Sue Maslin and The Dressmaker – the business case for gender equity

With new commitments to gender equality in the screen sector emerging, Sue Maslin adds a timely reflection on her own experience with The Dressmaker.
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Image:  Even with Kate Winslet and Judy Davis cast in The Dressmaker, the film was considered too high a risk for international buyers. Courtesy of Universal Pictures

By Sue Maslin, RMIT University

I think it is fair to say that over the 35 or so years that the gender equity issue for women in the screen industry has been on the table, the equity and the cultural diversity arguments have failed dismally to shift the consistently poor representation of women in creative and business leadership roles – directors, producers, writers, distributors and exhibitors.

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Sue Maslin
About the Author
Sue Maslin is a leading screen producer in both documentary and drama. The Dressmaker is a key success in both critical and box office terms for 2015, while Road to Nhill and Japanese Story are important productions in the Australian cinema canon. She is a significant public thinker about the sector, and an Adjunct Professor of Media and Communications at RMIT University.