Directors Guild census shows strong racial, gender diversity

The Directors Guild of Canada (DGC) is touting its recently-issued 2025 census report as showing progress in the Canadian film and television industry, highlighted by strong representation from various ethnicities in the directing profession. Along with directors and assistant directors, the guild represents a dozen groups including accountants, location management, and production assistants. Members of the DGC were encouraged to participate in the census, which was released at last week’s Prime Time conference, hosted by the Canadian Media Producers Association. Starting with an ethnicity overview, the voluntary study found 79.3 per cent of respondents identified as Caucasian. For Black, Indigenous and other people of colour (BIPOC), a category which excluded Asian and Indigenous people, the total was 20.7 per cent, up from 19.9 per cent last year. As a separate category, Asian respondents clocked in at 10 per cent, while total Indigenous representation came in at 2.6 per cent. Among Black respondents, 53.7 per cent said they or their families immigrated to Canada from the Caribbean, with a further 26.1 per cent said they descended from Africa, either directly or from another country. Another 12.5 per cent said they were descended from slaves in Canada or the United States. Two per cent did not know their heritage, while the remaining 5.7 per cent opted to self-describe. Slightly more than half — 50.5 per cent — of Indigenous respondents said they were First Nations, while 48.4 per cent stating they were Metis. Only 1.1 per cent of participants stated they were Inuit. “Asian membership at the guild is diverse, with the largest share identifying as Chinese , South Asian or Filipino/Filipina ,” the census reads. West Asians, such as Iranian and Afghani people, accounted for 9.9 per cent, southeast Asian respondents came in at 6.7 per cent, and Korean representation was 6.4 per cent. Japanese people made up 3.9 per cent of membership, while 1.4 per cent are classified as other. Gender identification showed 47.7 per cent of respondents classified themselves as men, 44.3 per cent as women, 1.3 per cent as non-binary, and 0.8 per cent as gender non-conforming. An additional 4.9 per cent gave no answer and 0.9 per cent were listed as “not included elsewhere”. The most well-represented age contingent was between 35- and 44-years-old, which covered 27 per cent of respondents. Next, 21 per cent of people were between 45- and 54-years-old, while 19 per cent were in the 55- to 64-years-old range. Those in the 25- to 34-years-old age cohort were 18 per cent and 11 per cent were listed as being in the 65- to 74-years-old age group. Those older than 75, as well as those between 18- and 24-years-old, fell below five per cent. For sexual orientation, the majority of respondents claimed to be heterosexual, with 81.5 per cent of people identifying as straight. Ten per cent said they were bisexual or pansexual, 6.9 per cent identified as homosexual, while 0.6 per cent said they were asexual and one per cent preferred to self-described. “Altogether, 18.5 per cent of our membership identifies as part of the LGBTQ+ community, reflecting an almost two per cent increase from 16.7 per cent since the first census ,” the report stated. Meanwhile, disabled representation fell below the national average, as only 10.3 per cent of DGC members identified as disabled, compared to 15.6 per cent of the national workforce, according to Statistics Canada data from 2017. “In this year’s report, income levels have gradually shifted upward following a steep decline in 2024 due to production halts following US labour disruptions," the survey noted. Based on ethnicity, white respondents averaged a total income of $83,505.58, those listed as Black registered $79,713.26, while Asian members logged in at $79,245.13. BIPOC (other) members averaged $73,790.42, and Indigenous respondents posted $72,427.37. Greater disparity was discovered in gender identity numbers, as men earned an average of $84,318.42, and women brought in $80,991.26. However, gender non-conforming and non-binary respondents only earned $49,435.79 on average. “This report tells us that continued member participation in the census is essential for accuracy,” the study concluded. “It also tells us that the percentage of underrepresented groups within the guild can be changed by opportunities, access, and trust from our members.” ppark@thewirereport.ca

Directors Guild census shows strong racial, gender diversity

Broadcast |
By Paul Park
|February 2, 2026

Unlock all the Canadian telecom, broadcasting and digital media news you need.

FREE TRIAL

SUBSCRIBE

Inside The Wire Report

Information

Hill Times Publishing

Get in Touch With Us

Directors Guild census shows strong racial, gender diversity

Broadcast | By Paul Park |February 2, 2026

Unlock all the Canadian telecom, broadcasting and digital media news you need.

FREE TRIAL

SUBSCRIBE

Producers urge shift to ‘audience-first’ strategy to boost CanCon discoverability in digital age

Heated Rivalry’s success saves tough 2025 finish for Bell Media

Stakeholders hopeful about state of children’s programming despite setbacks

Related Stories

Canada-U.S. trade, AI top concerns for media industry players at Prime Time

‘Adoption will happen’: Solomon tells cultural industry to brace for AI revolution

Producers challenge 20 per cent copyright threshold in new CanCon policy

Regulatory certainty, funding stability key focuses for new CMPA board

Reuse & Permissions

Inside The Wire Report

Information

Hill Times Publishing

Get in Touch With Us

Broadcast |
By Paul Park
|February 2, 2026