Men Telling Women's Stories

I was excited to read an article recently that more and more men in Hollywood are speaking up about how women are being kept out of directorial positions behind the camera, or the most full and interesting roles in front of the camera. So this CMM blog, is focused on the topic of women’s equality and the importance of allowing more of the, currently suppressed, wise, healing feminine energy to come back in into balance again in the world. Bringing this energy back in is a key element in the healing of the planet and humanity, and it is as important to men as it is to women, because we all posses both energies. It’s exciting that more men are realizing this and helping to bring it about through groups like He For She. We need to realize that the male and female energies are complementary not opposing forces. They create a balance of yin and yang inside and outside of ourselves. The symbol of the black yin and white yang, have two dots of the opposite color in each, showing that the male and female qualities are not absolute, each contains some qualities of the other. Nullifying any part of ourselves is painful, confusing and damaging personally. and removing so much of the nurturing feminine energy from this world is behind many of the devastating issues facing our planet today. Working together on this in camaraderie will be healing. Hearing both voices would foster understanding.

I remember reading a blog by a man who said he was tired of women expecting men to be tough and not sensitive. Men aren't allowed to show emotions or vulnerability, without being ridiculed. He felt like he needed to be the hero all the time and so much more. That's a pressure we women don't think about or realize that men have. I explained to him though, that it's not so much women imposing this on men, it is the suppression of feminine energy on this planet creating that dichotomy. The world has diminished in value what we feminize. I have noticed this changing, just by the fact that men aren't embarrassed to cry anymore, even the big tough guys. This is so much healthier. There's still a long way to go though. For example, there's tremendous power in story, yet less than 4%-7% of directors are women, so we can't share our voices and stories. You can’t selectively suppress women/feminine energy in one area, without suppressing/removing it elsewhere too...and the qualities this gentleman would love to be able to express are considered feminine qualities. This imbalance is indeed damaging to all of us. It's ancient wisdom that balance of these energies is the key to sustained existence. On top of women being shut out, people of color were as well for the longest time. Think of all of the vital perspectives we have been missing out on.

I bring this up because of how much women’s voices and diverse voices have been kept silent in the entertainment industry and how it's throwing the world off balance and out of wack...not to mention how painful it is for those of us who have stories to share. The media has such great influence. So think about this, nearly all the stories we see as a reflection of life at the movies and on television have been and still are being directed and created by men. Even the chick flicks and “women’s stories”, our motherhood stories, our stories of our trials and tribulations as women, are from the male perspective on how we feel and how we should react, because they are the ones directing them. If the shoe were on the other foot and about 95% of all films…including the male camaraderie movies, war films, stories on what it means to be a man, fatherhood, all action films, ALL…ALL films, were directed and created by women, men would be yelling, “what a warped world view! That’s not the way it is for us! You haven't walked in our shoes!”…well…exactly! We must be allowed to tell our own stories and contribute our gifts and wisdom to society. It's time for women and men to work together on this.

In Andrea Allen’s blog article on Vimeo, she states,

“Gender inequality in filmmaking isn’t simply a woman’s problem: it’s everyone’s problem. When diverse voices are given equal consideration and weight, more informed artistic decisions are made, better stories are told — and it’s also the right thing to do as human beings."