Lights, cameras, action!
The 32nd annual Helsinki International Film Festival HIFF Love & Anarchy gets underway on Thursday and this year it’s making a new pledge on gender equality.
Love & Anarchy is one of a growing number of festivals to sign up to the 50x50x2020 initiative that commits them to promote gender equality in their programme and organisation, and to be transparent in releasing the data.
Other film festivals already taking part include Cannes, Berlin and Gothenburg.
“Diversity of voices and equality are the key to a rich film culture” says Anna Möttölä, Executive Director of the Helsinki International Film Festival.
“Joining the movement reasserts the same objectives that we have had at our festival for over 30 years. Diversity, equality, bringing forward marginal voices and reluctance to bow down before anyone have been at the heart of HIFF since the very beginning” she explains.
Some 46% of films at this year’s festival have been directed by women; while 32% of the feature films and 58% of the shorts have been directed by a woman or a non-binary person.
More than 800 feature films were considered for inclusion in the Love & Anarchy programme this year, and 26% had a female director.
Of the four gala features of the festival, three are works by female directors. In addition, 76% of the members of the Film Festival’s programming committee are women.
Love & Anarchy continues at cinema venues in Helsinki until Sunday 29th September.
