A new report from the European Audiovisual Observatory has highlighted the low participation of women in key job roles in scripted TV.

The share of female professionals in European TV fiction production stands at 8% for composers and cinematographers.

2. Share of women in the production of European TV_SVOD fiction (2021)

Share of women in the production of European TV fiction

In 2021, 37% of TV fiction episodes were written by female writers, but only 22% directed by female directors. However, women accounted for 44% of producers and 47% of lead roles.

Read more IWD2023: Gender, Ethnicity & Class Pay Gaps in TV and tech

The report analyses the composition of key positions in over 50 000 TV/SVOD fiction films and series episodes produced between 2015 and 2021: directors, writers, producers, directors of photography, composers and lead roles.

The report is titled “Female audiovisual professionals in European TV fiction production – 2021 figures.”

The report said that low share of women in these key roles is the result of multiple factors: typically, for directors, the low share of women results from fewer female directors active in TV production, who work less often than their male counterparts, and are more often than men in a team of directors than being the sole creator of the work. Moreover, teams are more often male-driven.

When combining directors, writers, producers, cinematographers and composers the share of female professionals has gradually increased since 2015, although at a very slow pace.

In 2015, the share of female professionals was 18% compared to 22% in 2022.

Read more Tech innovation, people power and the importance of inclusion