New Study: Did #MeToo and #TimesUp Impact Academy Choices?

StoryFit Research – AI and the Oscars

StoryFit AI technology uncovers trends in Oscar-nominated movies.

AUSTIN, TEXAS — Feb., 26, 2018—Austin-based technology company StoryFit has released groundbreaking data on gender and diversity trends in Oscar-nominated movies, using Artificial Intelligence and Natural Language Processing to compare 2017 and 2018 Award Nominees.

Applying data science to evaluate tone, language, character personality, and individual dialogue linguistics, StoryFit’s research presents the clearest picture of critical reception in the age of #MeToo and #TimesUp.

“There were more women in atypical gender roles this year, and female characters gained ground in representation. But the gains were slight,”  said Monica Landers, Founder and CEO of StoryFit.

Thoughthere was a slight increase in both the number of female starring roles and the percentage of overall female roles, , that growth did not translate to more female voices: the average female dialogue share held steady at 30%.

Lady Bird wins the award for most female dialogue at 75%, compared to 2017’s La La Land had 55%. This year women talked more about business and less about babies, while men talked more about parenting and less about finance, business, and science.

Last year, women comprised 26% of total cast and 32% of starring cast. This year’s total female cast composition came in at 33% and starring cast share at 36%.

That slight increase of female roles coincides with a major drop in representation of people of color. Last year, the average Oscar-nominated movie cast was 61% white, whereas this year’s nominees were a whopping 94% white.

“While the results don’t match the hope and goals of most in the film industry, I’m more optimistic than ever that we’re going to see change, ” said Landers. “By using AI, we can measure results at the script level before greenlighting, providing Hollywood with transparency and specific metrics to improve on in 2019.”

A broad look at all the characters generated interesting results. For example, characters in this year’s Oscar-nominated movies were more fearful and angry than last year. Men this year were sadder than in 2017, and female joy fell by 18%.

By almost every measurement, characters tended toward more negative and pessimistic traits along the “Big 5 Personality Measurements” this year compared to last year. Men took a 5% average dive; women 25%.

This Oscar exploration reveals just a small portion of what AI can uncover in movie scripts and provides a good starting point to measure future changes that the #MeToo and #TimesUp movements have inspired.

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About StoryFit

​StoryFit utilizes artificial intelligence to help the film and publishing industries make informed decisions throughout the story creation process, from acquisitions to sales. Our technology delivers contextualized analysis directly from the script. We make assessments of the commercial appeal, narrative structure, comps, and sentiment before the book or movie is released. Through our interactive platform, StoryFit supports studio decision-making with audience metrics, comps, and market recommendations that have shown to directly increase revenue within weeks of application.