As we here at Women and Hollywood gear up for the Athena Film Festival starting tonight at Barnard College, we are so excited and thankful for the press that has been circulating about the festival. Co-chair of this year’s festival, Diablo Cody, has been speaking about the festival in a bevy of excellent interviews.

In her latest with CraveOnline, Cody talks about her upcoming directorial debut, Paradise, the Sweet Valley High musical and funny women. She also talks about the importance of having a festival like Athena—especially in light of all the awesome news that came out of Sundance.

CraveOnline: I just got back from Sundance where there were quite a good few female directors. With that and Athena Film Festival, is this going to be a good year for women?

Diablo Cody: Man, I am so excited about what happened at Sundance. Jill Soloway, who won Best Director, is one of my best pals and ran “United States of Tara” for a season and I am so happy for her. Then Lake Bell won the Waldo Salt Award. I love her. It’s incredibly exciting, but it’s interesting to contrast the gains that were made at Sundance with the Oscar nominees this year because I’m kind of bummed out that there wasn’t a single woman nominated for Best Director and there was only one woman of 12 writers nominated for screenplay. So obviously strides are being made in the indie world but not necessarily in mainstream Hollywood.

What do we do about that?

Man, we make the Athena Film Festival. That’s what this festival is about. It’s showcasing women who are in leadership positions in films that are maybe not necessarily getting the mainstream attention that they deserve. The festival is necessary. It’s not just some goofy little niche girlie thing that happens at Barnard. It’s important. It’s very important to me.

And she’s completely, brilliantly spot on. Check out the whole interview, it’s a great read.

The Spokesmouth: Diablo Cody on the Athena Film Festival (CraveOnline)