Thank you to our supporters for another impactful year

To mark the release of our 2025 annual report, we revealed the impact of our audience engagement work for the year, and data on the ‘distribution gap’ for 2025. 

Over the course of the calendar year, we've supported 18 new release campaigns, produced 180+ events, in partnership with a range of 15 distributors, a network of cinemas across 20 cities, supported by BFI Film Audience Project Fund. Our analysis testifies to the fact that diversity behind the camera offers the potential to reach a young and wide audience:  

Reclaim The Frame’s slate: 

• 100% of films written and / or directed by women or filmmakers of all marginalised genders

• 35% of titles directed by a Black or person of colour filmmaker

• 18%+ directed by an openly LGBTQIA+ filmmaker

Reclaim The Frame’s audience: 

• 74% women & non-binary

• 55% Deaf, disabled or neurodivergent

• 39% Global Majority in London (26% outside of London)

• 33% aged under 30

• 30% LGBTQIA+

Impact: 

• 96% of those who rarely attended cinema events told us they felt “included” at Reclaim The Frame events

• 99% said they would recommend RTF events to others

• 83% of events included access measures including descriptive subtitles and live captioning or BSL interpretation 

• For 34% it was their first time attending the cinema in question

Having monitored the ‘distribution gap’ for women filmmakers since 2017, Reclaim The Frame’s data for the year goes to show that despite sector-wide efforts, progress is slow, and in some cases, regressions have been made. 

Looking at all 2025 theatrical releases in the UK & Ireland 2025 (calendar year): 

• 16% of titles were directed or co-directed by women or non-binary filmmakers, down from 21% in 2024, and lower than it has been since 2018

• 19%  of releases were written or co-written by women or non-binary screenwriters, with at least 50% screenwriting. Up slightly from 18% in 2024, the average since 2018 is 20%, with very little change over the past few years 

• 7% of releases were co/directed by women of colour or Black/POC women/non binary directors. That’s down from 7.7% in 2024, and up to now we’ve seen an upward trend

• 8% by women / non binary writers of colour, again around the same as 2024, and again suggests a slight plateauing of what has up to now been an upward trend. 

•  31% of the above titles were debuts for the director suggesting an increase in supporting 2nd / 3rd+ features by women and non-binary filmmakers. 

Reclaim The Frame director Melanie Iredale states “It’s easy to assume gender equity is always moving forward, but our end-of-year review at Reclaim The Frame shows that complacency is not an option. Despite sector-wide efforts, films directed by women now make up just 16% of acquisitions - back to pre-2019 levels - with only 7% directed by women of colour. This not only restricts filmmakers’ opportunities but severely limits audience choice. These findings demand action: re-examining who holds decision-making power across sales, distribution and circulation, and challenging narrow ideas of ‘risk’ when our audience engagement shows that under-served audiences consistently show up to see themselves represented on screen.”