French filmmaker Coralie Fargeat on Saturday withdrew her film The Substance from the prestigious Camerimage Film Festival, citing purported misogyny in the remarks made by festival director Marek Żydowicz.
“After discovering the highly misogynistic and offensive words of the director of the Camerimage Film Festival, I have decided to pull The Substance from the festival (and director of photography Benjamin Kračun has decided not to attend),” Fargeat wrote in a statement on X.
“The Substance is about the impact of exactly these types of behaviours on our world. We shouldn’t tolerate them anymore. We send our support to all involved in the festival and hope this decision will help create a much-needed change,” her statement further read.
The festival, held in Toruń, Poland, has long been a significant event for showcasing cinematography.
Żydowicz’s comments, published in a recent column for Cinematography World magazine, suggested that prioritising gender diversity in film selections for festivals might compromise artistic quality, US-based magazine Variety reported.
Besides Fargeat, Oscar-winning director Steve McQueen has also decided to withdraw his film Blitz from the festival following Żydowicz’s comments. Blitz, which was set to open the event, will no longer be showcased. The filmmaker was initially scheduled to receive the festival’s outstanding director award.
“Having read Marek Żydowicz’s op-ed concerning female cinematographers, I have decided not to attend the opening night presentation of my film Blitz this weekend,” McQueen said in a statement to Variety. “Although he has issued an apology, I cannot get past what I consider deeply offensive words. I have enormous respect for cinematographers of all genders, including women, and believe we have to do and demand better to make room for everyone at the table.”
Despite the controversy, acclaimed actress Cate Blanchett will remain as the head of the festival jury. Blanchett, along with jury members Anthony Dod Mantle, Rachel Morrison, Mark Higgs, Sandy Powell, Rodrigo Prieto, Łukasz Żal, and Jolanta Dylewska addressed the issue in a joint statement on Instagram.
“We welcome debate regarding gender representation. We look forward to being part of meaningful discussions with our peers at the festival about greater inclusion and recognition of excellence in all its forms in our industry,” the statement read.