Actress and director Chloë Sevigny has revealed that she has been subjected to inappropriate behaviour by three major directors during auditions.

Speaking at a Variety panel during the Cannes Film Festival, Sevigny said that she had been asked, “What are you doing after this?” as well as whether she wanted to go shopping and try on clothes.

“Just like crossing the line weirdness,” she said.

Another director suggested that Sevigny should be n/de more often.

“You should show your body off more,” he told her.

“You shouldn’t wait until you’re as old as this certain actress who had just been naked in a film; you should be naked on screen now.”

Sevigny refused to compromise her principles, even if it meant losing roles.

“If you’re young and impressionable and really want the part, it might be a tempting avenue, but I hope not,” she said.

“Was it sexual harassment? It’s such a fine line.”

Sevigny has previously criticised so-called auteur directors, stating that she has “a total disdain for directors” as a result of her experiences.

However, her own experiences as a director have led her to recognise that women directors are held to different standards than men.

“When women on set become a little emotional, or impassioned even, they’re labeled as hysterical or crazy and have a hard time getting hired again,” she said, adding that men are permitted to act out without censure.

“We have to allow women to act out… and just be ourselves.”

Sevigny is currently promoting her short film “Kitty”, which she directed.

During the Cannes panel, she expressed her dismay that so few women directors were being screened at the festival.

“The statistics are so awful,” she said.

“As a woman, you have to work harder and be better than your male counterparts, because you’re not going to get the same opportunities and you’re not going to get the same accolades. It’s frustrating.”

The Cannes Film Festival has been hit by controversy this year over the lack of women in the official selection.

Only three of the 19 films competing for the Palme d’Or were directed by women, and there was just one female director in the Un Certain Regard section.

In response, 82 women directors, producers and actors staged a red carpet protest, calling for greater equality in the industry.

Sevigny is not the first actress to speak out about the treatment of women in Hollywood.

Last year, Reese Witherspoon revealed that she had been sexually assaulted by a director when she was 16.

Witherspoon has since established a production company, Hello Sunshine, which focuses on telling women’s stories.

Other actresses who have spoken out about the industry include Jennifer Lawrence, who has criticised the gender pay gap, and Rose McGowan.

In a recent interview, McGowan said that the system was “built to keep women down” and called for greater diversity in the industry.