Beyond Casey Affleck: Women in Production Say Filing A Sexual Harassment Claim Can Be Career Threatening
Complicating this is production remains an overwhelmingly male-dominated field. “The first day I’m on set, I instantly pick up the heaviest thing I can find and make sure all the men can see me doing it,” said a production veteran who asked that we not identify her department.
This is a common ritual for any woman working in male-dominated departments on a film set, including grip, electric, and camera. Every woman who spoke with IndieWire said that at one point early in their careers, they were told a woman can’t do the job because they aren’t strong enough.
One woman, who has worked in the camera department for over 25 years, said she doesn’t have to constantly prove herself since she often has the same set of colleagues. But if it’s her first time with a cinematographer, “the assumption is I don’t know what I’m doing. My resume doesn’t speak for itself.”
However, women say the biggest hurdle is not the work or even getting a foot in the door. It’s being accepted on set and proving “they can hang” with men.
Production is hard for anyone. It’s physically difficult work, with pressure to work quickly, and often includes long hours spent outside in all types of weather. Anyone new to the production world needs to prove they can handle it, but the prevailing assumption is women interrupt a fraternity that’s built around the job.
“Men walk onto set and they are automatically friends, one of the guys,” said a second camera assistant. “You want to prove you can hang, so you learn to develop a slightly harder outer shell. Starting off, I’m not going to let anybody know anything bothers me.”
That also can mean tolerating a certain amount of what Trump supporters like to call “locker-room talk.” However, women who spoke with IndieWire say that inevitably — sometimes jokingly, sometimes seriously — the sexual banter becomes directed toward them.
“I usually walk away, gain my composure, then come back and matter-of-factly let them know that wasn’t cool,” said a second camera assistant. “The worst thing you can do is show emotion, but if you smack it down, say like you would an insult that crosses the line, that usually ends it.”
And if it doesn’t? On a studio film, there is a clear chain of command that every person in production has drilled into them through mandatory sexual harassment workshops. Once the unit production manager or producer is made aware of the issue, the studios’ lawyers quickly get involved to protect the large corporations and ensure compliance with federal workplace rules.
However, an independent production doesn’t alway enjoy the same failsafes and corporate efficiencies. While the indie world tends to be more progressive, if sexual harassment does happen there’s no clear sense of who handles the complaint.
“There’s still a very clear chain of command, in regards to who you are to report to,” said a production supervisor. “But where will a complaint ultimately land is a concern.”
Normally, a lawyer representing the entity that owns the film will step in to advise, but line producers and unit production managers who have had to get involved in harassment complaints on independent productions tell IndieWire it often can get messy — and often doesn’t end well for the person who registered the complaint.
“If there isn’t a kickass women in a position of power, who I trust, I’m not sure I’d feel comfortable coming forward,” said a production manager.
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