Natalie Dormer predicts recognition for female directors in four years

9 January 2018

Natalie Dormer thinks it will take four years' for female directors to be recognised for their work at awards ceremonies.

Natalie Dormer

The 35-year-old actress - who shot to fame in 'The Tudors' and 'Game of Thrones' - announced the nominations for the 2018 BAFTAs on Tuesday (09.01.18) but there was some controversy after no women were listed in the Best Director category.

Natalie accepts that there were some fantastic films made by her gender over the past 12 months but she thinks now is the time to be "celebrating" the fact that people are talking about gender inequality in the movie business as the recognition will follow.

Speaking to ITV News, Natalie mused: "The thing with filmmaking is it takes time. It takes time to redraft the script, it takes time to find the money, it takes time to get the talent's schedules lined up to shoot them. So what I'm more interested in is celebrating that we are all talking it now. So then in the next two, three, four years that is where we can hold ourselves to account."

The nominees for the Best Director BAFTA are Guillermo del Toro for 'The Shape of the Water', 'Blade Runner 2049' helmer Denis Villeneuve, 'Call Me By Your Name' director Luca Guadagnino, 'Dunkirk' filmmaker Christopher Nolan and 'Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri' mastermind Martin McDonagh.

The lack of female directors being nominated also affected the Golden Globes and Barbra Streisand revealed her shock at being the one woman to ever win the Best Director Globe for a movie 34 years ago.

The 75-year-old singer-and-actress won one of the prestigious gongs for her 1984 movie 'Yentl', but while presenting the final award at the American ceremony on Sunday evening (07.01.18), Barbra pointed out that it was only men listed in this year's Best Director category.

She said: "So, backstage I heard they said something about me, I was the only woman to get - did I hear right - the only woman to get the Best Director award, and you know that was 1984.

"That was 34 years ago. Folks, time's up. We need more women directors and more women to be nominated for best director. There are so many films out there that are so good directed by women."