The Celluloid Ceiling: Employment of Behind-the-Scenes Women on Top Grossing U.S. Films in 2024
The Celluloid Ceiling has tracked women’s employment in films for the last 27 years and provides the longest-running and most comprehensive historical record of women’s behind-the-scenes representation in U.S. films available. Overall, women comprised just 23% of directors, writers, producers, executive producers, editors, and cinematographers working on the 250 top films of 2024. Taking the long view, this represents an increase of just 6 percentage points from 17% in 1998. By role, women accounted for 27% of producers, 22% of executive producers, 20% of editors, 20% of writers, 16% of directors, and 12% of cinematographers working on the 250 top films. The study also tracked the numbers of women working as composers in 2024. Women accounted for 9% of composers working on the 250 top films. Films with at least one woman director employed substantially more women in other key behind-the-scenes roles than films with exclusively male directors. The report also includes the percentages of women working on the 100 top grossing films.