Narrative

This chart demonstrates the number of films from our dataset that either pass or fail the Bechdel test, sorted by genre. The Bechdel test is a set of criteria for films that determines whether a film either ‘passes’ the test by being adequately representative of female voices and perspectives or ‘fails’ the test by doing the opposite; the test uses a set of criteria based off whether or not there are at least two named women in the film who have spoken dialogue between each other about something other than a male character. The chart implies that genres such as action/adventure tend to contribute more failing titles overall; however, these genres have far higher production rates, which is why it is instead crucial to analyze by pass rate rather than sheer volume. When observing pass rate, one can conclude that genres such as romance and family films tend to retain higher Bechdel test pass rates, with the opposite being true for genres such as action or crime. Ultimately, pass rates have generally increased throughout genres over time, but the rate of this change differs by genre.

This chart demonstrates the given films’ average production budgets, sorted by female cast percentage as well as the film’s approximate Bechdel Test score. After analyzing the data presented by this chart, one can conclude that there is no concrete correlation betwen a film’s budget and its female cast representation Inspecting the chart, one can observe that films at the lower end of the spectrum of female cast percentage tend to have higher budgets (see: films at 5-25% of female cast members), while the same is true for films of higher female cast percentages (see: films at 65-85% of female cast members). Instead, the difference in budget is likely primarily driven by other factors, such as genre or business model.

This chart demonstrates the relationship between the given films’ levels of female representation as contrasted with their average revenue and popularity. Overall, the chart clearly demonstrates an inverse relationship between these variables: films with lower levels of female representation result in far higher revenues and popularity, and vice versa. On the surface, this data suggests that female representation directly decreases revenue. While there is undoubtedly some truth in this, this relationship may be more complex than it seems. For instance, blockbuster action and superhero films tend to have lower rates of female representation. These same films also receive higher production budgets, marketing scale, and dominate box offices. Therefore, these causations are at least partially due to trends in genre, with certain genres being more disproportionately male-dominated. However, this data does reveal an alarming insight into the lack of equal representation within film, particularly within certain genres. In turn, this negatively affects film metrics such as revenue and popularity.

Within our given dataset, this chart visualizes the change in level of female representation throughout decades, beginning in 1920 and throughout 2010. Unlike film crews, which had little to no female representation until the 1990s apart from the initial inception of film (see Graph 5 analysis), female representation within cast has been far more diverse over time; however, this is likely due to a desire to view female characters on screen from male audiences, rather than an ethical commitment to gender equity.  That being said, the chart also demonstrates a gradual increase in the rate of female cast representation over time. These changes are much more fluctual in contrast with the change of crew female representation over time, which is more linear. Overall, this chart illustrates the shift in increase of cast female representation over time while highlighting the progress that has still yet to be made in order to achieve true gender diversity within film casts.

This visualization demonstrates the amount of female representation over time within given film crews, including screenwriters, directors, and other creative visionaries who are responsible for functions such as lighting and sound. When films were first innovated, they were largely regarded as more of an art form or creative expression rather than a commercial moneymaker. During this initial phase of cinema, women had increased levels of involvement in production and creative direction, serving vital roles such as directors. However, as film transitioned to a more commercial focus with an emphasis on profitability, the roles of women within these areas greatly diminished, with women only beginning to face inclusivity as recently as the 1990s. The chart reflects these trends, showing a gradual upward trend in female inclusivity within film crew, particularly within recent decades. While the chart demonstrates a trend of gradual improvement over time, we are still far from overcoming structural inequalities which prevent film crews from being truly gender-diverse. 

This map visualizes how production companies across different countries perform in the context of the Bechdel Test, revealing distinct geographic patterns in female representation in film. Dark purple shaded regions (score 1) reflect an average passing score on the Bechdel Test, highlighting regions such as North America, Western Europe, parts of South America, and Oceania where films tend to display more meaningful and complex interactions between female characters. Conversely, light pink shaded regions (score 0), including much of Asia and Eastern Europe, indicate an average failure score on the Bechdel Test and consequently less consistent representation of women in central, independent roles. These disparities reveal how cultural values, film industry practices, and societal gender roles shape the narratives that film companies perpetuate. This map ultimately exposes how gender equity in storytelling is unevenly distributed across countries and is significant to my group’s project because it demonstrates that representation is not only temporal, but also deeply spatial and shaped by each country’s filmmaking structures and cultural perceptions of women.