By now, we’re all well aware that Hollywood can be a difficult place for women. Even before the first wave of the #MeToo movement broke in October 2017, women had long been speaking out about other kinds of inequality in the film industry – not least the troubling lack of diversity behind the camera.

It’s an ongoing problem. Less than 4% of major studio films being released this year are directed by women, the lowest percentage of female-helmed movies in at least half a decade, and women accounted for just 11% of directors working on the top 250 films of 2017.

Things are fractionally better in television, but not by much, with women making up 17% of directors in TV. While women in Hollywood are becoming increasingly vocal about the need for change, it remains to be seen when – or if – that outspokenness will influence the hiring decisions of studio bosses.

But what is clear is that women directors make a difference. That’s not to say that they’re bound to make uniquely female-focused films, necessarily: look at the work of Kathryn Bigelow, the only woman to ever win the Oscar for Best Director (for The Hurt Locker), who specialises in epic thrillers packed with violence, political drama and war. Rather, research by the British Film Institute (BFI) suggests that women directors are more likely than men to hire other women to join their cast and crew, positively influencing the gender balance on set.

Here, seven actors explain how female directors have shaped their experiences of working in TV and film.

7 actors on the importance of working with female film directors