TIME’S UP Entertainment

Insisting Upon Women-Directed Feature Films: The 4 Percent Challenge

It was a call to action when research from the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative found that only four percent of the top 1,200 studio films from 2007-2018 were directed by women.

Thus the 4 Percent Challenge was born: A pledge that industry members can take to produce a feature film project with a female director.

“Because only 4% of the top 100 studio films over the last DECADE have been directed by women, #TIMESUP is initiating a challenge, the 4% challenge, and I intend to take it: I commit to working with a female director in the next 18 months.” –@TessaThompson_x #TIMESUPX2 pic.twitter.com/GjsuqeryKj

— TIME’S UP (@TIMESUPNOW) January 26, 2019

TIME’S UP secured 4 Percent Challenge pledges from more than 100 major players in the entertainment industry, including individuals like Armie Hammer, Brie Larson, Jennifer Garner, Jennifer Lopez, Jordan Peele, Reese Witherspoon, Tracee Ellis Ross, and studios such as Amazon, Universal, MGM Studios, Paramount Pictures, and Warner Bros. Entertainment.

The 4 Percent Challenge

See the growing list of pledges

And it’s working. Based on an analysis by the Annenberg Inclusion Initiative at USC, 12 of the top 100 films of 2019 had a female director, more than twice as many as 2018 and higher than any year they measured since 1980.

But, there is still a long way to go. Join the TIME’S UP Entertainment community in pushing for change.