Composer Representation Report
Full Report (PDF)

Composer Representation Report

A data-driven analysis of representation in the U.S. film music industry over a quarter century.

Key facts

For nearly 20 years, only 4% of top-grossing films were scored by women.

4%
= 1 film Purple = women composers

Top 300 U.S. box-office films per year (2000-2017).

Representation across composers and music department roles

Switch roles to compare how representation shifts across the music department.

Role:

Line chart showing yearly share of women composers and People of Color (PoC) across selected music department roles.

View data
Representation by role and year.
Year Women composers People of Color (PoC)

What this report covers, and why.

Purpose of the Report

This report documents long-term patterns in the representation of women and People of Color (PoC) in the U.S. film music industry. Using the top 300 U.S. domestic box-office films per year from 2000-2025, it examines composers, key music department roles, and awards recognition. The objective is descriptive, not prescriptive.

Data at a glance

  • 🎬 7,800 films (Top 300 per year, 2000-2025)
  • 👤 8,000+ professionals
  • 🎼 Roles: composers, conductors, engineers, music editors, music preparators, orchestrators, orchestration teams
  • 🏆 Awards: Academy Awards, Golden Globe Awards, Grammy Awards
  • 📊 Sources: IMDb, publicly available information

What this report does — and does not do

Does

  • Descriptive, data-driven analysis
  • Provides a factual foundation for informed discussion

Does not

  • Assign individual responsibility
  • Make causal claims
  • Propose policy solutions