Women are at the forefront of Flemish TV production despite setbacks
Some of the most interesting television projects from Flanders have one thing in common: female directors. In recent years, projects supported by the Flemish Audiovisual Fund (VAF) have seen a significant increase in the number of female professionals, from 22% to 41%, and series such as ‘Roomies’ by Flo Van Deuren and Kato De Boeck have enjoyed great local and international success.
Speak with VarietyDirector Heleen Declercq of “The Class of 2000” says she believes this increase is due to the fact that the rising generation of filmmakers has grown up with female creatives to look up to. Even relatively younger directors like Van Deuren and De Boeck have already begun to influence those who follow in their footsteps. “About three years ago we started seeing more female directors, and there are more women graduating in fiction films than before,” Declercq adds.
Britt Raes, who is adapting her Berlin-selected short film “Luce and the Rock” into an animated series for VRT’s Ketnet (the Belgian broadcaster’s children’s division), echoes that thought, noting that more and more women are studying animation. “I have been teaching at university for a few years now and there is a noticeable change,” she says.
Raes mentions Emma De Swaef, who co-directed Netflix’s ‘The House’, as an example of an emerging female talent. “Such a series is very important to have on your CV, and it is incredible for someone young to see that someone from Flanders can achieve that,” she says.
The upcoming comedy series ‘BOHO’, about three women in their thirties finding their way in Antwerp life, for the Belgian service Streamz, is proof of the wealth of female Flemish creativity. All department heads in production were women, something experienced director Olympia Allaert calls ‘great’. “Especially for a series like this, it was important to understand what the characters are feeling and going through,” she adds.
“In many productions, all the department heads are men and no one says, ‘Wow, this is too many men,’ but for women it works differently,” notes series producer Helen Perquy of gravel Jonnydepony. The veteran also highlights the fact that she has felt a backlash in the industry over the past five years. “Decision makers are choosing safety, whatever that means. I feel like they have become more conservative and unfortunately women are still not seen as the safe option. It sounds cynical, but the white man is back,” she says.
Both Raes and Declercq say the same thing, noting that even though more and more women are training to enter the industry, they still face the same old problems once they enter. “It’s not that the doors are closed to me, but I may have to knock if a man just has to walk through,” says Raes. “I’m fine with knocking on those doors, but not everyone has the energy or the circumstances to knock and knock and knock.”
Finally, VAF’s new CEO Karla Puttemans says gender equality is “certainly important” to her and the organization, but adds that all recent progress has not yet led to equality. “The gender balance remains unstable and uncertain, so we remain vigilant and continue to encourage and encourage the industry on this important issue.”
