For the past couple of years I have been working IN HER VOICE: WOMEN DIRECTORS TALK DIRECTING, a book of interviews with women directors from the first couple of years of the site. I am happy to report that the book is ready tand now available for purchase.
The book was designed as an e-book. There are hyperlinks in each section. And it looks great in those formats. If you don't want to read it on your e-reader, you could also read it on your computer as a PDF, or you can buy a print on demand version at Amazon (the print on demand version is in black and white.)
I am offering a special discount for readers of Women and Hollywood. When you are on the purchase page in the bookstore, please use the code IHV-DISC to receive the book for $5.00 (down from $6.99.) FYI- there is no discount for purchases made at Amazon.
I am very proud of this book. I look forward to hearing what you think of it.
Here is some advance praise for In Her Voice :
“Women and Hollywood founder and feminist Melissa Silverstein has staked out her territory, and enriched the field, first with her blog and now with this smart, savvy collection of interviews with women directors . . .In Her Voice brings together first-hand accounts of what it’s like to be on the front lines of women’s filmmaking—and behind the camera, too.”
—Thelma Adams, Contributing Editor, Yahoo! Movies
“Melissa Silverstein’s media-savvy collection of interviews is an eye-opener. So many talented and accomplished women can only pave the way for more. For me, the revelation is the extraordinary range of interests among these directors, and their incredible ingenuity in getting their projects to the screen. This enterprise fills a huge gap and, unlike a hard-copy book, which starts and stops, In Her Voice will be an ongoing record of information and celebration.”
—Molly Haskell, film critic and author, From Reverence to Rape: The Treatment of Women in the Movies
(1974; revised and reissued in 1987) and Frankly, My Dear: “Gone with the Wind” Revisited
“The contributions of women directors in Hollywood is one of the most over-looked and under-appreciated aspects of the film industry. Melissa Silverstein has compiled a fascinating and illuminating array of interviews of some of the most exciting voices of our time. Kudos :)”
—Angela Robinson, director, D.E.B.S., Herbie Fully Loaded
“I have followed Melissa’s blog ever since she drove a petition to express outrage at the lack female driven films selected for the Cannes film festival this year. The tide is turning but every female director who gets to play ball in Hollywood from now on will owe a debt of gratitude to Melissa’s passionate activism on our behalf.”
—Rachel Ward, director, Beautiful Kate
“Smart and uplifting, this book is a siren call to women to get behind the camera.”
—Kate Muir, Chief Film Critic of The Times UK
“Melissa has created an incredibly inspiring piece for any filmmaker—not only women. That said, Melissa’s book is a great source to learn from other women’s experiences and perseverance—for the young or well seasoned!”
—Brenda Chapman, co-director, Brave
“As a director who began making films in an era without any female role models in Hollywood, I wish I could have had this inspiring collection of interviews by women directors. Their collective experience and advice about the process sends an empowering and passionate message to any woman who wants to enter the business. Just go do it!”
—Chris Hegedus, co-director, The War Room
“When I first started out making films back in the early 1980s you could count the number or women directing movies on one hand. It’s encouraging that three decades later Melissa Silverstein has been able to compile an entire book of interviews with female filmmakers. It’s about time someone chronicled this important but overlooked piece of cinema history. However, this is only Volume 1. Let’s hope there will soon be Volumes 2 through 10.”
—Susan Seidelman, director, Desperately Seeking Susan, The Boynton Beach Club
“There is strength in numbers and strength in these stories. Women directors need never feel alone again.”
—Cari Beauchamp, author of Without Lying Down, Frances Marion
and the Powerful Women of Early Hollywood
“In Her Voice is inspiring in the best, unsentimental sense—smart conversations with working directors who have forged ahead, defying obstacles, to create films that range from the visionary to the crowd-pleasing, and are sometimes both.”
—Caryn James, critic, Indiewire
I have to thank everyone who helped get this done and also the women who allowed me to publish their interviews.
