The Decline of Marriage and Rise of New Families (Pew Research Center)

The survey also finds striking differences by generation. In 1960, two-thirds (68%) of all twenty-somethings were married. In 2008, just 26% were.

How many of today's youth will eventually marry is an open question. For now, the survey finds that the young are much more inclined than their elders to view cohabitation without marriage and other new family forms -- such as same-sex marriage and interracial marriage -- in a positive light.

Even as marriage shrinks, family -- in all its emerging varieties -- remains resilient. The survey finds that Americans have an expansive definition of what constitutes a family. And the vast majority of adults consider their own family to be the most important, most satisfying element of their lives.

I doubt this news comes as a shock to any of us, but it's always nice to have some data to back up what seems to be happening in the world. Overall, just something I found interesting and thought I'd share.

Read the full article here.

The Shame of Family Films (Newsweek)

This study, undertaken by Stacy Smith and Marc Choueiti at the Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism at the University of Southern California, analyzed 122 family films ... and found that only 29.2 percent of characters were female. And one in four female characters was depicted in “sexy, tight, or alluring attire,” compared with one in 25 male characters. The female characters were also more likely than men to be beautiful, and one in five were “portrayed with some exposed skin between the mid-chest and upper thigh regions.” ... (Another study found, troublingly, that women in G-rated films wear the same amount of skimpy clothing as women in R-rated films.) One in four women was shown with a waist so small that, the authors concluded, it left “little room for a womb or any other internal organs.” ...

[Additional] studies show... the more TV a girl watches, the fewer options she believes she has in life, and the more a boy watches, the more his views become sexist.

This study was done on films rated G, PG, and PG-13. Am I the only one (besides the author and Geena Davis) that thinks there's something wrong here?

Read the full article here.

More Women Without Children (Pew Research Center)

Over the past few decades, public attitudes toward childlessness have become more accepting. Most adults disagree that people without children "lead empty lives," a share that rose to 59% in 2002 from 39% in 1988, according to the General Social Survey. In addition, children increasingly are seen as less central to a good marriage. In a 2007 Pew Research Center survey, 41% of adults said that children are very important for a successful marriage, a decline from 65% who said so in 1990.

Yes, this isn't about filmmaking, but let me remind you I did say from the beginning that sometimes I'd post stuff just because I thought it was interesting. And, if you think about it, all these childless women will need something to fill up their empty, empty lives. Why not movies? (Joking!!)
Read the article here.

Is a multiplex full of family films the future of moviegoing? (LA Times)

Sociologists and psychologists will give reasons why children are the only ones going to the movies. And film pundits will offer their own explanations -- namely, many of the movies aimed at people 13 and over aren't very good... But the reasons are in a sense less important than the consequences. Studio executives like to avoid risk (the only the thing, it can sometimes seem, that they're passionate about these days). And making a movie for anyone other than families means taking a huge risk.

If you ask me, the move towards family films isn't exactly a new trend, and I certainly don't begrudge them their success. But I simply don't understand why people - execs, producers, agents - don't accept the cold, hard truth and embrace making GOOD movies, no matter who the target audience is. We've seen it time and time again - if you build it, they will come (PRADA, BOURNE, for example). Start building!
Read the full article here.

Advertisers earmark $10 million for family-friendly TV (LA Times)

The country's deep-pocketed advertisers want more family-friendly programming on prime-time TV, and they're willing to support it — to the tune of $10 million earmarked specifically to sponsor shows that cater to mom, dad and the youngsters. ...
The advertiser fund, announced today by a consortium of blue-chip marketers that includes Procter & Gamble, Wal-Mart, Unilever and Coca-Cola, ... is the same group, under a slightly different name, that created a script development fund a number of years ago that led to such series as "Gilmore Girls," "Everybody Hates Chris," "Friday Night Lights" and "Ugly Betty."...
The goal is to encourage more shows that families can watch together, Goldstein said, and the motivation is rooted in both good business and consumer trends.

With that kind of money earmarked for the family-friendly genre, I think it's a safe bet we'll be seeing the networks taking a keen interest in pilots that fit the bill. Personally, I'm all for it - I LOVE "Friday Night Lights" and think we're in dire need for more shows like it.
Read the full article here.