Compiling a ‘Best practices manual’, launching of a website and announcement of specific projects are some of the long-term plans of Women in Cinema Collective (WCC), which is holding a multi-panel, two-day conference in Kochi that begins today.

Formed two years ago, in the wake of an assault of a top female actor of Malayalam cinema, the WCC, the first of its kind in India, has already caused a sea change in attitudes and approach of many key players in the industry.

“We are shifting our focus and moving on to think about how we can make the industry more professional and streamline it in tune with other service sectors. There is a lot of ignorance about basic work conditions, and regulations and laws that protect women at work spaces. Right now, there are no guidelines regarding working conditions, maternity leave, hours of work, security issues and so on,” explains film editor Bina Paul, a WCC founding member.

In fact, the conference has been headlined as ‘ShiftFocus, Women Shaping the Narrative in Media and Entertainment.’ Bina says a core committee of women with experience in different fields of filmmaking and gender rights plan to sit in on the conferences and listen to what a young generation of women in cinema would like to share with them. “It could be as basic as hygienic bathrooms on the sets of a film, a place to rest or change sanitary napkins, breastfeed a child if need be and so on. As of now, almost all these are absent on most sets. It could also be about developing a script, finding producers, career advancement and so on,” points out Bina.

By empowering, educating and enriching women in cinema, the WCC also hopes to reach out to newbies hoping to make a mark in the industry. “To change things for the better on the ground, we have been studying how to go about it. We had to decide what kind of an organisation we want to be, the laws that exist, the kind of structures that exist in other industries and so on. While we will continue having a strong advocacy focus, we also want to promote actual industry practice and empower women wanting to come into the industry,” says filmmaker Anjali Menon, another founding member. She says mentoring, hand-holding and knowledge-sharing will be important components of WCC. For instance, film director Vidhu Vincent has invited interns who would like to work with her during the making of her film Stand Up, while Parvathy Thiruvoth has agreed to let people ‘shadow’ her while she works so that they understand how an actor breathes life into a character.

Taking stock of the developments of the past two years, Vidhu says as a result of the interactions with the government, the Kerala government has been proactive in its response to issues raised by members of WCC.

Broadbasing the reach

“Now, we are thinking ahead and broadbasing our reach to network with women in other film industries in India. Active participants in many branches of cinema will be putting their heads together to discuss common problems and come up with suggestions and alternatives,” says film director Vidhu, a founding members of WCC.

Moreover, WCC has set up in-house teams to study several aspects of the industry so that there is a better understanding of where they are and how they should proceed for an equal working space. Anjali points out that even rights mandated by the Constitution are non-existent in work spaces in the film industry.

Anjali Menon   | Photo Credit: Special arrangement

“However, contracts, which are common now, came about when many film bodies sat together and discussed how best to tackle certain situations. In the same way, organisations must come together to formulate safe working conditions. The government must put out a policy that henceforth these safety measures and these basic conditions must be put in place on all sets,” adds Anjali. However, she adds in the case of the film industry, the definition of work places and teams are fluid since they work for long hours in multiple spaces and with different teams. “The film industry has been quick in adapting to technological changes but extremely slow in adapting to basic rights of workers,” she says.

The WCC is also documenting the high attrition rate of women in cinema and Anjali hopes that, eventually, they will study the reasons for that.

Listing some of the issues that women face when they come into the industry, she says that resources to engage with the industry, networking, proper hands-on training are important for their career advancement and craft enrichment.

The conference in Kochi, organised in association with Thiruvananthapuram-based NGO Sakhi Women’s Resource Centre, will be attended by representatives from other industries in India. PA Ranjith will be the chief guest. Actor Swara Bhaskar, lawyer and women’s right activist Vrinda Grover, independent journalist and founder of the women in media network Ammu Joseph and so on will be present.