Diversity and inclusion in the European audiovisual sector IRIS Plus IRIS Plus 2021-1 Diversity and inclusion in the European audiovisual sector European Audiovisual Observatory, Strasbourg, 2021 ISSN 2079-1062 ISBN 978-92-871-9054-3 (Print version) Director of publication – Susanne Nikoltchev, Executive Director Editorial supervision – Maja Cappello, Head of Department for Legal Information Editorial team – Francisco Javier Cabrera Blázquez, Julio Talavera Milla, Sophie Valais Research assistant - Léa Chochon European Audiovisual Observatory Authors (in alphabetical order) Francisco Javier Cabrera Blázquez, Maja Cappello, Julio Talavera Milla, Sophie Valais Translation Marco Polo Sarl, Sonja Schmidt Proofreading Jackie McLelland, Johanna Fell, Catherine Koleda Editorial assistant – Sabine Bouajaja Press and Public Relations – Alison Hindhaugh, [email protected] European Audiovisual Observatory Publisher European Audiovisual Observatory 76, allée de la Robertsau, 67000 Strasbourg, France Tel.: +33 (0)3 90 21 60 00 Fax: +33 (0)3 90 21 60 19 [email protected] www.obs.coe.int Cover layout – ALTRAN, France Please quote this publication as Cabrera Blázquez F.J., Cappello M., Talavera Milla J., Valais S., Diversity and inclusion in the European audiovisual sector, IRIS Plus, European Audiovisual Observatory, Strasbourg, April 2021 © European Audiovisual Observatory (Council of Europe), Strasbourg, 2021 Opinions expressed in this publication are personal and do not necessarily represent the views of the Observatory, its members or the Council of Europe. Diversity and inclusion in the European audiovisual sector Francisco Javier Cabrera Blázquez, Maja Cappello, Julio Talavera Milla, Sophie Valais Foreword Let me tell you a few stories about extraordinary people. Artemisia Gentileschi was a seventeenth century painter, and quite a talented one at that. But for centuries, she was mostly known for having been raped by a fellow painter and for the rapist’s ensuing trial, her brilliant artistry mostly ignored until very recently. Piotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky was one of the greatest composers that have walked the earth. But, like many other homosexual artists before and after him, he had to keep his private life in a closet. Gustav Mahler, on top of being a great composer, was a world-famous conductor. Despite this, being a Jew in fin-de-siècle Vienna, he had to convert to Catholicism in order to become director of the Imperial Opera. Censored, ignored, closeted, forced to convert and to conform. For centuries, society’s views on race, religion, gender or sexual orientation have made the lives of these and other people far more difficult than they should have been. But sometimes it is not society but rather nature that gets in the way, making things more difficult for certain people. Ludwig van Beethoven wrote his greatest works at a time when he had become almost completely deaf. Joaquín Rodrigo became blind at the age of three after contracting diphtheria and had to write his compositions in Braille. Claude Monet’s vision was affected by cataracts but he continued painting wonderfully, and the same can be said of Henri Toulouse-Lautrec or Frida Kahlo, whose talents were not impaired by their mobility restrictions. These are all famous examples of extraordinary people that overcame everything that society and destiny threw at them and gifted humanity with their genius. But behind these famous examples hides a quite big, anonymous crowd of artists that over centuries had to deal with the same discrimination and the same restrictions. Moving on to the twenty-first century, and to our lives spent to a great extent in front of one or many screens, the way women and minority groups are represented on screen matters a great deal. Moreover, behind these many screens, a mostly anonymous crowd is at work. With their contributions, some creative, some technical, they are instrumental in shaping what we see and hear on screen. And that is why it is important that women and minority groups have the opportunity to be part of this job. Coming back to our list of extraordinary people, fortunately the world that Artemisia, Piotr or Gustav had to navigate is not today’s world. Many things have changed. Society has changed. Technology has changed. And very importantly, the legislation has changed. In Europe, there is an important body of legislation and case law that prohibits discrimination on many grounds. At national level, legislators and regulators have provided a diversity of tools and mechanisms to promote equality and fight discrimination, for example, by imposing obligations on broadcasters, particularly public service broadcasters. Film funds make public funding conditional on the fulfilment of equality and diversity criteria. And beyond state intervention, the European audiovisual industry has also stepped in, introducing new policies aimed at increasing diversity and promoting inclusion in the sector. This publication aims at presenting this variety of measures in a non-comprehensive way - in a way which not only illustrates all the good work that has been done in recent years, but which also highlights shortcomings and challenges for the future. Strasbourg, April 2021 Maja Cappello IRIS Coordinator Head of the Department for Legal Information European Audiovisual Observatory Table of contents 1. Setting the scene .............................................................................................. 1 1.1. What are diversity and inclusion .................................................................................................................................... 2 1.2. Off-screen diversity and inclusion ................................................................................................................................. 3 1.3. On-screen diversity and inclusion ................................................................................................................................. 4 1.4. Diversity and inclusion toolbox ...................................................................................................................................... 7 2. International and EU legal framework ............................................................ 9 2.1. Measures by international organisations .................................................................................................................... 9 2.1.1. The United Nations framework................................................................................................................. 9 2.1.2. The Council of Europe framework ........................................................................................................ 14 2.2. Measures by the European Union ............................................................................................................................... 22 2.2.1. Non-discrimination and equality .......................................................................................................... 22 2.2.2. Gender diversity and inclusion in the audiovisual sector ............................................................ 30 2.2.3. EU programmes and initiatives ............................................................................................................. 34 2.3. Sectoral initiatives ............................................................................................................................................................ 34 2.3.1. Initiatives from the EFAD ......................................................................................................................... 34 2.3.2. Initiatives from the EPRA ......................................................................................................................... 35 2.3.3. Initiatives from the ERGA......................................................................................................................... 35 3. National............................................................................................................ 37 3.1. Sectoral legislation concerning broadcasting and VOD ..................................................................................... 37 3.1.1. United Kingdom .......................................................................................................................................... 38 3.1.2. France .............................................................................................................................................................. 42 3.1.3. Spain ................................................................................................................................................................ 49 3.1.4. Belgium (French-speaking Community) ............................................................................................. 53 3.2. Public funding criteria ..................................................................................................................................................... 55 3.2.1. Gender ............................................................................................................................................................. 56 3.2.2. Linguistic minorities .................................................................................................................................. 63 3.2.3. Ethnic, social and religious diversity ................................................................................................... 64