BY Kelsey Moore
Hot Docs 2017 Women Directors: Meet Ashley Sabin — “Do Donkeys Act?”
Ashley Sabin’s documentaries have screened internationally in festivals and on television worldwide. Her vast body of work includes four recent “animal ethnography” films based in the world...
Tribeca 2017 Women Directors: Meet Kimberly Senior — “Chris Gethard’s Career Suicide”
Kimberly Senior has had an extensive directorial career both on and off-Broadway. Her productions have garnered dozens of awards and nominations across the country, and she most recently earned the...
Tribeca 2017 Women Directors: Meet Trish Adlesic and Geeta Gandbhir — “I Am Evidence”
“I Am Evidence” will premiere at the 2017 Tribeca Film Festival on April 24. Trish Adlesic is an Oscar and Emmy nominated documentary producer for her work on “Gasland” and “Gasland Part...
Tribeca 2017 Women Directors: Meet Sophie Brooks — “The Boy Downstairs”
Sophie Brooks’ first short film, “Malcolm,” won second place at NYU’s New Visions and Voices Festival. Her subsequent film, “Maple Leaves,” premiered at The Palm Springs International...
Tribeca 2017 Women Directors: Meet Kate Brooks — “The Last Animals”
Kate Brooks is an American photojournalist who has chronicled conflict and human rights issues for nearly two decades. Her introspective collection of essays and photographs, “In the Light of...
Tribeca 2017 Women Directors: Meet Quinn Shephard — “Blame”
As an actress, Quinn Shephard is best known for Paul Feig’s “Unaccompanied Minors and “Hostages” on CBS. Her upcoming films include “Sweet, Sweet Lonely Girl” and Desiree Akhavan’s...
Tribeca 2017 Women Directors: Meet Elina Psykou — “Son of Sofia”
Elina Psykou’s first feature, “The Eternal Return of Antonis Paraskevas,” won the Works in Progress Award at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival in 2012 and premiered at the Berlinale...
Tribeca 2017 Women Directors: Meet Sierra Pettengill — “The Reagan Show”
Sierra Pettengill is a Brooklyn-based filmmaker. “Town Hall,” her directorial debut (co-directed by Jamila Wignot), broadcast nationally on PBS in 2014. She produced the Academy Award-nominated...
Tribeca 2017 Women Directors: Meet Petra Volpe — “The Divine Order”
Petra Volpe’s feature debut, “Dreamland,” was nominated for four Swiss film awards and played both the festival and theatrical circuit. “The Divine Order” will premiere at the 2017 Tribeca...
Tribeca 2017 Women Directors: Meet Rachel Israel — “Keep the Change”
Rachel Israel has directed short films that have screened worldwide. “Keep the Change” marks her feature debut. She is an adjunct professor at RISD. “Keep the Change” will premiere at the...
“Ghost in the Shell” and a Brief Herstory of Whitewashing
Scarlett Johansson in “Ghost in the Shell” During its opening weekend, the anticipated yet controversial film “Ghost in the Shell” took home a measly $19 million at the domestic box office....
Finding the Balance: Crowdfunding Picks
If you’re an avid reader of Women and Hollywood (and if you’re not, welcome!) the disparities between men and women in the film industry are of no surprise. These seemingly never-ending...
April 2017 Film Preview
“Their Finest” If there’s one thing that April showers bring, it’s a plethora of films that feature women holding both the camera and the pen. Female screenwriters, in particular, drive this...
SXSW 2017 Women Directors: Meet Erin Lee Carr — “Mommy Dead and Dearest”
Erin Lee Carr is a New York-based filmmaker and writer. Her debut film, “Thought Crimes,” premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival and Hot Docs Film Festival in 2015. Variety named her as one of...
SXSW 2017 Women Directors: Meet Emma Franz — “Bill Frisell, A Portrait”
Australian filmmaker Emma Franz began her professional creative life as a jazz singer and composer. Her first film, “Intangible Asset Number 82,” won Best Foreign Documentary at the Durban...
SXSW 2017 Women Directors: Meet Laura E. Davis and Jessica Kaye — “Inheritance”
Laura E. Davis is a writer, director, and story consultant. Her previous credits include the award-winning feature “Thin Air,” a short film starring Sarita Choudhury (“Homeland”), and a...
In Solidarity: Crowdfunding Picks
“Women’s March” On January 21, millions of women across the globe marched in response to the overwhelming oppression of the Trump administration. Its message is crucial: “Women’s Rights are...
SXSW 2017 Women Directors: Meet Miao Wang — “Maineland”
Miao Wang an award-winning filmmaker who focuses on documentaries that inspire cultural understanding and a humanist perspective of the world. Her previous directing credits include “Beijing...
SXSW 2017 Women Directors: Meet Leandra Leal — “Divine Divas”
Leandra Leal is an internationally acclaimed and award-winning Brazilian actress who has acted in more than 25 feature films, 12 soap operas, and many plays. She was awarded Best Actress at the...
SXSW 2017 Women Directors: Meet Jennifer M. Kroot — “The Untold Tales of Armistead Maupin”
Jennifer M. Kroot’s directorial credits include “To Be Takei” and “It Came From Kuchar.” She has received grants from the Andy Warhol Foundation, Creative Work Fund, Frameline, the Pacific...
Lean On Me: March VOD and Web Series Picks
“Brown Girls” It’s often said that friends are the family you choose for yourself. Well, this month’s VOD and web series choices showcase how women deal with both their biological and chosen...
Here’s What We Do in the Aftermath: Crowdfunding Picks
“The Last Clinics” As we find ourselves (only) 30 days into America’s new administration, the majority of female-led crowdfunding projects across the web rightfully continue February’s...
February 2017 Film Preview
“A United Kingdom” There may or may not be love in the air this February, but one thing is certain: there is an abundance of female-led horror on the screen. There are, of course, some lighter...
Sundance 2017 Women Directors: Meet Pamela Yates — “500 Years”
Pamela Yates is a co-founder and current creative director of Skylight, a media company dedicated to creating feature length documentary films and digital media tools that advance awareness of human...
Sundance 2017 Women Directors: Meet Amanda Kernell — “Sami Blood”
Amanda Kernell has directed a number of shorts, including “Stoerre Vaerie,” or, “Northern Great Mountain,” which premiered at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival and won the Best Swedish Short...
Sundance 2017 Women Directors: Meet Pascale Lamche — “Winnie”
Pascale Lamche is an award-winning filmmaker who has made feature documentaries and series both as a writer-producer and writer-director for key broadcasters internationally. Her films have...
Sundance 2017 Women Directors: Meet Alicia Scherson — “Family Life”
Now based in Chile, Alicia Scherson has studied, worked, and lived in Cuba, Spain, and the U.S. Her feature films “Play,” “Turistas,” and “Il Futuro” have been shown in theaters...
Sundance 2017 Women Directors: Meet Christina Clusiau — “Trophy”
Christina Clusiau is a documentary filmmaker, cinematographer, and photojournalist based in Brooklyn, NY. In 2013, Clusiau co-founded Reel Peak Films, a production company specializing in short and...
Sundance 2017 Women Directors: Meet Cate Shortland — “Berlin Syndrome”
Cate Shortland’s films have screened at film festivals around the world, including Cannes Film Festival and Sydney Film Festival. Her previous credits include “Somersault”...
Sundance 2017 Women Directors: Meet Kirsten Tan — “Pop Aye”
Kirsten Tan is a writer, director, and cinematographer. Her work has screened at film fests across the world, including Singapore, Rotterdam, and Toronto. Tan has won numerous international awards,...