Cannes 2011 celebrates more female directors than last year

Cannes 2011 showcases more women this year than last year's event. Four out of 16 women compete for the Palme d'Or, Cannes' main competition.

The Cannes Film Festival is well on its way and this year there is something other than films to applaud: more women are being represented this year than last year's festival.

In 2010 there were no women in the competition for the Palme d'Or. Not a single woman was in this main competition, so it's a welcomed change to see four women competing for the main prize.

The four female contenders are: Lynne Ramsay; Julian Leigh, Maiwenn Le Besco; and Naomi Kawase.

Although four is better than none, it is a far cry from the 16 male directors in the competition with them.

Lynne Ramsay tells the guardian, There is a huge inequality in the numbers. She goes on to say that when male directors are particular they can be seen as artistic and creative, as opposed to women who often are seen as demanding, difficult, and problematic.

The Cannes feature film jury however is more balanced. The year's jury, led by Robert De Niro, has four out of eight female jury members, including Uma Thurman, Nansun SHI, Linn Ullman, and Martina Gusman.