And I think there’s been a kind of complacency that these issues are no longer issues when, in fact, they are. And they need continual vigilance.”

The issue of complacency is drawn out in the Sundance study. As part of the qualitative analysis, the researchers interviewed both males and females in the industry.

“When we did these in-depth interviews, we understood one of the major barriers to changing the data is that people don’t believe there is a problem,” Libresco said. “Now we have data. We have numbers. There’s no more refuting that there’s a problem. So, we can point to the data to raise awareness.”

While the Sundance U.S. narrative film competition boasted 50 percent female directors this year, the USC researchers say these results have to be seen three years consecutively before anyone can claim real change.

While not everyone is tuned in, the students I spoke with are acutely aware that they are entering an industry dominated by men. They’re “nervous”; they’re “scared”; they’re “intimidated.” But they still maintain an incredibly positive outlook, determined to do what they love and share it with others.

Throughout our conversations, it was clear that progress will take a long, long time and it requires sweeping changes throughout the industry — from the way films are financed to who we recognize at the Academy Awards.