Women moving forwards

Julie Delpy takes an optimistic look at The 4%: Film’s Gender Problem.

by Anne-Katrin Titze

Julie Delpy on Martin Scorsese and Stanley Kubrick: "We haven't entered that club yet."
Julie Delpy on Martin Scorsese and Stanley Kubrick: "We haven't entered that club yet." Photo: Anne-Katrin Titze

While the Epix première of Caroline Suh's The 4%: Film’s Gender Problem, hosted by Christine Baranski, Maria Bartiromo, Joanna Coles, Katie Couric, Cristina Cuomo, Natasha Lyonne, Alec Baldwin, Baz Luhrmann, Marlo Thomas and Robbie Myers was going on, Julie Delpy was premiering her own film Lolo. She is featured in the series, along with Anjelica Huston, Patricia Clarkson, Judd Apatow, Christine Vachon, Mira Nair, Michael Moore, Lake Bell, Amy Berg, James Franco, Kristen Wiig, Michael Mann, Paul Feig, Catherine Hardwicke, A. O. Scott, Sam Taylor-Johnson, Dawn Hudson, Jill Soloway, Mary Harron and Amy Heckerling.

The day after the premieres, Julie and I met for a conversation on Lolo, which began with us discussing the differences between French and American filmmaking.

Julie Delpy on the gap: "In France it has been a lot better for many years."
Julie Delpy on the gap: "In France it has been a lot better for many years."

Anne-Katrin Titze: Your name came up last night at the screening of 4%: Film’s Gender Problem.

Julie Delpy: I couldn't go because I had my [Rendez-Vous with French Cinema] première.

AKT: I spoke to Caroline Suh and then we saw an episode from the program. I loved your quote that nobody thinks the next Kubrick is a woman or the next Scorsese. It's so true that that is in our heads.

JD: Even in women's heads. That the next great director is not a woman. It's interesting, women can be good, but we haven't reached yet the greatness. We haven't entered that club yet. Things change, we have to see the positive. It's better than it was ten years ago, better than it was 20 years ago. It's going to be better in two years.

AKT: Ever the optimist?

JD: I want to be and I think it's better to be an optimist.

AKT: Caroline also mentioned that you talked about it being different in France.

JD: It's less of a gap. It's a big subject. In France, it has been a lot better for many years. The discussion started here in America and I think it's going to open a lot of roads for people.

AKT: It was just great looking at this festival and how many directors who are women I talked to.

JD: It represents the truth about how many French films are made by women every year.

Coming up - Julie Delpy on Lolo and Amy Heckerling with Robbie Myers moderating a panel of Mary Harron, Caroline Suh and Dr. Stacy Smith, discussing The 4%: Film’s Gender Problem with opening remarks by Epix president-CEO Mark Greenberg.

Read what The 4%: Film’s Gender Problem director Caroline Suh had to say.

The series of shorts produced by Erika Frankel will air on Epix through March.

Lolo is in theaters in the US.

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