sevenpercentofearly-

37%

21%

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26% 23%

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Experience&Risk GenderStereotypes


16

careerwomen(n=14),57%(n=21)ofdecision-makers,and26%(n=65)ofAnimationGuildparticipantsprovidedanswersthatfitintothiscategory.

Becausepeoplearenotwillingtotrysomethingnew-femalesareseenasariskasmostanimatorsaremale.Whenitcomestofeaturefilms,studiosaren'twillingtotakeasmany"risks."Beinganon-white,non-maledirectorisstillconsidereda"risk"intheindustry...thestudiostendtohirethesamedirectorsthathavemadesuccessfulfilmsbefore.

Asecondreasongivenforthelackoffemaledirectorsispervasivegenderstereotypes—particularlyrelatedtoleadership—thatstillgovernhowwomenareperceived.Twenty-onepercentofearlycareerwomen(n=8),19%(n=7)ofdecision-makers,and23%(n=59)ofAnimationGuildparticipantsofferedexplanationsthatalignedwiththiscategory.Respondentsindicatedthatqualitiesassociatedwithdirectingarelinkedtotraditionallymasculineattributes(e.g.,beingcompetitive,decisive,andaggressive).Incontrast,conventionallyfemininetraitswerementionedaslessdesirablefordirectors,orcreateddifferentprofessionalopportunitiesorimpededequalityinorganizations.Theroleofproducingisalsolinkedtogenderstereotypes—thoughintheoppositedirection.Stereotypicallyfemininetraitswereinvokedtoexplainwhywomenrisetopositionsofinfluenceasproducers.Qualitiesthatwereseenasmorefeminineinnaturewerenamedby58%(n=22)oftheearly-careerwomeninterviewedand62%(n=23)ofdecision-makersasreasonsthatwomenexcelorenterthefieldofproducing.Examplesoftheseattributesincludedbeingorganized,collaborating,andsupportingothers.Morecondescendingreferencesincludeddescribingproducersas“caretakers,”or“helpmates,”andassociatedtasksas“secretarial,”“administrative,”andeven“parenting.”Acrossdirectorsandproducers,thedependenceonstereotypicalassumptionsaboutleadershipandgenderrolesisperhapsbestillustratedbytherespondentswhostatedthatwomenwerebetteratmultitasking,whichinturnmadethembetterproducers.Yettheempiricalevidencethatwomenarebetteratmultitaskingisinsufficienttosupportthiswidely-heldstereotype.28Theconclusionacrossthesecategoriesisthattheindustrystillreliesongender-basedexpectationstoascertain“fit”betweenanindividualandaleaderroleratherthanestablishingatrueapproximationofanindividual’sskillsorutilizingobjectivehiringcriteria.Organizationalfitisacomponentoffeelingasenseofbelonging.29Ifwomenareseentoonlyfittheroleofproducingandareabsentfromthestorypipelinetodirecting,thisleavesanarrowscopeofthefieldtowhichtheymayfeeladegreeofbelonging.Morebroadly,rolecongruitytheorydescribeshowperceptionsofleadershipalignwithtraditionallymasculineattributes,whilestereotypicallyfemininetraitsarelesslikelytooverlapwithleadershipqualities.30Asaconsequence,womenmaybepunishedforadoptingmoreagenticormasculinebehaviorstofulfilltherequirementsofleaderroles.Theconsequenceofstereotypicalthinkingaboutjobrolesisthatwomenmustbalanceafinelinebetweenbeingsuccessfulorcompetentandbeingliked.Evidencesuggeststhathiringcriteriashiftstopenalizewomenwhobehavemoreagentically(e.g.,demonstratemorestereotypically-malequalities)byplacingmoreweightonthesewomen’ssocialskillsthantheircompetence.31Inanotherstudy,intheabsenceofinformationaboutwomen’scommunal(e.g.,morestereotypically-feminine)traits,perceptionsofafemalemanager’slikeabilitysufferedrelativetoamalemanager.32Evenwhenclearinformationisgivenaboutwomen’ssuccessonamale-typedtaskorjob,womenareviewedaslesslikeableandmorehostilethanmen.33Thisisparticularlyimportant,aslikeabilitymayinfluenceevaluations,considerationforspecialassignments,andevenpay.34

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Accordingtorolecongruitytheory,asecondconsequenceofthelackofoverlapbetweenfemininequalitiesandleaderrolesisthatwomenmaynotbeprojectedintoleadership.35Inlinewiththisresearch,participantsindicatedthatwomenarenotviewedastrustworthyincreativeroles—particularlytheroleofdirector—andthustheirworkasproducersismoreacceptable.Respondentsexpressedthatfemaleproducersarelessthreateningtomaledirectorsandteammembersthanafemaledirector.One-third(34%,n=13)ofearly-careerwomenand38%(n=14)ofdecision-makersprovidedthisreasoning.Hence,thegenderstereotypesthatparticipantsusedtodefinequalitiesofdirectorsandproducersinanimationmayserveasanunderlyingreasonforperceptionsaboutwomen’sexperience,risk,andcompetencetoworkasdirectors.

Thereisaperceptionthatwomenarenot“toughenough”tomanageanddirectacrewofmostlymaleartists.Lackoftrustinwomentoleadateambecausetheydon'tleadthesamewaymenleadandchangeisuncomfortable.Biasinhowwomenareperceived.Strongmenare“assertive,”strongwomenare“bitchy.”

Whilestereotypesaboutwomenseeminglydisqualifythemfromworkingasdirectors,womenwhomovethroughtheproductionranksareabletomoveupintoleadershiprolesatcompaniesandstudios.Sixofthesevenwomenfillingthetoppositionsinfilm(President,CEO,CCO)workedasproducersbeforeascendingtotheseexecutiveroles.Clearly,withintheseorganizations,women’sleadershipincertainpositionsisnotdemeanedordismissed.Instead,womenwhodemonstrateacapacitytomanageothersandshepherdprojectsarevaluedandpromotedtotheseniorranks.Thequestionremains,then,howtotransformtheranksofdirectorstomirrorthisreality.

Whatwomenexperienceatthehighestlevelsoftheindustryismirroredinlessprestigiousjobs.Whenaskedwhytherearefewerwomenworkinginunionrolesacrosscompanies,47%(n=18)ofearlycareerwomen,19%(n=7)ofdecision-makers,and19%(n=52)ofAnimationGuildmembersfocusedonacultureofsexismthatmakesitdifficultforwomentonavigatethebusiness.Thisincludedbeingtreatedasinferior,beingquestionedabouttheirwork,andassumedincompetence.Experiencingbiasordiscriminationcanreduceperceptionsofvalidationandthusasenseofbelonging.36Theday-to-dayworklifeofwomeninanimationmaybecommunicatingthattheyarenotvaluedandthattheydonotbelonginthefield.

Anadditionalfacet32%(n=12)ofearlycareerwomen,35%(n=13)ofdecision-makers,and10%(n=27)ofAnimationGuildmembersmentionedwasthatwomenlackopportunitiesinanimation.Thiscategoryreflectstheperceptionthattherearefewopportunitiesornotenoughjobsavailableforwomen,orthattheyareoverlookedornothiredbyemployers.Thismayalsoincludefeelingunwelcometoapplyforjobs,andbarrierstogettinginthedoor.Asshownearlierinthepaper,thelackofwomeninthepipelinefordirectingviathestorydepartmentinbothTVandfilm,demonstratesthatthepointofentryisindeedinaccessibleformanywomen.

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Figure4ResponsesRegardingtheLackofFemalesinGeneralEmployment

Toaddfurthersupporttothefindingsabove,71%(n=27)oftheearlycareerfemalesinanimationwhowereinterviewedindicatedthattheyfacedpersonalchallengesduetotheirtreatmentintheindustry.Responsesdescribedhavingtoproveone’sabilities,notbeingtakenseriouslybyco-workersorsupervisors,notbeingtrusted,experiencingwagegapscomparedtomaleemployees,andhavingtheirworkdiscountedbyothers.Inconcertwiththeseresponses,37%(n=14)ofwomenstatedthatsexismmoregenerallywaspresentintheindustry.Womeninvokedthattermdirectlyandrecountedtheirownexperiencesorknowledgeofotherswhohaddealtwithsexualharassmentfromcolleaguesinanimation.Thegeneralperceptionfromthewomenwhoparticipatedinthestudyisofanindustrythatdoesnotvaluewomenorthecontributionstheymightmake.#3WomenareNotInterested,NotSupported,NotPresentThethirdmajorthemethatemergedwasrelatedtotheinterestsanddesiresofwomentopursuecareersintheanimationindustrybothasdirectorsandmoregenerally.Whenaskedaboutwhywomenarenotfillingdirectingpositionsinfilm,responsesacrossearlycareerwomen(24%,n=9),decision-makers(35%,n=13),andAnimationGuildmembers(21%,n=54)indicatedaperceptionthatwomenwerenotinterestedintheseroles.Additionally,responsesfocusedonalackofencouragementorsupportforwomenwhomightconsiderdirecting,orthelackofopportunitiesprovidedbycompanies.Theabsenceofvisiblefemaledirectors,mentors,orevenprogramsthatcouldbolsterthepipelinewasalsoincludedhere.

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Figure5ResponsesRegardingWomen’sInterestinWorkingasDirectorsandinAnimation

Asimilarsetofresponsesemergedwhenparticipantswereaskedaboutthelackofwomenemployedmoregenerallyacrosstheanimationindustry.Nearlyone-fourth(24%,n=9)ofearly-careerwomen,30%ofdecision-makers(n=11),andone-fifth(20%,n=54)ofAnimationGuildmembersindicatedthatwomenmaynotbeinterestedinpursuingcareersinanimation.Thereasonsthatwomenwerenotinterestedinanimationrangedfromreservationsabouttheindustrytoinherentpredispositionsthatledwomentoothercareers.Despitetheperceptionsofindustrymembers,women’sambitionsencompassavarietyofdifferentroleswithinanimation.Ofthe38womenintheirearlycareerswhowereinterviewed,90%(n=34)statedthattheyaspiredtoleadershippositionsacrosstheindustry.Withfurtherprompting,the34womenindicatedthattheywereinterestedinbecomingashowrunner(41%,n=14),directing(35%,n=12),artdirection(35%,n=12),workingasanexecutive(18%,n=6),andfillingavarietyoffurtherroles(35%,n=12)suchasproducer,storyboarddirector,headofstory,leadanimator,productiondesigner,seriescreatorandotherleadjobs.Twelvepercent(n=4)offeredthattheywantedtomoveupintheranksincreativeendeavors.37Clearly,womenareinterestedinleadershiprolesintheanimationindustry.Whatpreventsthemfromreachingthesepositionsingreaternumber?Oneexplanationisthattheyarenotinrolesthatleadtotheseopportunities.Almostone-quarter(24%,n=9)oftheearly-careerwomenstatedthatwomenaredonotfillthepositionsthatleadtodirecting.Thiswasalsocitedby19%(n=7)ofthedecision-makers.Theseresponsesindicatedthatwomenarerarelyfoundinstory,animator,orartisticrolesthatformthepathwaytodirecting.Incontrasttodirecting,anothercareerpathismoreopentowomen.Inparticular,theladdertoproducingappearstobemoreconducivetowomen’sambitions.Whenaskedwhythereweremorefemaleproducersthandirectors,61%(n=23)ofearly-careerwomenand54%(n=20)ofdecision-makers

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citedtheexistenceofacareerpaththatwomencanfollow.Thatis,womenmaybetrackedintothepositionsthatprecedebecomingaproducer(e.g.,productionassistant,coordinator,supervisor,ormanager)andtherefindatrajectorythatwilltakethemintoaleadershiprole.Ifthispathwayislesslikelytoincurthenegativeoutcomeswomenmightfindworkinginotherpositions,thenthismaybeoneexplanationfortheirchoices.Anotherreasonwhyindividualsmayperceivealackofinterestinthefieldmaystemfromwomen’sreluctancetoasserttheirambitions.Sixteenpercentoftheearly-careerwomenweinterviewedstatedthatinternalbarrierssuchasdoubtsorlackofconfidence—feelingslargelystemmingfromalackofrolemodelsandtheirday-to-dayexperiencesintheindustry—hinderedtheircareertrajectory.Theuncertaintiesthatwomenhaveintheirownabilityorlikelihoodtosucceedmayinhibitthemfromsharingtheirambitionsordesirestopursuealeadershiptrackintheindustry.Women’sambitionsorinterestinthefieldofanimationmaynotbeevidentforseveralreasons.Forone,expressingambitionorself-promotingmayresultinlowerevaluationsofwomen.38Second,stereotypicalenvironmentsmayreducewomen’sperceptionsofsuccessorinterestinthefield,asnotedearlier.39

Third,conditionsofsocialidentitythreatmayinfluencewomen’scareerchoices.Forexample,whenwomenfeeltheyareatriskofconfirminganegativestereotypeabouttheirgender,theymayelecttopursuemorestereotypicallyfemininecareerpaths.40Fourth,whenindividualsseethatorganizationsorpositionsareonlyopentoafewtokenmembersoftheirgroup,theymaybelesslikelytobelievethattheywillbepersonallysuccessfulinajoborcompany.41Thus,womenmaybeawareofpotentialnegativeconsequencesforspeakingupordemonstratinginterestinanimation,andrefrainfromdeclaringtheirambitionstootherswhocouldfacilitatetheirsuccess.#4WomenofColorExperienceNegativeConsequencesAfinalareaofexplorationwastheuniqueexperienceswomenofcolorfaceintheanimationindustry.Asthequantitativeevidenceabovedemonstrates,theprevalenceofwomenfromunderrepresentedracial/ethnicbackgroundslagsbehindthenumbersforwomenoverall.Forthatreason,itwasimportanttounderstandifwomenofcolorreportfacinganyuniquebarriersorchallengesintheindustrythatwouldimpedetheirparticipation.Across12womenofcolorintheirearlycareerswhoparticipatedintheinterviewprocess,two-thirds(67%,n=8)statedthatnegativeexperienceswereassociatedwiththeirworkinanimation.Thisincludedbeingtokenizedor“theonlyone”intheircompanyorworkgroup,resultinginisolation;feelingthattheyhadtoworkharderortheircontributionswereerasedorminimized;andthenegativeemotionstheyfeltasaconsequenceoftheirstatus.Halfofwomenofcolor(n=6)statedthatwhiletheirskincolororbackgroundmaynowbeseenasanassetbycompaniesorindividuals,theindustryisstilltonedeaftomanyoftheseissues.Womennotedthatbeingidentifiedforopportunitiesbecausetheywerewomenofcolorcreatedsuspicionornegativefeelings.One-quarter(n=3)ofindividualsstatedthattheracial/ethnicbackgroundofwomenisafactorintheseconversations,andthatmorewomenwithAsianheritageworkinanimationthanBlack/AfricanAmerican,Hispanic/Latino,orwomenfromothermarginalizedbackgrounds.Finally,2womenstatedthattheyfeelluckyorfortunatetobeworkinginthisindustry.

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Researchsupportstheideathatwomenofcolorfaceuniquecareerimpedimentscomparedtotheirwhitefemalecounterparts.Thisincludespromotiondisparities,wagegaps(forcertainracial/ethnicgroups),andaccesstohigh-visibilityassignments.42Perceptionsofleadershipmayalsodifferforwomenfromcertainracial/ethnicgroups,asbeing‘white’maybeperceivedasaprototypicaltraitofleaders.43

Thismayaffecttheirlong-termcareerpathandabilitytobepromotedintosupervisorypositions.Finally,womenofcolorwhoholdmeritocraticbeliefsabouttheindustryortheworldmayexperiencelowerself-esteemwhenconfrontedwithdiscrimination.44Aswomenfromunderrepresentedbackgroundsnavigatethefieldofanimation,itisnotsurprisingthattheyexperiencenegativeemotionsorskepticismabouttheindustry.Thelackofwomenfromunderrepresentedbackgroundsworkingasdirectors,producers,andexecutivesinthefieldpresentsaclearindicationthatwomenofcolordonothaveopportunitiestoparticipateorareexcludedfromleadershiproles.IndustryAttemptstoAddressInequalitiesTheanimationindustryhastakenstepstoaddressissuesofinequalityinitsranks.Althoughdisparitiesstillpersist,wewerecuriousaboutindustry-members’knowledgeofremediesinplacetoincreaseinclusionthroughoutcompanyranks.Severalquestionsacrossinterviewsandsurveysfocusedonsolutionsforchangeandtheeffectivenessofthoseefforts.45AsshowninFigure6,twosetsofresponsesoutpacedtheothers.First,inclusivehiringpatternswerementionedbyrespondents,particularlybydecision-makers.Early-careerwomenweremoreawareofevents,talks,mixers,orotheractivitiesputonprimarilytoincreaseawareness.Afewresponsesfocusedontheformationofaffinitygroupsatcompanies,whilefewerdiscussedmandatesinplacetopromotehiring.Notincludedonthechartisthefocusoninclusiveleadershipthatsomeparticipantsnoted(8%n=3,early-careerwomen,19%n=7,decision-makers,5%n=13,AnimationGuildmembers).Theseresponsesfocusedonplacingwomen,peopleofcolor,orothergroupsintopositionsofresponsibility.Afollow-upquestionaskedindividualstoconsiderwhethertheeffortstheynoticedwereworking.Mostparticipantsstatedthattheywere:47%(n=18)ofearly-careerwomen,54%(n=20)ofdecision-makers,and64%(n=116)ofsurveyparticipants.Theresultpointedtomostoftenwasagainachangeinhiring.Twenty-ninepercent(n=7)ofearly-careerwomen,23%(n=7)ofdecision-makersand18%(n=33)ofAnimationGuildmembersstatedthathiringpracticeswereshiftingnoticeably.Despitetheirassertionsthattheindustryisonapathtogreaterinclusion,one-thirdofearly-careerwomen(n=8)anddecision-makers(n=10)aswellas15%(n=27)ofsurveyparticipantsstatedthatthepaceofchangeisslow.Additionally,21%(n=5)ofwomen,17%(n=5)ofdecision-makers,and16%(n=28)ofGuildmembersstatedthattheeffortsunderwayarenotapanaceafortheissuesintheindustry.Inparticular,individualswonderedhowwomenorthosefromotherunderrepresentedgroupswouldfeeltoknowtheywerehiredbecausetheyareastatisticalminorityortofillaquota,ratherthanfortheirtalentandmerit.Afewindividuals(3%,n=1ofdecision-makersand15%,n=27ofGuildmembers)indicatedthattheworkbeingdonetocreateamorebalancedindustrywasnotworking.Finally,anadditional16%(n=6)ofwomen,24%(n=9)ofdecision-makersand17%(n=31)ofAnimationGuildrespondentsrepliedthateffortsmightbeworking,orthattheywereunsure,didn’tknow,orthatitwastooearlytotellabouttheeffectsofdifferentprograms.

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Figure6EffortstoIncreaseInclusion

Whilethegeneralperceptionthattherearechangestakingplaceintheanimationindustryispromising,noteveryoneholdsapositiveopinionregardingtheseefforts.Whenaskedabouttheworkbeingdonebycompaniestoimproveinclusion,8%(n=19)ofAnimationGuildmembersstatedthatloweringstandardswasoneoutcomethatthepushtowardinclusionencouraged.Inresponsetothequestionregardingwhethereffortswereworking,18%(n=32)ofsurveyparticipantsofferedrepliesthatilluminatedbacklashtowardinclusion.Namely,theseresponsesincludedthatmenwerebeingpushedoutorpassedoverforjobs,areductioninqualityoftheworkproduct,thatexperienceisnottakenintoaccountthewaydiversityis,andthatchangesbeingmadecreateariftintheindustry.Nearlytwo-thirds(66%,n=21)oftheresponsesinthiscategorycamefromthosewhoidentifiedasmale,while13%(n=4)ofresponseswerefromwomen,and22%(n=7)fromthosewhoweregendernon-conformingordidnotprovideagender.Anonymousrespondentswerenottheonlyonestofindtheactionsoftheindustrywithregardtoinclusionanissue.One-third(34%,n=13)ofthewomenintheirearlycareerswhowereinterviewedexpresseddoubtaboutinclusionefforts.Thisincludedmentioningthattheeffortsofdifferentcompanieswerelimitedtolip-service,suchasphotoshootsorpublicityopportunities,ratherthansubstantialeffortstoincreasethepresenceandparticipationofwomenintheindustry.Clearly,theanimationindustryhasattemptedtoaddressinclusiondeficits,withvariousdegreesofsuccess.Notably,whilehiringeffortsarenoticedandmanyperceivethesestrategiestobeworking,asenseofdiscontentandskepticismispresentacrosstheindustry.Itiscriticalthatindividualsworkingacrossthefieldareattunedtotheneedtofeelbelonginginorganizationsandalackofauthenticitywheneffortsdonotmeetthisneed.Inthefollowingsection,weturntoempirically-basedevidencethatcandrivecompanyefforts,alongwithstrategiestoreducebacklashandcreatebuy-inaroundtacticsthatfacilitateinclusioninorganizations.

37%

45%

24%

62%

38%

22%

29%

12%

19%

0%

20%

40%

60%

Hiring Events CompanyActions


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ConclusionThegoalofthisinvestigationwastounderstandtheecosystemoftheanimationindustrythroughbothaquantitativeandqualitativeexaminationofkeyindustryroles,theexecutiveranks,andthepipeline.Thiswasaccompaniedbyin-depthinterviewsandsurveyswithwomenatthestartoftheircareer,decision-makers,andmembersoftheAnimationGuild.Acrossthestudy,theresultspointtoseveraltrendsregardingwomen’sparticipationinanimation.SomeWomenareClimbingtoPowerPositionsinFilmThepresenceofwomeninkeydecision-makingrolesinfilmisauniquefacetoftheanimationindustry.Asexecutives,womenrepresentroughlyhalfofallpositionsacrossthemajorfilmanimationcompanies.Moreover,womenfilled50%oftheleadershipjobs(e.g.,CEO,CCO,President)atthepinnacleoftheseorganizations.InTV,mostexecutiveroleswereawardedtomen,with39%heldbywomen.AtthetopofTVanimationorganizations,womenfilled6%ofprestigiousposts,andincreasedinnumberasthepoweroftheirpositiondecreased.Asecondareawherewomenwereplentifulisintherealmoffilmproducing.Across120animatedfeaturesoverthelast12years,37%ofproducerswerewomen.Thisisastrongandencouragingshowingforwomeninthisroleandthepatternrepresentsanupwardtrend,particularlyincontrasttothe15%whocomprisedliveactionproducersinthesametimeframe.Wheretherehasnotbeenimprovementisinthepercentageofwomenofcolorgarneringproducingcreditsonthemostpopularmovies.Theindustry’sperceptionofananimationproducermayhaveexpandedtoincludewomen,buthasnotgrownpastwhitewomen.Whenwomenofcolorfillthisimportantcreativeandmanagementrole,theycaninfluenceinclusivityacrosstheentireproduction.Theirabsencemeansthatimportantavenuesforadvocacyandchangeremainempty.DirectingRemainsDevoidofWomeninFilmandTVIncontrasttowomeninleadershipasexecutivesandproducersinfilm,thereisadearthoffemaledirectorsinanimation.Only3%ofdirectorsofanimatedmoviesinthelast12yearswerewomen,withjustonewomanofcolorholdingthisrole.InTV,thefiguresarenotmuchbetter.Amere13%ofdirectorsofthefirstepisodeorsegmentofthe100topanimationseriesonTVin2018hadafemaledirector.Only3ofthosedirectorswerewomenofcolor.Morespecifically,allfemaledirectorsofcolorwereAsian.Oneexplanationforthelackofwomenworkingasdirectorsisthelimitednumberofwomenworkinginpipelineroles.Lessthanone-fifthofstorydepartmentmembersinfilmwerefemale,andlessthan10%ofheadsofstorypositionswenttowomeninfeaturefilms.InTV,28%ofstoryeditors,and24%ofstoryboardartistswerewomen.Thedropofffromthesepositionstodirectingissteep,suggestingthatcrucialimpedimentslimitwomen’scareerpathsinanimation.TVLeadsOnScreenandBelowtheLineOnscreenrolesforgirlsandwomenarenotequalinTVseries,buttheyarestrongerthaninfilm.Thirty-ninepercentofcreditedcastinthefirstepisodeorsegmentofpopularTVseriesfrom2018werefemale,whileonly17%ofthe120topanimatedfeaturesfrom2007topresenthadgirlsorwomenintheleadingorcoleadingrole.Acrossbothmediaplatforms,womenofcolorwererare:12%ofcastinTVandamere

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3%offilms.Thestoriestoldinanimationreflectaskewedviewofreality,whichismirroredinthecreativeranks.TValsocomesoutontopwithregardtotheparticipationofwomen,atleastcomparedtofilm.Womenfilledmoreoftheranksofcharacterdesign(33%),animation(35%)andunitheadrolesasleadanimators(20%)andleadcharacterdesigners(24%)inTVthaninfilm.Importantly,creditsforkeyrolesacrossserieswerenotalwaysconsistent,whichmeanstheremaybeadditionalwomen(ormen)whosecontributionsarenotincludedinthesemetrics.Showsandcompaniesshouldconsiderkeepingtheirowninternalmetricsandreportingtransparentlytodemonstratehowtheireffortstowardinclusionareworkingfromyeartoyear(orseasontoseason).Women’saccesstoworkinTVmaybemoreopenthanotherfacetsoftheindustry.Thesefindingsalsoalignwithindustryperceptionsaboutwherewomenaremostplentiful.Oftheindustrymemberswhorespondedtooursurvey,59%answeredthatanimatedtelevisionistheplatformthatintheirexperiencehasthehighestpercentageofwomen.Anadditional23%gavethisdesignationtoanimatedseriesairingonstreamingplatforms.ThePipelineisPlentifulbuttheCulturePreemptsProgressWhilethepipelineoffutureanimationindustrymembersisrobustforwomen—bothleavinganimationschoolsandshowingtheirworkatfilmfestivals—thenumberofwomeninthebusinessisnoticeablylower.Whatpreventsmorewomenfromworkinginanimation?Resultsfrominterviewsandsurveyspointtothreemajorimpedimentsfacingwomen.First,thatacultureofhomophilypreventswomenfromfeelingasenseofbelongingandmovingforwardintheircareers.Second,thatwomenarevaluedlessthantheirmalecounterpartsandthatgenderstereotypingplaysaroleintheircareerpath.Third,thatwomenareperceivedtolackambitionorinterestinthefield.Thefinalsetofresponsesfocusedontheuniqueexperiencesofwomenofcolorintheindustry,namelytheirstatusastokensandtheresultingissuesthatcreated.Thechallengesfacingwomeninanimationcutacrossculture,stereotyping,andperceptionsofwomen’sambitions.Together,theyofferapictureofhowwomen’searlyexperiencesinorganizationsmightthwarttheirdesireorabilitytomoveintoleadershippositionsinkeycreativeroles.Addressingtheimpedimentswomenfaceiscrucialtoexpandingtheparticipationofwomenthroughoutthefieldofanimation,andensuringthatthepipelineofwomenenteringthisindustrycarriesthroughtothetop.Inthenextsection,weexaminepotentialsolutionsforindustry-widechange.InclusionisEveryone’sBusiness:SolutionstoInequalityinAnimationTheresultsfromthisstudydemonstratethatthereisworktobedonetoincludewomen’svoicesthroughouttheanimationindustry.Below,weexamineresearchandtheoryinthreemajorcategoriestoofferastartingpointfortheindustrytomoveforward.Importantly,thesetacticshavebeenidentifiedaswaystocombatthebiaseswehavediscussedinthisreport.Moreover,astheindustryseekstoovercometheskepticismandbacklashthatcanconfronteffortsforchangetheseempirically-basedstrategiessendthemessagethatinclusionisnotonlyforexecutives,contentcreators,ormarginalizedgroups.Inclusionisforeveryone.

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CultivatingBelongingandValueforAllWomenThequalitativeresponsesaboveindicatethataculturethatisbasedonhomophily—apreferenceforindividualswhoaresimilaronasalientcharacteristic—governstheanimationindustry.Inthiscase,themale-dominatednatureofanimationmeansthatwomenfeelexcluded,andoftenlessvalued,asaconsequence.Theresultmaybethatwomenleavetheindustryforopportunitieswheretheycanfeelasenseofbelongingandvalue.Whyisbelongingsoimportant?Researchsuggeststhatbelongingmaybeakeycomponentofacademicandsocialadjustmentforcollegestudents,aswellasintentandpersistancetoremaininschool.46Atleastonestudyhasshownthatrepresentationwithinascience-basedfieldisanimportantcontributortostudents’feelingsofbelonginginthatdiscipline.47Moregenerally,asenseofbelongingbroadlydefinedhasalsobeenrelatedtobetterperceptionsofhealthforwomenandloweroverallphysicalsymptomsformen.48Arelatedconcept,validation,whichinvolvescommunicating“recognition,respect,andappreciation,”49

hasalsobeenlinkedtoasenseofbelonging.Forstudents,experiencingbiasanddiscriminationwasassociatedwithloweracademicandinterpersonalvalidation,whichinturnpredictedlevelsofbelonging.50Evenmoresubtleenvironmentalcuescaninfluencebelongingandintentionstocontinueinafield.Forexample,womenwhoperceivedmoregender-basedstereotypingandstrongermessagesrelatedtoinnatemathematicalabilitiesreportedadecreasedsenseofbelongingovertimeandlowerintentionstopursuemathcourses.51

Howdoesthisrelatetotheanimationindustry?Interviewandsurveyrespondentsreportedthevarietyofwaysinwhichgenderstereotypespermeateenvironmentsinanimation,bothintermsofwomen’sabilities(producingvs.directing)andtheculturesthatarecreated.Aswomennavigatetheircareerpaths,theyencountertheseperceptions(frommenandwomen),whichmayreducetheirsenseofbelonginginthefield,aswellastheirintentiontostay.Alteringorganizationalcultureisanimportantwaytostaveoffwomen’sattrition.Oneimportantpartofcreatingorganizationalculturesthatallowforbelongingandachievementisto“cleartheair”ofstereotypes.52Researchershavedemonstratedthatwomen’sleadershipaspirationsforataskarediminishedwhengenderstereotypesareactivated,butthiseffectisneutralizedwhenwomenaretoldthatabilitytoperformthetaskdoesnotdifferbygender.53Similarly,researchersindicatethatinstillingavalueforanincrementalmindset—thatabilityisnotfixedandeveryonecanimprove—isonewaytosignalthatanyoneintheorganizationislikelytosucceediftheycontributeandworkhard.54

Moreover,communicatingtheorganizationaldiversityeffortsandevenawardsacompanyhaswonregardinginclusioncanincreasetheperceptionofproceduralfairnessand“fit”forwomenandpeopleofcolor—evenwhencompaniestakeactionsthatdonotspecificallybenefittheirgroup.Forexample,women’sperceptionsoffairnessforwomenwithinacompanyimprovewhentheyaretoldaboutorganizationalpoliciesthattargetracial/ethnicdisparities.55Sendingthemessagethatallarevalued,abletocontribute,andsucceedisimportanttocreatingaculturethatpromotesinclusion.Anotherwaytodismantleorganizationalculturesthatcreatedividesbasedongender,race/ethnicityorotherdemographiccharacteristicsistoredefinegroupsbasedonanothersalientdimension.In-groupbiasesthattypicallyfallalongdemographiclines(e.g.,gender,race/ethnicity,age,LGBTQ)maybeonereasonthatwomenfeeltheyexistoutsidetheprevailingcultureinanimation.Researchershavedemonstratedthatdecategorization(e.g.,thinkingofoneselfasanindividualratherthangroupmember)orrecategorization(e.g.,creatingalargergrouptowhichallbelong)canbothcreateapathwaythatreduces“usvs.them”thinking.56Athirdoptionistosetgoalsthatrelyongroups’recognitionof

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individualstrengthsandweaknessesandrequireinterdependencyandcooperationtobeachieved.57

Scholarsintheareaoftaskdiversityalsorecommendmovingawayfromassigningtasksinwaysthatmayrelyonstereotypicalthinkingandtowardamodelofrandomizedorrotatedassignments.58Acrosstheseideas,solutionsrequirecompaniestomakeconcerted,thoughtfuleffortsregardinghowteamsareconstructedandhowinformationisdistributed.Bydoingso,thestatusquoculturethatreliesonbondsformedasaresultofdemographicsimilaritycanbedisruptedinfavorofnewmodelsthatcommunicategreatervalueandbelongingtowomenandindividualsfromothermarginalizedcommunities.ReducingAmbiguityandSubjectivityIftherespondentstooursurveyandinterviewsaretobebelieved,theanimationindustryprivilegesstereotypesoverskills.Stereotypicalthinkingaboutwhatwomencanorcannotdo,theirtalents,andtheirpreferenceswereabundantintheinterviewandsurveyresponsesdetailedearlier.Thisrelianceongenderrolesasawaytoorganizeinformationaboutrealorpotentialemployeesintroducespersistentandpervasivebiasintodecision-making,particularlyaroundleadershippositions.Toincreasewomen’scontributionsinsupervisoryroles,theindustrymustcarefullyexamineitspracticesandconsiderhowtoeliminatetwocontributorstobias:subjectivityandambiguity.Whilealljudgmentsaretosomedegreesubjective,stereotypescaninfluencetheencoding,storage,andrecallofinformationrelevanttoperformanceevaluations.59Thecontentofstereotypescanalsoinfluenceexpectationsaboutperformance,particularlywhenwomenareworkinginmale-typedjobsorroles.60Evidencesuggeststhatstereotypesthatfavormalesforleadershiprolescaninfluencethecriteriaweusetomakehiringjudgments,ortheweightgiventothatcriteriaevenwhenindividualsareprimedtoorreportastrongbeliefintheirownobjectivity.61Intheanimationindustry,thistendencywasdemonstratedclearlyinthewaythatparticipantsinthisstudydescribedwomen’squalifications(orlackthereof)forworkingasafilmdirector,focusingonstereotypesaboutwhattherolerequires.Subjectivitybecomesdetrimentaltowomenwheninformationabouttheirworkorroleisambiguousorabsent.Researchhasdemonstratedthatwhentheircontributionstoataskareambiguousornotstated,womenareratedaslesscompetent,lessinfluential,andlesslikelytohavedemonstratedleadershipcomparedtoamalepartner.However,whentheirimpactismadeclear,womenareratednodifferentlythanmen.62Yetthiscanbeadouble-edgedsword.Whenwomen’ssoloperformanceinamale-typedtaskisambiguous,theyarestillratedaslesscompetentthanamalepeer.However,whentheircompetenceinamasculinearenaisclear,perceptionsoftheirlikeabilitysufferrelativetoanequallycompetentman.63

Additionally,expectationsaboutgenderroleadherencealsoplayaroleinwomen’sevaluations.64Thus,toensurethatwomenareevaluatedfairly,thesebiasesaboutwomen’sperformancemustbeavoided.Fortheanimationindustry,situationsinwhichsubjectivityandambiguityareavoidedisparamounttocreatingconditionsinwhichfairevaluationscanoccur.Researcherssuggestthatmakingevaluationsofcandidatesbothinterdependentandaccountabletootherscanbeimportantcontributorstoavoidingbias.65Creatingasituationinwhichanevaluatorfeelsself-interestedregardingtheoutcomeoftheirjudgments(suchaswhentheevaluator’sperformancewillbetiedtomakinganaccurateassessment)canmotivatelessbiasedevaluations.Similarly,requiringevaluatorstojustifytheirdecisionscanpromptgreateraccuracy,orsettingupsystemstoauditjudgmentsarealsowaystoimprovefairness.66

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Asecondremedyistosetclearcriteriaattheoutset,bearinginmindwhetherrequiredattributesarestereotypicallymasculineorfeminine.Researchonhiringpatternsoflawyershasdemonstratedthatincludingmoretraditionallymaleattributesinajobdescriptionreducesthelikelihoodofhiringafemaleintotheposition.Incontrast,incorporatingmorefeminine-alignedtraitsincreasesthechancethatawomanwillbehired.67Alongtheselines,havingindividualscommittotheimportanceorweighttheywillgiveeachcriterioninajobdescriptionbeforeevaluatingcandidatescanreducedifferencesinhiringevaluationsbetweenmaleandfemaleapplicants.68

Theprevalenceofstereotypesaboutwhatwomenpreferorchoosetodointheanimationindustryisalikelycontributortothelackofwomenincreativeleadershiproles.Byensuringthatjudgmentsaboutperformance—acrossmenandwomen—aremadeobjectivelyandwithclearcriteriathatareagreeduponinadvance,theindustrycanmoveawayfromevaluatingstereotypesinsteadofskills.Indoingso,talentcanbereadilyidentifiedandshepherded,sothatcompaniesandaudiencesbenefit.MakingInclusionforEveryoneIndustry-wideeffortsforchangemustbejustthat—involvingeveryindividualwhoworksinorganizations,fromexecutiveleadershiptonewhires.Asnotedearlier,asenseofbelongingisimportantnotjustforindividualsfrommarginalizedgroups,butforindividualsoverall.Employmentcanbeasourceofincome,certainly,butitcanalsobeadeeplymeaningfulandcentralaspectofidentity.Asorganizationsrecognizeandcultivatebelongingamongemployees,retentionandperformanceshouldincreaseforemployeesfromallbackgrounds.Yet,currently,companiesaremissingthemarkwhenitcomestofacilitatingwomen’scareersinthesamewayasmen’s.Theneedfororganizationalculturesthataresensitivetowomenandothermarginalizedcommunitiescanbeseenprimarilyinthecomingdemographicshiftfacingemployers.IndividualsenteringuniversityoverthenextseveralyearsbelongtothemostdiversegenerationinU.S.history.69Moreover,theyholdastrongorientationtowarddiversityandinclusion.70Astoday’sstudentsentertheworkforce,theirsensitivitytoorganizationalculturesthatdonotfacilitateinclusionwillpresentachallengetocompaniesthathavenottakenseriouslytheneedtodiversify.Organizationsmustpreparefortheinfluxofworkersfromthisgeneration,orlosetheaccumulatedtalentandcreativepowertheyrepresent.Inoppositiontothiscomingideologicalshiftaretheindividualsandpoliciesofthecurrentanimationindustrythataresteepedinhistoricalandculturalinertia.Thisisasystemthatprivilegesstandinginline,movinguptheranks,and“waitingyourturn”tobeplacedintoleadershiproles.Inclusioneffortsthatencourageseekingtalentfromdiversebackgroundsandfast-trackingtheseindividualsintoleaderrolesmayflyinthefaceofthisestablishedculture.Asweheard,someindividualsfeelthatasaresultofthedesireforgreaterinclusion,experienceissacrificedfordiversity,menloseopportunities,andultimatelythecreativeproductsuffers.Thefeelingthatinclusioneffortsmarginalizemenmapsontoalargertrendculturally.Inonestudy,maleandfemaleparticipantsrateddiscriminationagainstbothmenandwomenovertimefromthe1950sto2012.Inthemostrecentyearevaluated,menbelievedthatdiscriminationagainstmenwassignificantlygreaterthanwomendid;thoughmenstillrateddiscriminationagainstwomenasmoresevere,theyalsorateddiscriminationagainstwomenlowerthanwomendid.71Politicalideologyalsoplayedaroleinthesebeliefs.Conservativemendidnotdifferintheirratingsofdiscriminationagainstmenandwomenin2012.72Responsesinourstudyseemtoindicatethattheperceptionofanti-malebiasexistsinindividualsworkingintheanimationindustryaswell.

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Howcanorganizationsreconcilethesetwodisparateforces?Intheeducationalarena,Brannon,Carter,Murdock-Perriera,andHigginbothamhaveofferedafewsolutionsaimedatincreasingasenseofinclusionacrossbothdominantandmarginalizedcommunities,andestablishingthatinclusionisnotforonegroup,butforall.Theirideasandstrategiesaredirectlyapplicabletotheanimationindustry.Thefirstistoconsiderenvironmentaldetailsthatcanconveyeitherinclusionorexclusion.Thesemightincludeprovidinginformationonthedemographicsoftheorganization,usingmessagesthatemphasizetheneedforinclusionofallvoices,andensuringthattheart,design,andotherartifactsdonotprovokestereotypes.73

AsecondavenuethatBrannonetal.recommendorganizationscanpursuerelatestotheapproachtakentobringemployeestothe“inclusiontable,”sotospeak.Ratherthanframinginclusioneffortsasa“need”fororganizations,organizationscanpositioninclusionasaneffortthatstemsfrominternalmotivation.Toaccompanythisidea,researchersalsosuggestcreatingopportunitieswhereemployeeslearnabouthowinstitutionalbiases(includinghistoricalexclusion)areembeddedwithintheanimationindustry,ratherthanmerelyindividualdiscrimination.Theresearchersalsorecommendcreatingopportunitiestoforinteractionbetweenmembersofdifferentgroups.74Helpingemployeestocomprehendculturaldifferencesoffersawaytoreduceanxietythatmightpreventgreatercontactbetweendissimilarindividuals.Executivesshouldexaminehowothersectors—education,health,etc.—areengagingwithstructuralinequalitiesthatimpedematriculation,access,orsuccessinanefforttounderstandhowanimationmayneedtoadoptstrategiesinusebyotherindustries.Moreover,evaluatinghowrecruitmenttoHistoricallyBlackCollegesandUniversities(HBCUs)andLatino-servinginstitutionshassucceeded(ornot),companiescanworktostrengthenthepipelineintotheindustry.Byhelpingemployeesseehoweffortstocreateinclusionmustbeaddressedthroughpoliciesandpracticesratherthanonlyreducingindividualbias,theycangrowinamoreholisticunderstandingoftheimpedimentstheircolleaguesface.75Onelastareatoaddressinvolvestheverylanguagethatisusedthroughoutorganizations.Usingterms,pronouns,andphrasingsensitivetotheneedsofvariousgroupscommunicatesbelongingandvalue.Thiscutsacrossgroups,tobeinclusiveofallgenders,races,ethnicidentities,andevenfaithcommunities.Addressinghowcommunicationininstitutionstakesplaceisakeywaytoreducebiasandfosterinclusion.Embracingculturechangeattheorganizationallevelrequiresbringingeveryonealongonajourneywithacleardestinationinmind.Forthatreason,settingtargetinclusiongoals,measuringprogress,andactingtransparentlyarealltangiblewaysthatcompaniescanmakecleartheirvalues,priorities,andstrategiesforchange.Indoingso,employeescanbegintoseehowtheyfitintothelargerorganizationalpracticesthatfosterinclusion.LimitationsAswithanyresearchstudy,thisinvestigationhasseverallimitationsassociatedwithit.First,weutilizedon-screencredits(saveforfilmwriting)toobtainthepersonnelworkingonfilmsandTVseries.Thiswaspurposeful,asindustrydatabasescontainincompleteorinaccurateinformationaboutanimatedfilms.However,duetounstandardizedreportingandthenegotiationprocess,itispossiblethatadditionalindividualsworkedonthesefilmsbuttheirnamesdidnotappearonscreen.Second,theinterviewandsurveymethodsutilizedreliedonvoluntaryparticipation.Itispossiblethatinsightsmightbealteredifadditionalparticipantswereincludedinthestudy.Despitethis,thevolume

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andtenorofresponsescollectedfromtheonlinesurveysuggeststhatweobtainedabroadsetofperspectivesthatarerepresentativeoftheanimationindustry.Thegoalofthisprojectwastounderstandtheuniqueprofileoftheanimationindustry.Whatemergedisapictureofanindustrygrapplingwithhowtocreategreaterinclusionwhilesituatedinalegacythatprivilegescertaintypesofstoriesandstorytellers.Asthebusinessmovesforward,itwillbecrucialtoaddresshowindividualsworkingwithinthefieldcancollectivelycreateenvironmentsandopportunitiesthatwelcomenewvoicesandtalentsfromallbackgrounds.Giventheindustry’ssuccessatcraftingfantastical,immersiveworlds,wearehopefulthatshapinganewrealityiswellwithinitsgrasp.

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Footnotes1.Smith,S.L.,Choueiti,M.,Choi,A.,&Pieper,K.(2019).InclusionintheDirector’sChair:Gender,Race/Ethnicity,&AgeofDirectorsAcrosstheTopFilmsFrom2007-2018.USCAnnenbergInclusionInitiative,LosAngeles,CA.Retrievedfrom:http://assets.uscannenberg.org/docs/inclusion-in-the-directors-chair-2019.pdf

2.DirectorsGuildofAmerica(n.d.).DGADiversity–IndustryReports.Seehttps://www.dga.org/The-Guild/Diversity/Industry-Reports.aspx

3.Twostrategieswereusedforassessingthegenderandunderrepresentedstatusofindividualsinthissample.First,wereliedonpubliclyavailableinformationaboutcontentcreatorsandexecutives.Pronounuseandpicturesaswellasgenderdesignationonindustrywebsites(e.g.,IMDbPro,VarietyInsight,StudioSystem,AniDB,etc)wereusedtocategorizeindividualsasmale,female,andgendernon-conforming.Second,andintheabsenceoftheaforementionedinformation,wedeterminedgenderbythefirstnameoftheindividualwhenpossible(e.g.,JohnwascategorizedasMale,JanewascategorizedasFemale).Forthisstep,weutilizedawebsitelinkingnamestogender(i.e.,BabyNames.com,BabyNameWizard.com)orqueriedadatabase(Gender-API.com)forthepercentagelikelihoodofgenderacrossadozenterritoriesinternationally.Seehttps://gender-api.com/formoreinformation.Apparentrace/ethnicitywasdeterminedviaphotosandpubliclyavailableinformationaboutindividuals.Inpreviousresearch,ourjudgmentsofapparentunderrepresentedstatuswerefoundtocorrelatehighlywithactors’actualunderrepresentedstatus(r=.90).

4.EachyeartheInitiativeexaminesthe100topgrossingfilmsbasedondomesticboxofficeperformance.ThelistispulledfromBoxOfficeMojo.

5.Areportofthe100topanimatedserieswaspurchasedfromNielsenMediaResearchandwassortedhightolowbyU.S.AverageAudienceratingsforages2andabove.Theshowsairedonbroadcastandcableoutlets–includingPBS–betweenJanuary1st,2018andDecember31st,2018.Allcreditsforcrewandcastwerebasedonthefirstepisodeorsegmentofepisodeduringtheapplicabletimeframe.Foreachpopularseries,thefirstepisodeoftheseasonthatpremieredin2018wassampled.Otherwise,weexaminedthefirstepisodethatairedin2018.

6.Thecreditedcastdidnotinclude“additionalvoices.”Twoexclusionsappliedinthedata.Onecreditattributedthevoicetoarobotandtheothervoiceactorwaspubliclyreferencedasgendernon-conforming.Ofunderrepresentedstatus,3.5%ofactorscouldnotbeidentified.23weremenand16werewomen.

7.Fiveseriesdidnotcreditadirectoroftheepisodeorsegmentevaluated.Intheabsenceofa“Directedby”or“Co-Director”credit,wecounted“EpisodeDirector”asthedirectorifpresent,followedby“SupervisingDirector,”andlastly“SeriesDirector”.

8.Smith,S.L.,Pieper,K.,&Choueiti,M.(2013).ExploringtheBarriersandOpportunitiesforIndependentWomenFilmmakers.USCAnnenbergInclusionInitiative,LosAngeles,CA.https://annenberg.usc.edu/sites/default/files/MDSCI_2013_Exploring-The-Barriers.pdf

9.Forexecutiveproducers,4showsdidnotcreditanindividualwiththistitle.Ofthosewiththetitle,onecouldnotbedeterminedforgenderandthreeforunderrepresentedstatus.Seventy-eightshowsdidnotcreditacoexecutiveproducer,andofthosecredited,oneindividualdidnothaveanascertainablerace/ethnicity.

10.Twenty-sixshowsoutofthe100TVanimatedseriesdidnotcreditaProducer.Ofthoseshowsthatdid,wedidnothaveenoughinformationongenderforoneindividual,andforrace/ethnicity,fiveindividuals.Additionally,twenty-eightshowsdidnotcreditacreator/developer.

11.Theadditionofwriterswastheonlycategorynottakenfromthecredits/titlecardsofthefilms.ThewritersforeachanimatedfilmwerecollectedfromIMDbPro.Thefilmcreditswerereferencedincaseswhereinformationwassuspect.UsingstandardsgleanedfromtheWritersGuildofAmerica(https://www.wga.org/),wecollectedindividualscreditedunder‘Writtenby,’‘Storyby,’and‘Screenplayby’.Intwoinstances‘StoryAdaptedby’was

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included,andonewritercreditedas‘CollaboratingWriter’wastakenaswell.Nosourcematerial,additionaldialogue,andcreditfororiginalwork(e.g.,‘Charactersby’)wasincluded.

12.Thewriter(s)ofeachepisodesampledwasgarneredfromtheopeningorendcredits.Creditswerepredominatelypresentedas‘Writtenby’,followedby‘Storyby’andinsomeinternationalproductions,‘Scriptby,’‘Screenplayby,’and‘Adaptedby’whennootherwritingcreditswerepresented.Threetelevisionseriesdidnotcreditthewriterfortheepisodesampled.Ofthe50femalewriters,notenoughinformationwasfoundtodiscerntheapparentrace/ethnicityofoneindividual.

13.Notallfilmswerecreditedinthesamewaynordidallfilmscreditindividualswithineverykeyrolelistedabove.Intheabsenceofaspecifictitlecardorcredit(e.g.,storyby,editedby,headoflayout),weturnedtolanguageinthecreditsthatwouldsuggesttheseniormostpersonworkinginaspecificdepartment(e.g.,supervisor,lead).Only1female’srace/ethnicitycouldnotbedeterminedinoneofthekeyroles.Forunderrepresentedstatus,thesamplesizedropsfrom63to62.

14.Tocontentanalyzegenderacrossdepartmentalcredits,weunitizedallcreditedpositionsandnameswithinfiveselectdepartmentsacrossthe52animatedfilmsusingcredits.Then,usinganiterativeapproachweselectedtherolestobeanalyzedwithineachdepartment.Thefirstnameofpersoncreditedunderthoseroleswasthensubmittedtoanonlinedatabase(Gender-API.com)todetermineprobabilityofgender(male,female).Onlyinstanceswhereaccuracy,probabilityandtheamountofsamplesusedbythedatabasewherereasonableorhighwereusedtoinformgender.Theremainingnamesandindividualswerelookeduponacasebycasebasisbysearchingonlineacrossvarioussources(IndustryDatabasesandsocialmedia).Priortoanalysis,therewere24individualswhosenameswerenotlinkedtoaparticulargenderusingonlinedatabasesnorwastheiridentityfoundonline.Intermsofwhichdepartmentthosepositionsappearedin,5wereanimators,2workedintheartdepartment,3incharactereffectsand14wereincharactercomposition.

15.AcrossthekeyrolesforTV,thebelowthelinecreditswerepulledfromthefirstepisodeorsegmentcoded.Twoeditors,oneanimationdirector,oneleadanimator,andtwoleadcharacterdesignerswerecategorizedas“can’ttell”forrace/ethnicity.Itmustbenotedthat47showsdidnotcreditaStoryEditor,4–Editor,40–AnimationDirector,52–LeadAnimator,66–LeadCharacterDesigner,and72–LeadStoryboardArtist.WithindepartmentsinTV,44showsdidnotcreditAnimators,11-CharacterDesigners,5-StoryboardArtists,and41-StoryboardRevisionists.Themethodforanalyzinggenderoffilmdepartmentswassimilarlyappliedtotelevisiondepartmentcredits.

16.Theexecutiveranksof10filmcompanieswereexamined:DreamWorksAnimation,SonyPicturesAnimation,WaltDisneyAnimationStudios,PixarAnimationStudios,IlluminationEntertainment,20thCenturyFoxAnimation/BlueSkyStudios,Laika,ParamountAnimation,WarnerAnimationGroup,andSkydanceAnimation.ItmustbenotedthatallofDreamWorksemployeeswereloadedintofilmastheirtitlesdidnotallowforustodisentangleplatform.

Fortelevision,thefollowing14companieswereassessed:CartoonNetworkStudio,Crunchyroll,WaltDisneyTelevisionAnimation,NickelodeonAnimationStudio,WarnerBros.Animation,StoopidBuddyStoodios,DisneyJunior,BentoBoxEntertainment,StarburnsIndustries,SixPointHarness,WildCanary,PowerhouseAnimation,OddBot,Inc.,andTitmouse,Inc.

17.Schoolsprovidedrace/ethnicitydatathatwasdifficulttodisentangleforthisreportduetoreportinginternationalstudents,groupingofrace/ethnicitycategoriesandeducationalinstitutions’differentapproachestocollectinginformationonracial/ethnicidentity.Assuch,wechosetoleavethatdataoutofthereportbecauseitcouldnotbestandardizedinameaningfulway.

18.Fivefilmfestivalswerescrutinizedonlinefortheirshortsprogramorshortslistings.Eachshortfrom2016through2018wasnotedandthegenderofthedirectorswerelookeduponlineusingindustrydatabases.Dataonrace/ethnicitywasnotgleanedforthisaspectofthestudy.

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19.NPR(Nov.15,2018).GenerationZIsTheMostRaciallyAndEthnicallyDiverseYet.Retrievedfrom:https://www.npr.org/2018/11/15/668106376/generation-z-is-the-most-racially-and-ethnically-diverse-yet

20.Thefirstgroupofparticipantsinterviewedforthisstudyconsistedof38femaleindividualsworkinginanimatedfilmandtelevisionintheearlieststagesoftheircareeraccordingtoboththeirpositionortitledescriptionandintermsofnumberofyearsworkingintheindustry.Allparticipantswereidentifiedusingavarietyofsourcesincludingfilmcredits,onlinedatabases,andsocialmediasiteslikeLinkedIn.com.Allparticipantswererecruitedtoparticipateinthestudyviaemail.Additionalrecruitmentincludedrecommendationsfromseveralindividualswithintheanimationindustry.

Ofthe38femaleparticipantsinterviewed,68%(n=26)identifiedtheirracialand/orethnicbackgroundaswhitewith32%(n=12)identifyingasanotherorofmultipleracial/ethnicorigins.Acrossthisgroup,thesamplehadanaverageageof29years.

Eachinterviewwasconductedoverthephonebyoneofthreeofthestudyauthors.Participantswereaskedaseriesoftenquestions,someofwhichincludedfollowuppromptswhennecessary.Theinterviewsfocusedonexperiencesofindividualsworkinginanimation.Allresponsesweretranscribedfromaudiorecordings,checkedforaccuracy,aggregatedbymembersoftheresearchteam,andanalyzedbythestudyauthors.Codingofqualitativeinterviewsfocusedonfrequentlyoccurringthemesandtheoreticallyrelevantinformationfromtheinterviewquestions,includingallrelevantfollow-ups.Theunitofanalysisisanindividual’sresponsetoasinglequestion.Thus,answersrangeinlengthbyquestionandbyrespondent,andmayfitintomultiplecategories.Responsestoadditionalinterviewquestionsareincludedindiscussionsofeachcareerimpedimentwhenrelevant.

21.Thesecondgroupofparticipantsinterviewedforthisstudyconsistedof37individualsfromanimatedtelevisionandfilmwhowereidentifiedtobeindecision-makingrolesincludingattheexecutiveorhiringlevel.Thesamemethodsusedtoidentifyandrecruittheindividualsinthefirstgroupofparticipantswereusedforthisgroupofdecision-makers.

Thisgroupconsistedofbothfemale(70%,n=26)andmale(30%,n=11)respondents.Themajorityofthesampleinthisgroupidentifiedtheirracialand/orethnicbackgroundaswhite(81%,n=30),with19%(n=7)identifyingasanotherormultipleracial/ethnicorigins.Acrossthisgroup,thesamplehadanaverageageof51years.Inordertogaugetheirlevelofexperience,eachindividualinthisgroupwasalsoasked:Howlonghaveyoubeenworkingintheanimationindustry?Basedontheresponsestothisquestion,theaveragenumberofyearscalculatedforthissamplewas21.

Theninequestionsposedtotheseindividualsfocusedonindustryperceptionsandcurrentdecision-makingprocessessurroundingkeyrolesinanimation.Theinterviewswereconductedandanalyzedinthesamemannerdescribedabove.

22.Thelastgroupofparticipantsinthisstudyconsistedofrespondentstoanonlinesurveysentviaemail.TheparticipantsinthisgroupwereidentifiedbytheAnimationGuildandaskedtoparticipateinthesurveyviaemail.Therespondentsinthisgroupwasaskedupto13questionsandtheresponsesweregivenanonymously.Becausethesurveywasconductedonline,respondentscouldchoosenottoanswereveryquestionandasaresultthesamplesizeacrosseachofthequestionsvaries.Ifanindividualdidnotrespondtoaquestion,theywerenotincludedintheoverallnumberofparticipants.Theirresponseswereanalyzedsimilarlytotheresponsesfromtheparticipantsingroups1and2.

Participantsinthissurveywereaskedtoidentifytheirprimarygenderidentity.Ofthe251participantswhoprovidedaresponsetothisquestion121weremale(48.2%),120werefemale(47.8%),5weregendernon-conforming,and5providedanothergendernotlistedasoneoftheoptions.Amajorityofparticipantswhoprovidedtheirraceand/orethnicoriginmarkedCaucasian/White(68%,n=170),with79(32%)identifyingasanotherorofmultipleracial/ethnicorigins.Theaveragenumberofyearsofexperienceamongstthe250participantswhoprovidedaresponsetothisparticularquestionwas17years.

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23.Allthreegroupsofrespondentswerepresentedwithdataonwomeninspecificrolesinanimationandaskedfortheirinsights.Dataprovidedtoallparticipantsincludedthepercentageoffemalesdirectingacrossthelast12yearsand120top-grossinganimatedfeaturefilms(2.5%).Thefirsttwogroups—womenintheirearlycareersanddecision-makers—werealsoaskedtorespondtoadditionaldataaboutthepercentageoffemaleproducersoftheseanimatedfilms(35.7%)andaskedtocommentonwhytheybelievedthatpercentagetobehigherthanthepercentageofdirectors.ThesesametwogroupswerealsogivendataonthepercentageoffemalesintheAnimationGuild(25.6%)andasked:Whydoyouthinktheanimationindustrylacksgenderparity?Participantswhoansweredquestionsviatheonlinesurveywerenotaskedaquestionrelatedtothepercentageofproducers,butwereaskedaboutAnimationGuildprovideddata;morespecifically,theyweregiventhepercentageofunion-coveredemployeesatanimationstudioswhowerefemale(28%)andasked:Whatdoyouthinkaccountsforthelackofgenderparityinstudiohiring?

The38participantsidentifiedtobeintheearlystagesoftheircareerwereaskedtoansweraseriesofthreequestionsregardingtheirowncareertrajectories.All38participantswereasked:Whatchallengeshaveyoupersonallyfacedasawomanworkinginanimation?Thetwelveparticipantsinthissamplewhoidentifiedasanyracial/ethnicgroupotherthanwhitewereaskedafollow-upprompttothisquestion:arethereanyuniquechallengesyouhavefacedasawomanofcolorinanimation?Responsestothefollow-upquestionwereanalyzedseparatelyandaredescribedinthetext.

24.Ibarra,H.(1993).Homophilyanddifferentialreturns:Sexdifferencesinnetworkstructureandaccessinanadvertisingfirm.AdministrativeScienceQuarterly,37(3),422-447.

25.Cheryan,S.,Drury,B.J.,&Vichayapai,M.(2012).Enduringinfluenceofstereotypicalcomputersciencerolemodelsonwomen’sacademicaspirations.PsychologyofWomenQuarterly,37(1),72-79).Cheryan,S.,Siy,J.O.,Vichayapai,M.,Drury,B.J.,&Kim,S.(2011).DofemaleandmalerolemodelswhoembodySTEMstereotypeshinderwomen’santicipatedsuccessinSTEM?SocialPsychologicalandPersonalityScience,2(6),656-664.Cheryan,S.,Plaut,V.C.,Davies,P.G.,Steele,C.M.(2009).Ambientbelonging:Howstereotypicalcuesimpactgenderparticipationincomputerscience.JournalofPersonalityandSocialPsychology,97(6),1045-1060.

26.Kaiser,C.R.,Vick,S.B.,&Major,B.(2006).Prejudiceexpectationsmoderatepreconsciousattentiontocuesthatarethreateningtosocialidentity.PsychologicalScience,17(4),332-338.

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28.Buser,T.&Peter,N.(2012).Multitasking.ExperimentalEconomics.15,641-655.Stoet,G.,O’Connor,D.B.,Conner,M.,&Laws,K.R.(2013).Arewomenbetterthanmenatmulti-tasking?BMCPsychology,1,18.Szameitat,A.J.,Hamaida,Y.,Tulley,R.S.,Saylik,R.,Otermans,P.C.J.(2015).“Womenarebetterthanmen”—Publicbeliefsongenderdifferencesandotheraspectsinmultitasking.PLoSONE10(10).

29.Ostrove,J.M.&Long,S.M.(2007).Socialclassandbelonging:Implicationsforcollegeadjustment.TheReviewofHigherEducation,30(4),363-389.

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32.Heilman,M.E.&Okimoto,T.G.(2007).Whyarewomenpenalizedforsuccessatmaletasks?Theimpliedcommunalitydeficit.JournalofAppliedPsychology,92(1),81-92.

33.Heilman,M.E.,Wallen,A.S.,Fuchs,D.,&Tamkins,M.M.(2004).Penaltiesforsuccess:Reactionstowomenwhosucceedatmalegender-typedtasks.JournalofAppliedPsychology,89(3),416-427.

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34.Heilmanetal.,2004.

35.Eagly&Karau,2002.

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37.Inthesecondquestionoftheseriesregardingcareertrajectory,participantswereasked:Thinkingaboutyourowncareer,doyouaspiretoholdleadershiporexecutiverolesinanimationproductionorananimationcompany?Iftheyrespondedpositivelytheywereaskedtonamespecificrolesthattheywouldliketohold.Whenparticipantsindicatedthattheydidnotwanttoholdleadershippositionstheywereasked:whatareyouraspirations?

38.Rudman,L.A.(1998).Self-promotionasariskfactorforwomen:Thecostsandbenefitsofcounterstereotypicalimpressionmanagement.JournalofPersonalityandSocialPsychology,74(3),629-645.

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40.Davies,P.G.,Spencer,S.J.,Quinn,D.M.,&Gerhardstein,R.(2002).Consumingimages:Howtelevisioncommercialsthatelicitstereotypethreatcanrestrainwomenacademicallyandprofessionally.PersonalityandSocialPsychologyBulletin,28(12),1615-1628.

41.Barreto,M.Ellemers,N.&Palacios,M.S.(2004).Thebacklashoftokenmobility:Theimpactofpastgroupexperiencesonindividualambitionandeffort.PersonalityandSocialPsychologyBulletin,30(11),1433-1445.

42.Yap,M.,&Konrad,A.M.(2009).Genderandracialdifferentialsinpromotions:Isthereastickyfloor,amid-levelbottleneck,oraglassceiling?.Relationsindustrielles/IndustrialRelations,64(4),593-619.Giscombe,K.,&Mattis,M.C.(2002).Levelingtheplayingfieldforwomenofcolorincorporatemanagement:Isthebusinesscaseenough?JournalofBusinessEthics,37(1),103-119.Hegewisch,A.&Williams-Baron,E.(2018,March7).TheGenderWageGap:2017EarningsDifferencesbyRaceandEthnicity.InstituteforWomen’sPolicyResearch.Available:https://iwpr.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/C464_Gender-Wage-Gap-2.pdf.

43.Rosette,A.S.,Leonardelli,G.J.,&Phillips,K.W.(2008).Thewhitestandard:Racialbiasinleadercategorization.JournalofAppliedPsychology,93(4),758-777.

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45.Allthreegroupsofrespondentswereaskedabouteffortswithintheanimationindustrytoincreaseinclusionforwomenintheworkplace.Thefirsttwogroups–womenintheearlystagesoftheircareeranddecision-makers–werespecificallyasked:Haveyouseenanyeffortbyyourcompany,othercompanies,orthebroaderanimationindustrytoincreaseinclusionforwomenintheworkplace?Iftheyrespondedpositivelytheywereaskedtwoadditionalfollow-upprompts.First:Whathaveyouseen?Andsecond:Doesitseemtobeworking?Whenparticipantsindicatedthattheyhadnotseenanyeffortstheywereasked:Whataccountsforthelackofindustryaction?Thethirdgroupofrespondents–participantsfromthesurveysentviaemailwereaskedthisquestionslightlydifferently:Areyouawareofeffortsbycompaniesorthebroaderanimationindustrytoincreasediversityandinclusionofunderrepresentedgroups(e.g.,women,peopleofcolor,membersoftheLGBTcommunity,individualswithdisabilities)?Thepromptsthatfollowedeitherayesornoresponsewerethesameasabove.

46.Hausmann,L.R.M.,Schofield,J.W.,&Woods,R.L.(2007).SenseofbelongingasapredictorofintentionstopersistamongAfricanAmericanandwhitefirst-yearcollegestudents.ResearchinHigherEducation,48(7).803-839.

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