A group of local women working in the screen industry have banded together to change a screen industry culture they say enables sexual harassment, discrimination and other abuses of power over women.

New Zealand actors have launched a group aimed at combating sexual harassment in our screen industry.

SWAG (Screen Women's Action Group) wants to change a screen industry culture they say enables sexual harassment, discrimination and other abuses of power over women.

The group is a local offshoot of #MeToo, a movement started in the USA after several high-profile Hollywood figures, including Harvey Weinstein and Kevin Spacey, were revealed to have sexually abused actors. The movement aimed to use its hashtag to showing how widespread sexual harassment was.

Anthony Harvey The #MeToo movement started it was revealed Hollywood figures including Harvey Weinstein had sexually abused actors.

SWAG was formed by a group of women working in New Zealand's screen industry with support from former Green Party MP Catherine Delahunty.

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​In a message announcing the organisation's formation, SWAG said it was "a single issue action group".

CHRIS SKELTON/STUFF Former Shortland Street actor Rene Naufahu was sentenced for sexually assaulting six of his female acting students.

"We don't intend to be a permanent fixture in the industry — but we feel the need for some co-ordinated, specific and effective action on the #MeToo front in Aotearoa New Zealand. Specifically we will work towards an industry-wide sexual harassment policy and independent process for disclosures and complaints of sexual harassment."

SWAG intends to formally launch in March, and will start its campaign by holding meetings for women in the screen industry to share their experiences and express concerns.

Names connected with the group so far include director Gaysorn Thavat, actor and director Katie Wolfe, producer Kerry Warkia, writer and producer Paula Boock, producer Emma Slade, and documentary maker Robyn Paterson.

SUPPLIED Kate Elliott, who played Jean Batten in the biopic Jean, was one of the actresses calling for the screen industry to boycott Naufahu.

The group's formation comes just days after former Shortland Street actor Rene Naufahu was sentenced to a year of home detention for indecently assaulting six female students in his acting classes.

Several New Zealand actors have called for the screen industry to boycott Naufahu in the wake of his conviction, including Kate Elliott who won Best Actress at the 2017 New Zealand Television Awards for her starring role in Jean Batten biopic Jean.

"I would never work with or audition for anyone who even considers Rene Naufahu for another role," Elliott said in a Facebook post.

In November last year, there were signs of sexism in Kiwi movies with women being excluded from the top jobs within the industry.

Although women accounted for 44 per cent of workers in the screen industry, according to Statistics NZ data from 2015, those working in the screen industry say there's an unconscious bias against them with women being passed over for top creative and technical jobs like directing and cinematography.

Funding bodies New Zealand on Air and The New Zealand Film Commission have started to monitor the roles women have in productions they're funding.

By 2020, the Film Commission aims to have half the movies it funds for early development each year directed by women.

Last year, just 26 per cent of the films it funded were directed by women.

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