BY Women and Hollywood
Ten Finalists for the 2012 Susan Smith Blackburn Prize
Now in it’s 34th year, this is the most prestigious prize for female playwrights. It’s like the female Pulitzer. It’s a way for female playwrights to get noticed, since they are stil not...
New Trailer for Wish Me Away: Directed by Beverly Kopf & Bobbie Birleffi
This will open in theatres in the summer but New Yorkers can catch it at the Athena Film Festival on February 11. Details here.
Sexism Watch: Film Trailers
The NY Times ran a story this weekend calling movie trailers the last holdout for women in the business. If that were only true we could fight it, but we all know this is just one of the...
Trailer Watch: Game Change
This movie looks so much better than the book and I really loved the book. Julianne Moore is totally rocking as Sarah Palin. Love it!
A “Smash”ing Premiere
While I might write about Hollywood I live in NY. I really don’t get to see the everyday machinations of the business. I like it that way. It keeps it more mysterious. I was able to get a little...
Sundance 2012: Interview with Amy Ziering — Producer of Invisible War
Amy Ziering is the producer of ‘The Invisible War’ directed by Kirby Dick and winner of the Sundance 2012 Documentary Audience Award. I spoke to Amy about feminist filmmaking, how she and Kirby...
Sundance Deals 2012: The Women
Here’s the list of women directed and women written films that got picked up out of Sundance. I’m sure there will be more to come. Women Directed 2 Days in New York (Magnolia) — directed...
Vanity Fair Hollywood Issue 2012
At least they are all dressed. But all the satin kind of reminds me of a brothel. Thw women on the power panel which is the actual cover are Rooney Mara, Mia Wasikowska, Jennifer Lawrence and Jessica...
Sundance 2012 Success Story: Ava Duvernay
One of the biggest success stories out of Sundance is Ava Duvernay. Here is a woman who started a new distribution movement — African American Film Festival Releasing Movement; put out two...
Sundance 2012: Interview With Aurora Gurerrero Director of Mosquita Y Mari
Aurora Guerrero debuted her feature film ‘Mosquita Y Mari’ at Sundance 2012 and I had a chance to talk to her near the end of a hectic but exciting festival. She shared the secret of her $80,000...
The Help Wins Big at the SAG Awards
Check out this image of the cast of the Help winning best ensemble at the SAG Awards last night. I’m pretty sure we won’t see that many women on a stage again at the same time winning an award...
Lauren Greenfield and Ava Duvernay Win Top Directing Honors at Sundance
Another Sundance is in the books and women and their films took many of the top honors in this past weekend’s awards ceremony. Winner of the U.S. Directing Award for Documentary Film: Lauren...
Athena Film Festival Trailer Contest Winner
This year we held a trailer contest and the winner is Tony Szulc. We all love this trailer and thank him for his work and a big thanks to Joan Jett for letting us use her song Bad Reputation.
Interview with Valérie Donzelli — Director of Declaration of War
Valérie Donzelli has made a heartbreaking film about the fight a couple goes through to save their son from a brain tumor. They declare war on the cancer and with the support of their family their...
Cross-Post: Where Are the Women Directors
Here’s a thought exercise: In a nation where 33 percent of the Supreme Court justices are women, 17 percent of the seats in the Senate and House are held by women and 12 percent of the statehouses...
Maiwenn’s Poliss Scores 13 Cesar Nominations Including Best Director and Best Picture
The Maiwenn directed film Poliss scored the most Cesar nominations — 13 — including best picture, best screenplay and best director. But you wouldn’t know it from this breaking news...
Sundance 2012: Advice for Filmmakers
Chicken and Egg Pictures always has a great party at Sundance: delicious home-cooked food paired with a celebration of women filmmakers and the folks who support and nurture them. I pulled some of...
Sundance Press Obsession with the “It” Girl
I never realized how annoying the whole “it” girl thing was until I saw three straight “it” girls articles in my RSS feed yesterday about three different women. I know that people have to...
New Poster for Athena Film Festival
Check out the new poster for The Athena Film Festival. Will you be there?
Video: Shit Liz Lemon Says
Don’t tell me you’ve given up watching 30 Rock. It’s back on the air with two episodes tonight. I love me some Tina Fey. NBC.com Video Widget
Sundance Video: Interview with Kristi Jacobson and Lori Silverbush — Directors of Finding North
I caught up with ‘Finding North’ directors Kristi Jacobson and Lori Silverbush at Sundance 2012. The two shared some great advice for being female in filmland, and reveal why an all-woman crew...
Why Is Oscar Blue
From the indefatigable Jan Lisa Huttner who writes the Hot Pink Pen. Make sure to check out her Oscar Impact Chart. Here’s her thought process: We all want to believe that Oscar is “gold”...
Oscar Nomination Quotes
Here are some quotes that I picked up yesterday from some of the nominees Annie Mumolo Our main objective was to write a film that focused about relationships and friendships. We really tried to...
Are You My Mother and Who’s Your Daddy?
Hollywood has not been quiet on the third-party reproduction front. Movies such as Baby Mamma, The Back-Up Plan, The Switch and The Kids are All Right, highlight the silly and light-hearted approach...
First Look at Ashley Judd in Missing
I know this is not the best quality, but this looks like it’s going to be a good and fun show.
Feed is Fixed
Thanks to a heads up we learned that the RSS feed for Women and Hollywood was broken. It took a bit of detective work but the good folks at Indiewire have now fixed it so you probably got all the...
A Little Something to Brighten Your Day: The Athena Film Festival Trailer
Suck it to all of you who don’t think women are strong leaders in every aspect of life. Athena Film Festival
The Oscar Noms: It Sucks to Be a Female Filmmaker Part 2
This is an up and down day as you will see from the posts on the site. The Academy Award nominations have been released and while there are many great women nominated in a variety of categories, at...
The Sundance Institute and Women in Film Team Up to Get More Women Filmmakers Working in Hollywood
Finally some organizations have stepped up and stood up and committed resources to work towards improving the amount of female filmmakers working in the business. Women in Film and the Sundance...
What Bigelow Effect? Number of Women Directors in Hollywood Falls to 5 Percent
The Oscar nominations this morning give us another year where there are no women directors included in the list. This year we won’t see Kathryn Bigelow up on the stage giving out the best director...
New Trailer for The Lady
Film will open in the US on April 11 and will roll out to other major cities on April 13.
Two Women Directed Films Get Deals
Magnolia PIctures has picked up the documentary Queen of Versailles by Lauren Greenfield. Here’s the description: the film “tells the story of David and Jackie Siegel, a couple who began...
A Good Roundtable and a Bad Roundtable
You can’t tell me that Stephen Daldry is going to get an Oscar nomination for Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close. He’s great and I love The Hours, but please, why is he in this roundtable...
Pariah Scores Both NAACP Image Awards and GLAAD Media Awards Noms
It’s awards time and the NAACP and GLAAD are getting into the mix with the release of the nominees for their annual awards. Pariah, directed by Dee Rees is nominated by both organizations. GLAAD...
Final Hunger Games Poster
I love this poster because it says this is a film about a young woman who is active and in charge. Great image. And yes, the world will be watching. Cannot. Wait.
Great Interview With Glenn Close
A really great homage to her whole career on the eve of the Oscar nominations. She willed Albert Nobbs into existence. She is the star, the producer, the co-writer and she also write the lyrics to...
Interview with Dori Berinstein — Director of Carol Channing: Larger Than Life
Women and Hollywood: You’ve been a producer of Broadway shows for a number of years. How did you segue into becoming a documentary filmmaker? Dori Berinstein: I’ve actually been in the film...
Octavia Spencer Rocks Her Golden Globe Press Conference
Every time she opens her mouth I get more and more impressed with her. Favorite comment that she is happy living in her own skin and people should be proud of who you are. I love how she took off...
Sundance Trailer Watch: Finding North Directed By Kristi Jacobson and Lori Silverbush
My first cry of the day. This film looks heartbreaking. Synopsis: 49 million people in the U.S. — one in four children — don’t know where their next meal is coming from, despite our...
Cross-Post: Women Kicking It on Kickstarter!
Kickstarter, called “the people’s NEA” by The New York Times, recently sent out their 2011 round-up of success stories on their crowdsourced fundraising site, with women filmmakers taking...
Is Haywire a Game Changer?
I know I am dating myself when I can say that I knew nothing about MMA — mixed martial arts — before I saw the film Haywire. I’m not the kind of person who tunes in to see women beat...
A View from the Trenches: Is Estrogen My Last Hurdle to Success?
I blame my Midwestern roots for my optimistic views and somewhat naivé outlook on my career in Hollywood. Hard work reaps rewards so any hurdle I saw was positive because it made me a better...
Agnieszka Holland is the Only Remaining Female Director with a Shot at the Best Foreign Language Film Oscar
We all know that only one woman — Kathryn Bigelow (and it has been a long time since we uttered her name) — has won the best director honors. But there have been other women acknowledged...
Strong Box Office for Kevin and The Iron Lady
We Need to Talk About Kevin directed by Lynne Ramsay reopened (after an Oscar quallifying run in December) in the US to strong numbers last weekend. The film scored the highest per screen gross of...
Lynne Ramsay Scores BAFTA Directing Nomination
In a year when we will probably not see a female director nominated for any major awards here in the US, the Brits have been smart enough to recognize the Lynne Ramsay did do one of the best...
Sundance Trailer Watch: West of Memphis — Directed by Amy Berg
I have now become obsessed with this case. I watched the HBO film this weekend and am going to catch up on the older HBO docs shortly. This is the Peter Jackson and Fran Walsh produced film. This...
Octavia Spencer’s Golden Globe Speech
I was co-hosting (they did all the work) a Golden Globe watching party last night with the National Domestic Worker’s Alliance and when Octavia won the place went nuts. And then when she mentioned...
Meryl Streep’s Golden Globe Winning Speech
Meryl Streep won best actress in a drama for The Iron Lady. In her speech she acknowledged all her fellow nominees and the other terrific female performances from this year. And how about her shout...
Hollywood Feminist of the Day: Maggie Gyllenhaal
Maggie Gyllenhaal has penned a piece in Glamour in strong support of Planned Parenthood. Go Maggie! Here’s some of what she has to say: My mother was very politically active and taught both my...
Trailer Watch: Friends With Kids Written and Directed by Jennifer Westfeldt
Yahoo! Video Player Film Opens March 9.
Where are the Women?
It has not been a good couple of months for women on shortlists here in the UK. Back in December the nation presided over the BBC Sports Personality of the Year shortlist: 10 men and 0 women....