This initiative caught Patricia's attention at the recent WIFTI conference in London, and we all love the idea.
Something to challenge you... A simple, free and effective solution to gender balance on screen! Everyone should read and adopt this system. It can start with the writer before it even gets to the director, casting director and producer.
NEROPA - Neutral Role Parity - was devised by Belinde Ruth Stieve in Germany in 2016. A casting tool for more gender diversity, it is an easy concept. Essentially, any role that does not have to be a particular gender (mother, grandfather, etc) is defined as neutral, and then all roles are cast female/male/female/male and so on, truly reflecting the balanced society we live in.
All the information you need is available on this site: http://neropa.stieve.com/en/der-neropa-check/
Let us know when you adopt it, and let's start a list of people using the system - we'll shout about it from the rooftops!
Kimberly Skyrme is a WIFTI Board member and respected casting director who spent many years on House of Cards. This is what she has to say about NEROPA:
"As a casting director, I feel creativity is at the core of my role in the entertainment industry, however I take my role one step further to be a "change agent" of storytelling. I find every opportunity to introduce the idea of women playing roles that were originally written for men, fortunately with much success. I was delighted and intrigued to learn of NEROPA at the recent WIFTI Conference in London, hosted by WIFT UK.
"I am in full support of NEROPA's concept of a systematic approach to a process that I have been using for 27 years as a casting director. I am prepared to assist with the implementation of this unified approach to reducing the imbalance of male to female roles written for ALL screens large and small."