Cate Blanchett thinks the MeToo and Time’s Up movements have brought "quite a bit of change".
The ‘Mrs America’ actress believes the campaigns to end gender inequality and sexual harassment in Hollywood have had a big impact and have stopped women in the industry from being "separated" from one another as much.
She told OK! magazine: "I’ve noticed quite a bit of change. I think women have been separated from one another for far too long in our industry but that gap is now closing…
"I take a little picture whenever I go to work on a new set, it’s just something I do for myself. It’s a picture of who is behind the camera. On some sets, I would notice how I was the one woman to 35 men. I would think, ‘I’ve been doing this for 20 years and that figure hasn’t changed.’
"Well, it’s changing now. I’m seeing far more women behind the camera, which is great."
And Cate – who has Dashiel, 18, Roman, 16, Ignatius, 12, and five-year-old Edith with husband Andrew Upton – doesn’t think it’s just Hollywood that has seen an impact from the campaigns.
She added: "And it’s not just in the film industry. Women are being much more open about roadblocks or difficulties they have faced or moments of failure."
The 51-year-old actress hopes the world can now move forward with "genuine progress" in the wake of producer Harvey Weinstein being jailed for 23 years after being found guilty of rape and other sexual offences earlier this year.
Asked about the impact of the case, she said: "I think it’s about moving forward without repetition, with genuine progress.
"I don’t think anyone involved in the Weinstein case, and the myriad of cases going on, thinks that this type of thing just happens in our industry. It’s every single industry where abuses of power happen, sexual or otherwise.
"But no one’s interested in vengeance, they are interested in justice and genuine change. We need to keep moving forward."