Recently at the Variety Power of Women, Oscar winner Winslet Kate delivered a fierce speech challenging women in the films to rise … and be the change. As someone who’s always had forward-thinking roles and has been a voice in activism, Winslet spoke out on how it is all about solidarity and patience in the continual battle of women like losing in Hollywood.
As Winslet began her speech, she recognized the portion of progress that the women have actually made which, however, is not enough. “We cannot stand and take a back seat and wait for order to be restored,” she said. “We really need to make an effort to create that change.” She persuaded the members of her craft – actresses, filmmakers, and indeed women everywhere – to take charge of their lives and work together towards such a goal.
In the course of her speech, Winslet came up with the themes regarding the need to create more stories about women, inside and outside the screen. She brought to light some of the hurdles that women bloggers such as herself and those working behind the camera encounter which include, uneven salaries and little chances of climbing the corporate ladder. “We need women behind the camera. Not just in front of it. Women need to direct, produce, write, run studios. Women have a duty and a moral obligation to create space for other women.”
She also spoke about the necessity of women supporting and mentoring women in the movie industry. She appreciated the efforts aimed at cooperation and guidance, stating that those are critical for the future of young female film creators. “We rise together when we lift each other up,” she said.
The audience stood up, applauded her speech including Oprah Winfrey and Ava DuVernay among others. The audience was as charged as a few weeks back when Winslet had appealed to ‘women, do not sit back and wait for change to happen’. It had reverberated – ‘you need to continue exerting energy consciously in everything – for real change: and it does take a lot of collective effort.
One of those reminders of her speech was that there was still a great deal of imbalance in Hollywood, and that there is the necessity for women to keep up the fight for justice, not for themselves alone but for the generations of filmmakers to come.
