BY Keno Katsuda
January 2019 Film Preview
By Antora Majumdar and Keno Katsuda If one of your New Year’s resolutions is to watch more movies, January’s film releases will help you reach your goal. With a solid mix of wholly original...
December 2018 Film Preview
By Antora Majumdar and Keno Katsuda If you’re hoping to hit the multiplex over the holidays, December’s film releases do not disappoint. With plenty of pics driven by complex female...
DOC NYC 2018 Women Directors: Meet Maxine Trump – “To Kid Or Not To Kid”
Maxine Trump directed the 2012 feature “Musicwood,” which was a New York Times Critics’ Pick. She’s directed short documentaries for TNT, Sundance Channel, BBC, and TLC. Her...
DOC NYC 2018 Women Directors: Meet Jennifer Deschamps – “Inside Lehman Brothers”
In 2005, Jennifer Deschamps directed “Is God in Rwanda?,” which focused on people who lost their faith after the Rwandan Genocide. As an editor of documentaries since 2015, Deschamps is...
Women’s Work: Crowdfunding Picks
In some places around the world, we are lucky enough to consider ourselves far off from the days when women had to argue for their right to contribute in male-dominated workplaces. However, this does...
DOC NYC 2018 Women Directors: Meet Havana Marking – “The Kleptocrats”
Havana Marking is an award-winning journalist and filmmaker known for filming in dangerous locations and getting on the inside of criminal or subculture groups. She wrote and directed “Smash...
DOC NYC 2018 Women Directors: Meet Alyssa Bolsey – “Beyond the Bolex”
Alyssa Bolsey began and writing short films as a kid. While still in high school, she directed a short documentary entitled “Wild Horses.” This work was screened at various art galleries...
Immigrant Women Taking Center Stage: Crowdfunding Picks
Because of the Trump administration, immigrants have become particularly vulnerable in recent years. Accordingly, art has been forced to respond to this crisis quickly and effectively. Seeing...
Queer Women in Love: October’s VOD and Web Series Picks
Women are underrepresented in the media — that’s no secret. It should also come as no surprise that queer women are among the most marginalized groups on-screen. To add insult to injury,...
A Family Affair: Crowdfunding Picks
It goes without saying that, for so many people, families are fulfilling and of the utmost importance. But as in any interpersonal relationship, navigating a family dynamic can be complicated. This...
Under the Radar: “Quiet Killing” Delves into Canada’s Mistreatment of Indigenous Women
Many people in the United States often joke about “moving to Canada,” as if doing so will free themselves of enduring legacies of capitalism and imperialism. Moving north, even in the...
October 2018 Film Preview
Halloween is nearing, so it comes as no surprise that some of this month’s films aim to deliver terrifying thrills and get audiences in the mood for the holiday. And many of the exciting new...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Paprika Steen – “That Time of Year”
Paprika Steen is an award-winning Scandinavian actress and director. She made her directorial debut in 2004 with the tragedy-drama “Aftermath” and followed it up with 2007’s...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Pella Kågerman – “Aniara”
Pella Kågerman was educated at the Royal Institute of Art. She co-wrote Hugo Lilja’s film “The Unliving,” which won prizes at Berlinale, Stockholm Festival, and Clermont-Ferrand....
Learning to Heal: Crowdfunding Picks
Loss is a form of trauma that is universally felt yet difficult to describe. Because of this, countless creators and artists have attempted to depict it onscreen. Perhaps by doing so, we as viewers...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Caroline Poggi – “Jessica Forever”
Caroline Poggi’s credits include “Toys on Fire” and “Chiens.” With Jonathan Vinel, her credits include “After School Knife Fight” and “As Long As...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Nicole Holofcener – “The Land of Steady Habits”
Nicole Holofcener has written and directed six feature films including “Enough Said”and “Friends with Money.” She also co-wrote Marielle Heller’s “Can You Ever Forgive...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Chanya Button – “Vita & Virginia”
Chanya Button is a director, writer, and producer whose diverse work spans film and theater. Her debut feature, “Burn Burn Burn,” was nominated for the BIFA Discovery award. Her shorts...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Michal Aviad – “Working Woman”
Born in Jerusalem, Michal Aviad is an award-winning feminist filmmaker. Her films include “Acting Our Age,” “Jenny and Jenny,” “Invisible,” and “Dimona...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Ritu Sarin – “The Sweet Requiem”
Ritu Sarin was born in New Delhi, and completed her MFA in Film and Video at California College of the Arts. She has directed several films with Tenzing Sonam, including “Dreaming Lhasa,”...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Darlene Naponse – “Falls Around Her”
Darlene Naponse is an Anishinaabe Kwe from Atikameksheng Anishnawbek, Northern Ontario. She is a writer, film director, and a video artist. Her previous feature, “Every Emotion Costs,”...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Rosanne Pel – “Light as Feathers”
Rosanne Pel received her master’s degree at the Netherlands Film Academy. She directed the award-winning short films “Ult Zicht,” “Newroz,” and “Heraut.”...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Bai Xue – “The Crossing”
Bai Xue was born in China and obtained her MFA from the Beijing Film Academy. After competing in the CFDG China Youth Film Director Support Program, she made “The Crossing,” her first...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Annabel Jankel – “Tell It to the Bees”
Annabel Jankel was born in London and began her career directing music videos for artists such as Talking Heads, Miles Davis, and Elvis Costello. Along with her partner, Rocky Morton, Jankel directed...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Laura Luchetti — “Twin Flower”
Laura Luchetti has directed short films, music videos, commercials, documentaries, and theater productions. Her first feature, “Febbre da Fieno,” has been featured at many international...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Victoria Stone — “The Elephant Queen”
Director Victoria Stone has worked in Africa for over 30 years telling wildlife stories that have been shown in more than 140 countries with audiences in excess of 600 million. Her previous film,...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Sine Plambech — “Heartbound”
Sine Plambech is an anthropologist at the Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS) and Adjunct Assistant Professor at Barnard College, Columbia University. For 15 years, Plambech has worked...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Selma Vilhunen — “Stupid Young Heart”
Selma Vilhunen’s latest works as a director include the documentary “Hobbyhorse Revolution,” which premiered at the Tampere Film Festival and won the main prize in domestic...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Carmel Winters — “Float Like a Butterfly”
Carmel Winters is an award-winning writer and director for the screen and stage. Her debut feature “Snap” won Best Irish Feature and Best Director at the Dublin Critics’ Circle...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Carolina Hellsgård – “Ever After”
Carolina Hellsgård is a writer-director born in Sweden and based in Berlin. Her critically acclaimed debut feature film “Wanja” premiered at the Berlinale in 2015 and was nominated for...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Camilla Strøm Henriksen – “Phoenix”
Camilla Strøm Henriksen was born in Oslo and studied directing at the London Film School. She has appeared on and directed numerous Norwegian television shows. Henriksen previously directed the...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Wanuri Kahiu – “Rafiki”
Kenyan director-producer-writer Wanuri Kahiu’s first feature, “From A Whisper,” was based on the real-life events surrounding the U.S. Embassies in Nairobi and Dar es Salaam in...
Under the Radar: Yoko Yamanaka’s “Amiko” Is A Raw Coming-of-Age Story
High schooler Amiko (Aira Sunohara) is in love. The object of her affections is Aomi (Hiroto Oshita), a cool, counterculture guy with whom she bonds over their shared love of Radiohead. Despite his...
Women Working in the Arts: August’s VOD and Web Series Picks
Although the arts industries pride themselves on being creatively enlightened, the #MeToo movement has shown they are hardly “safe” workplaces for women (or any other marginalized group)....
August 2018 Film Preview
If you’re looking for a respite from the hot summer days, August is looking to be an excellent month for movies helmed by women or led by women characters. One of the most highly anticipated...
Safe (and Unsafe) Spaces: Crowdfunding Picks
How do we react in the face of adversity or tragedy? Specifically, how do our identities and backgrounds shape the means by which we grow from these experiences? These are the questions our latest...