Sweden's female-forward creative industries

In April 2022, my research trip to Stockholm, Sweden was funded by the SGSAH and Scottish Funding Council’s Saltire Emerging Researcher Scheme. I spent one month in Stockholm interviewing people about Sweden’s Creative Industries and what made them unique. I also got to experience the unique culture surrounding the creative industries first hand. Because of this, I can offer unique insights into Sweden’s creative industries, including videogames, comics, fanzines and boardgames, from the outside looking in. This was truly a life-changing experience both personally and professionally. I cannot thank everyone who helped me enough. A special thank you to Dr Mirjam Palosaari Eladhari for being my mentor throughout this project and for inspiring me to think of myself as an artist.

The main findings from this study include:
• Sweden’s unique combination of Culture, Education, Infrastructure, and Investment in the creative industries has led to their continued success;
• Though compared to the United Kingdom there is a smaller percentage of women working in the Creative Industries, Sweden’s Creative Industries have more women in leadership positions;
• Maternity and paternity leave as well as other forms of social care have contributed to the amount of women staying in Sweden’s Creative Industries;
• (Fan)Zines and boardgames are both previous uncredited and integral parts of the Swedish Creative Industries.