Ellen Page says she plans to promote diverse storytelling when producing films in the future.
I’m focusing mostly on stories that are meaningful to me and stories for women and supporting more gay characters. Statistically, there’s less women behind the camera, less women composing the music, less women writing the stories, less women acting particularly as protagonists.”
Page has said that she hopes to see more women – gay or straight – getting their stories told in Hollywood.
Talking to Screen Daily, she said
If you’re a woman and you happen to be an Africa American women, or a First Nations woman, then your chances are even more limited and your stories aren’t being told. I think what we’re seeing in television is a reflection that audiences do want more diverse storytelling, they want to see other stories and they are responding to that. I feel like the film industry is going to start following that path. Hopefully that will keep changing.”
She added that she hopes to see more women come out in Hollywood, in order to garner a true understanding of how gay women want to be represented on screen.
There are not that many out gay women [in Hollywood] so it’s hard to come to some sort of consensus about what that means. I’m feeling grateful for what options and opportunities I have.”
As well as acting, the actress has recently began producing films – including upcoming lesbian drama, Freeheld, which also stars Oscar winner Julianne Moore.
She is also set to produce another gay love story, in which she will star opposite Fantastic Four actress Kate Mara.
The actress – who came out last year while working on Freeheld – went on to praise the diversity seen on television, but argued that Hollywood still has a long way to go, especially when it came to women and race.
Page will be honored for her LGBT rights advocacy during the Human Rights Campaign’s (HRC) 19th annual National Dinner in Washington, D.C. At the Saturday, October 3 event, seven-time Emmy Award winner Allison Janney will present Page with the group’s National Vanguard Award.
