Panels and networking at the 75th Berlinale
This year's Berlinale marked a turning point with a new female team, with Tricia Tuttle as the festival director, Tanja Meissner, head of Berlinale PRO/EFM and Jana Daedelow, as coordinator of the Berlinale Series. The female presence was clear and constant, not only because of the eight films (44.4%) directed by women vying for the Golden Bear, or the ten film projects (52.5%) directed by women in the co-production market, but also becuase of the high visibility of women attending the EFM, including a Gender Summit on Friday 14th in which we took part.
Berlinale marks a sort of EWA Network's anniversary, as our first international act was at the Berlinale back in in 2013, so, it's a good time to gather, reflect and celebrate our act of impulse and resistance with our annual members’ gathering. Our event for the members was well attended as usual, despite the change in the venue, and EWA Network president Graziella Bildesheim, board members Juliane Schulze and Iris Zappe-Heller and director Alexia Muiños Ruiz were able to dedicate quality time talking to you all, fostering connections and finding out how we can take our efforts forward.
EFM GENDER SUMMIT
Upon arrival, we had the pleasure of taking part in this year's EFM Industry Talks, a panel discussion to review progress on gender equality in the audiovisual sector, featuring Susan Liddy, President of Women in Film and Television International, Ireland; Neha Hooda, Executive Producer at Elevate, India; Alexia Muiños Ruiz, Executive Director of EWA Network, Spain and participating online, Joyce Pierpoline, producer and Chair of BAFTA North America. The discussion was moderated by our former director, Romanian producer Anamaria Antoci . The session was opened by a brief presentation by Manuel Fioroni the European Audiovisual Observatory.
Fioroni presented the latest report on female professionals working in European film production between 2015 and 2023. The study focused on directors, cinematographers, screenwriters, composers, producers and editors, found that in 2023, women accounted for 26% of all active film professionals.
The session delved into both encouraging data and the persistent challenges that continue to hinder real change.
FERA and EFAD Berlinale conference “Breaking the 26% Glass Ceiling: Advancing Gender Parity for Women Filmmakers in Europe”
On 14 February, EWA Network was invited to take part in the conference “Breaking the 26% Glass Ceiling: Advancing Gender Parity for Women Filmmakers in Europe” to addressing gender inequality in the European film sector.
The event, organised by the Federation of European Screen Directors (FERA), in partnership with the European Film Agencies (EFAD) took place place at the Felleshus Auditorium, the pan-Nordic cultural center in Berlin. With women representing only 26% of directors in European feature films — a figure that has barely improved since the publishing of EWA Network's pan European research nine years ago — the conference brought actionable solutions to improve representation, narrow the gender pay gaps, and secure equitable resources for women filmmakers.
The programme featured keynotes, including the opening remarks by Bill Anderson, Chair of the FERA's board, Kjersti Mo (Norwegian Film Institute/EFAD), MEP Emma Rafowitz, vice chair of the committee on culture and education, member on Women's rights and Gender Equity; a presentation by the European Audiovisual Observatory, a panel discussion with leading policymakers and industry representatives.
Producer Katleen Goosens was among the distinguished guest speakers and represented EWA Network. The other renowned speakers included Manuel Fioroni (European Audiovisual Observatory), Kjersti Mo (Norwegian Film Institute/EFAD), Emma Rafowicz (Member of the European Parliament), Daphné Tepper (EURO-MEI), Enrico Vannucci (Eurimages) and Iris Zappe-Heller (Austrian Film Institute/EFAD).
Then the second part presented an exclusive conversation bridging generations of women filmmakers and commemorating the legacy of the 1973 International Women’s Film Seminar in Berlin, revisiting history to inspire the next generation.
POWER TO CHANGE FORUM
Also on the 14th, we attended the sessions organised by Barbara Rohm in the POWER TO CHANGE FORUM, a closed session form women's networks in the morning, where EWA Network was represented by the board members Iris Zappe-Heller and Juliane Schulze and the open session in the afternoon including a seminar entitled, “From unconscious bias to algorithmic bias - How AI reinforces sexism and discrimination in images and storytelling”. Berlinale Pro Director, Tanja Meissner opened the afternoon session with an inspiring speech.
EWA NETWORK MEMBERS EVENT
This year we organized the members meeting in a cosy new venue by Schöneberg, where the members could enjpy a glass of sparkling wine while networking in a safe environment.
