--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Filmmaking is not about gender. You…" description: "\"Filmmaking is not about gender. You cannot ask a president in a festival like Cannes to have, like, five movies directed by women and five by men.\" — M..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/76f/marion-cotillard-2955_cinema_filmmaking-is-not-about-gender-you-canno_2243527.jpg" --- # Filmmaking is not about gender. You cannot ask a president… ![“Filmmaking is not about gender. You cannot ask a president in a festival like Cannes to have, like, five movies directed by women and five by men.” quote by Marion Cotillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/76f/marion-cotillard-2955_cinema_filmmaking-is-not-about-gender-you-canno_2243527.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/76f/marion-cotillard-2955_cinema_filmmaking-is-not-about-gender-you-canno_2243527.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/76f/marion-cotillard-2955_cinema_filmmaking-is-not-about-gender-you-canno_2243527.jpg) > “Filmmaking is not about gender. You cannot ask a president in a festival like Cannes to have, like, five movies directed by women and five by men.” [Marion Cotillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-cotillard/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Filmmaking should be judged on talent and merit, not gender quotas; equality comes from opportunity, not enforced balance. **In simple terms:** Film quality matters more than gender quotas. Key Takeaway Focus on skill, not gender. Themes equality merit film industry Mood thoughtful critical Type analytical commentary When to use this quote - casting decisions - festival programming - studio hiring - award nominations Key Concepts gender studies fairness creative merit Questions to Reflect On - How can we ensure fair representation without quotas? - What measures truly level the playing field? A Different Perspective Gender quotas can overlook nuanced systemic barriers and may create tokenism. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cinema](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cinema/) [Female](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/female/) [Filmmaking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/filmmaking/) [Gender](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gender/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Movies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/movies/) [Women](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/women/) ## Related quotes > [One of the things we learn in movies directed by men is what the 'fantasy woman' is. What we learn in movies directed by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-campion/one-of-the-things-we-learn-in-movies-directed-by-men-is-what-the/) [Jane Campion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-campion/) > [I want to see some scripts written by women and projects being directed by women.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eleanor-tomlinson/i-want-to-see-some-scripts-written-by-women-and-projects-being/) [Eleanor Tomlinson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eleanor-tomlinson/) > [I've done five films directed by women. I did like it. They had qualities, particularly in the romantic tenderness of scenes. I felt sometimes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-bisset/i-ve-done-five-films-directed-by-women-i-did-like-it-they-had/) [Jacqueline Bisset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-bisset/) > [I was lucky to work with Gamechanger Films, who are a consortium of investors financing films directed by women. This is a company that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karyn-kusama/i-was-lucky-to-work-with-gamechanger-films-who-are-a-consortium-of/) [Karyn Kusama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karyn-kusama/) > [You're allowed to make things for women on television, and there's not like... you don't have to go through the humiliation of having made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/callie-khouri/you-re-allowed-to-make-things-for-women-on-television-and-there-s-not/) [Callie Khouri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/callie-khouri/) > [You're allowed to make things for women on television and there's not like... you don't have to go through the humiliation of having made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/callie-khouri/you-re-allowed-to-make-things-for-women-on-television-and-there-s-not-2/) [Callie Khouri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/callie-khouri/) > [I never think that being a woman is so hard. Maybe don't think about your gender and be confident as you go forward rather…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerusha-hess/i-never-think-that-being-a-woman-is-so-hard-maybe-don-t-think-about/) [Jerusha Hess](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerusha-hess/) > [To all the women and the men who ever loved me just a little.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ana-castillo/to-all-the-women-and-the-men-who-ever-loved-me-just-a-little/) [Ana Castillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ana-castillo/) > [Behind every great man there was a woman but behind every women there were men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juju/behind-every-great-man-there-was-a-woman-but-behind-every-women-there/) [Juju](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juju/) > [Men are men and women are women, but the men are dumber than the women, usually.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-malkmus/men-are-men-and-women-are-women-but-the-men-are-dumber-than-the-women/) [Stephen Malkmus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-malkmus/) > [For me, men and women are different. A man is genetically gifted to pull more than a woman. But at the same time, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kajol/for-me-men-and-women-are-different-a-man-is-genetically-gifted-to/) [Kajol](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kajol/) > [Well, if you look at the programme that we're offering, I think that is a future which is fair for women as well as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harriet-harman/well-if-you-look-at-the-programme-that-we-re-offering-i-think-that-is/) [Harriet Harman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harriet-harman/) > [Thy dangerous glances make women of men; new-born, we are melting into nature again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/thy-dangerous-glances-make-women-of-men-new-born-we-are-melting-into/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [The hardest thing about being a guy is that women don't accept that you really are just a simple, pathetic, labrador retriever-like creature. That…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-barry/the-hardest-thing-about-being-a-guy-is-that-women-don-t-accept-that/) [Dave Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-barry/) > [People are capable of great, great change during the span of one lifetime. And women even more than men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-zevin/people-are-capable-of-great-great-change-during-the-span-of-one/) [Gabrielle Zevin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-zevin/) ## More by Marion Cotillard > [I have a tendency to often share the point of view of the conspiracy theory.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-cotillard/i-have-a-tendency-to-often-share-the-point-of-view-of-the-conspiracy/) [Marion Cotillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-cotillard/) > [There is something strange about me. I don't ever feel at ease in a group of people. I have to fight hard to overcome…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-cotillard/there-is-something-strange-about-me-i-don-t-ever-feel-at-ease-in-a/) [Marion Cotillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-cotillard/) > [I think that you always learn something from working with good actors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-cotillard/i-think-that-you-always-learn-something-from-working-with-good-actors/) [Marion Cotillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-cotillard/) > [I couldn't identify with anyone. At school, I was considered very strange. I didn't understand the relationships between people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-cotillard/i-couldn-t-identify-with-anyone-at-school-i-was-considered-very/) [Marion Cotillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-cotillard/) > [I always thought that I was a terrible writer. And I started to write songs. And I started to like what I was writing.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-cotillard/i-always-thought-that-i-was-a-terrible-writer-and-i-started-to-write/) [Marion Cotillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-cotillard/) > [I started to write songs. And I started to like what I was writing. I think it's a new way for me to express…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-cotillard/i-started-to-write-songs-and-i-started-to-like-what-i-was-writing-i/) [Marion Cotillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-cotillard/) > [For me, what Macbeth is about is people who cannot face their fears and pain and instead of facing them and going beyond, they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-cotillard/for-me-what-macbeth-is-about-is-people-who-cannot-face-their-fears/) [Marion Cotillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-cotillard/) > [I love to work this way - I love the time of preparation. If you feed yourself with all the information and you get…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-cotillard/i-love-to-work-this-way-i-love-the-time-of-preparation-if-you-feed/) [Marion Cotillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-cotillard/) > [When someone would come up to me in the street, I would either run away or burst into tears. I didn't know what to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-cotillard/when-someone-would-come-up-to-me-in-the-street-i-would-either-run/) [Marion Cotillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-cotillard/) > [I would love to go into an animal's dream - like a lion's or a cat's. I'm sure that's pretty awesome.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-cotillard/i-would-love-to-go-into-an-animal-s-dream-like-a-lion-s-or-a-cat-s-i/) [Marion Cotillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-cotillard/) > [I was shy. I was more than shy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-cotillard/i-was-shy-i-was-more-than-shy/) [Marion Cotillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-cotillard/) > [Im very happy with whats happening now and how the awareness is spreading. Because 10 years ago my mind-set wasnt really normal for most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-cotillard/im-very-happy-with-whats-happening-now-and-how-the-awareness-is/) [Marion Cotillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-cotillard/) > [There are so many actresses that I love. I think Jennifer Lawrence is a prodigy. I think Elle Fanning is absolutely amazing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-cotillard/there-are-so-many-actresses-that-i-love-i-think-jennifer-lawrence-is/) [Marion Cotillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-cotillard/) > [I think in friendship, you want to be there for your friend, and sometimes you just don't know what to do or the relationship…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-cotillard/i-think-in-friendship-you-want-to-be-there-for-your-friend-and/) [Marion Cotillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-cotillard/) > [It's pretty refreshing to be in a situation where the spotlight is on someone else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-cotillard/it-s-pretty-refreshing-to-be-in-a-situation-where-the-spotlight-is-on/) [Marion Cotillard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-cotillard/) [Explore all 144 Marion Cotillard quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-cotillard/) ## More Cinema quotes > [I made, like, five movies while I was in college. I think they just weren't memorable movies. I've taken breaks as the years have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodie-foster/i-made-like-five-movies-while-i-was-in-college-i-think-they-just/) [Jodie Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodie-foster/) > [You have to have a great director to make a great movie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thelma-schoonmaker/you-have-to-have-a-great-director-to-make-a-great-movie/) [Thelma Schoonmaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thelma-schoonmaker/) > [I'm trying to write a film with my friend. I'd love to get the thrill of speaking actors making my work even funnier.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-howard/i-m-trying-to-write-a-film-with-my-friend-i-d-love-to-get-the-thrill/) [Russell Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-howard/) > [I wasn't attracted to American cinema, but I fell in love with Los Angeles the minute I arrived.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-varda/i-wasn-t-attracted-to-american-cinema-but-i-fell-in-love-with-los/) [Agnes Varda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-varda/) > [There was a time in the 1980s when I worked in 22 films a year.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/radha-ravi/there-was-a-time-in-the-1980s-when-i-worked-in-22-films-a-year/) [Radha Ravi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/radha-ravi/) > [To an ever greater extent out experience is governed by pictures, pictures in newspapers and magazines, on television and in the cinema. Next to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-crimp/to-an-ever-greater-extent-out-experience-is-governed-by-pictures/) [Douglas Crimp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-crimp/) > [In the future, I would like to do more films with contemporary themes. Perhaps comedy, which is something I have done in theater but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-evans/in-the-future-i-would-like-to-do-more-films-with-contemporary-themes/) [Luke Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-evans/) > [I am tired of our characters being so incomplete. When do we ever save the day in a film? When does a Latino actor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esai-morales/i-am-tired-of-our-characters-being-so-incomplete-when-do-we-ever-save/) [Esai Morales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esai-morales/) > [I love film people and actors and I am in the right world because I am one of those people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ewan-mcgregor/i-love-film-people-and-actors-and-i-am-in-the-right-world-because-i/) [Ewan McGregor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ewan-mcgregor/) > [Personally, I prefer contemporary films, but the market calls for more period choices, especially since China opened up a cinema market in Hong Kong.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donnie-yen/personally-i-prefer-contemporary-films-but-the-market-calls-for-more/) [Donnie Yen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donnie-yen/) > [I'd love to work in the States; I'd love to work anywhere where you get a good script and a good part to play.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-carmichael/i-d-love-to-work-in-the-states-i-d-love-to-work-anywhere-where-you/) [Laura Carmichael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-carmichael/) > [I even see the cinema itself as a woman, with its alternation of light and darkness, of appearing and disappearing images](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/federico-fellini/i-even-see-the-cinema-itself-as-a-woman-with-its-alternation-of-light/) [Federico Fellini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/federico-fellini/) > ['Rear Window' isn't really a horror film, but it is a psychological drama, which I love. It is very tense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-silvers/rear-window-isn-t-really-a-horror-film-but-it-is-a-psychological/) [Diana Silvers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-silvers/) > [What a thrill. You know you've entered new territory when you realise that your outfit cost more than your film.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-yu/what-a-thrill-you-know-you-ve-entered-new-territory-when-you-realise/) Jessica Yu > [I am not interested in churning out a certain number of films every year. For me, it's about the quality of work. I think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepika-padukone/i-am-not-interested-in-churning-out-a-certain-number-of-films-every/) [Deepika Padukone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepika-padukone/) [Browse all 23,940 Cinema quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cinema/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Filmmaking is not about gender. 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