Universal has become the first major company to join the #4PercentChallenge, an initiative aimed at hiring more women behind the camera, particularly women of color, within the next 18 months.
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The movement was launched by Time’s Up and the Annenberg Inclusion Initiative and announced at Sundance by Nina Jacobson, Amy Schumer, Angela Robinson, Paul Feig, and Franklin Leonard. The initiative requires companies to pledge to hire more female directors, particularly women of color, in the next year and a half.
Universal even took to Twitter to share the big news on Tuesday.
“Universal Pictures’ Peter Cramer, Focus Features’ Peter Kujawski and DreamWorks Animation’s Margie Cohn proudly join their colleagues throughout the industry in accepting the #TIMESUP #4PercentChallenge.”
Universal Pictures’ Peter Cramer, Focus Features’ Peter Kujawski and DreamWorks Animation’s Margie Cohn proudly join their colleagues throughout the industry in accepting the #TIMESUP #4PercentChallenge. https://t.co/llVyB2W8Rn @TIMESUPNOW
— Universal Pictures (@UniversalPics) January 29, 2019
According to Essence, the #4percentchallenge is based on a recent study that shows only four percent of top-grossing films from 2007-2018 were directed by women.
