BY Women and Hollywood
DOC NYC 2015 Women Directors: Meet Laura Ricciardi and Moira Demos — ‘Making a Murderer’
Laura Ricciardi is a filmmaker with a special interest in social justice. She earned a JD from New York Law School and an MFA in film from Columbia University School of the Arts. Her thesis film was...
DOC NYC 2015 Women Directors: Meet Sara Fishko — ‘The Jazz Loft According to W. Eugene Smith’
Sara Fishko makes her directorial debut with “The Jazz Loft According to W. Eugene Smith.” Fishko is an Emmy Award-winning film editor and public radio broadcaster/podcaster whose explorations...
Guest Post: South African Filmmaker Sara Blecher on Her Afro-Hipster Coming-of-Age Tale ‘Ayanda’
a I’ve always wanted to make feature films. I feel that makingdocumentaries and TV dramas was a valuable way of learning to do this, as was beinga mother. Some people do make features without...
DOC NYC 2015 Women Directors: Meet June Cross — ‘Wilhemina’s War’
June Cross is a writer and documentary producer who covers the intersection of poverty, race and politics in the United States. She has been a Professor of Journalism at Columbia University’s...
The Many, Many Reasons Behind the Exclusion of Women in TV’s Directing Ranks
In the 2014–2015 TV season, white women directed 13% of episodes and women of color directed 3%. Put another way, “Women are more than half of the American population, but they’re getting less...
DOC NYC 2015 Women Directors: Meet Janelle Gueits — ’13 Million Voices’
Janelle Gueits is an artist, filmmaker and change-maker. Her career has spanned across artistic and social pursuits across the U.S. and worldwide as a feature film director, network television...
5 Takeaways From the ACLU’s Melissa Goodman on the Gender-Discrimination Investigation
Melissa Goodman, the director of the LGBTQ, Gender & Reproductive Justice Project at the ACLU of Southern California, recently spoke with Variety about the dearth of opportunities for women...
Fabienne Berthaud’s ‘Sky,’ Starring Diane Kruger, Acquired By IFC
French writer-director Fabienne Berthaud’s “Sky” has been acquired by IFC for North American distribution two months after the drama’s world premiere at TIFF. Diane Kruger (“The...
DOC NYC 2015 Women Directors: Meet Alex Hammond — ‘Lucha Mexico’
Alex Hammond has worked in film and TV in New York City for over ten years. Her feature debut, “Strange Things,” premiered at MoMA’s Documentary Fortnight Film Festival and was featured on...
Susan Sarandon to Exec-Produce Doc About Inventor and Actress Hedy Lamarr
Hedy Lamarr is getting the doc treatment from executive producer Susan Sarandon and director Alexandra Dean, and it’s no wonder given Lamarr’s legendary careers — yes, plural — as...
Rachel Weisz Legal Drama and Sarah Jessica Parker Rom-Com Get Releases
It feels like a while since we’ve seen either Rachel Weisz or Sarah Jessica Parker headlining a movie, but fortunately it won’t be long until new vehicles starring the actresses make it to...
Jada Pinkett Smith and Olivia Munn Sell Dramas to ABC and The CW
Actresses Jada Pinkett Smith and Olivia Munn (“The Newsroom”) have promising new TV gigs behind the scenes, with both serving as executive producers on upcoming shows. Pinkett Smith will...
Trailer Watch: Jennifer Lopez Is a Morally Ambiguous Cop in a Jam in ‘Shades of Blue’
Jennifer Lopez is coming back to TV as a series regular after a two-decade-plus hiatus in NBC’s new cop drama “Shades of Blue.” Lopez shared a preview for the show on her Facebook page Sunday,...
Two Female Playwrights Win Philip Seymour Hoffman Award
Clare Barron and Sarah DeLappe have been named the winners of the inaugural Relentless Award, a play-writing prize founded in actor Philip Seymour Hoffman’s memory. Barron’s “Dance Nation”...
Infographic: Hollywood Sexism On Screen, Behind the Camera, in Paychecks
Chantal Akerman’s Final Film ‘No Home Movie’ to Be Released by Icarus
Chantal Akerman’s last film, “No Home Movie,” has found a North American distribution deal and a U.S. release date. Shot almost entirely in her mother’s apartment and focused on the...
Amy Pascal Producing Two Women-Centric Films About GamerGate, the Goddess Athena
Having just wrapped production on the “Ghostbusters” reboot starring Kristen Wiig and Melissa McCarthy, Amy Pascal has announced two more female-centric films: a journey of self-discovery...
#FavWomanFilmmaker Campaign Invites Audiences to Share Their Love of Films Made by Women
Some of myearliest memories are related to moving images and to feminism. As athree-year-old, I was annoyed by the fact that in Spanish, my native tongue, werefer to a group of women and men by...
‘Hunger Games’ Star Amandla Stenberg Debuts Kickass New Female-Centric Comic
Amandla Stenberg cleared our tear ducts as Rue in “The Hunger Games,” and she’s won our hearts by using her platform from the multi-billion dollar franchise — including nearly 500,000...
Weekly Update for November 6: Women Centric, Directed and Written Films Playing Near You
Films About Women Opening This Week Miss You Already — Directed by Catherine Hardwicke; Written by Morwenna Banks — Women and Hollywood’s Pick of the Week In a year filled with great...
Women at Sundance Fellows Announced: Jennifer Phang, Lyric R. Cabral and More
The Sundance Institute has announced its six 2015–2016 Women at Sundance Fellows, a group of directors and producers culled from both the doc and narrative fields who will receive support to...
New ‘Girl With the Dragon Tattoo’ Movie in Early Development
Lisbeth Salander may be returning to the screen, but she won’t be portrayed by Rooney Mara. The then-little-known-actress nabbed an Oscar nod for her performance in “The Girl With the Dragon...
Julie Klausner’s Memoir ‘I Don’t Care About Your Band’ Optioned for Movie Adaptation
Julie Klausner’s 2010 dating memoir “I Don’t Care About Your Band” has been optioned by Broad Green Pictures. She is attached to co-write the script and may star in the film adaptation as...
Disney’s 4 Years: The Women Centric, Directed and Written Films to Await
Disney has announced its slate for the next four years, so we now know what to expect from the dream manufacturer in the near future. Something you probably shouldn’t hold your breath for? A...
Rashida Jones’ ‘Angie Tribeca’ Renewed Before Series Debut; Season 1 to Open With 25-Hour Marathon
Rashida Jones is getting a huge show of support from her new network. Jones’ upcoming cop comedy, “Angie Tribeca,” has been renewed for a second season two months before its series premiere....
Noomi Rapace in Talks to Star in Amy Winehouse Biopic Written/Directed by Kirsten Sheridan
Actress Noomi Rapace (“Prometheus,” the Swedish “Girl With the Dragon Tattoo” trilogy) is in negotiations to play soul singer Amy Winehouse in a new biopic. To be written and directed by...
Shonda Rhimes to Receive PGA’s 2016 Norman Lear Award
Shonda Rhimes has been named the 2016 recipient of the Producers Guild of America’s Norman Lear Achievement Award in Television. Rhimes is, of course, one of the most powerful producers in TV,...
IDA Documentary Awards Nominations Announced; Liz Garbus Up for Best Feature Award
The nominations for the 31st IDA Documentary Awards have been revealed, and disappointingly, only one of the six docs competing for the Best Feature Award is helmed by a woman: Liz Garbus’s...
Starz’s “Flesh and Bone” Starts Out “Breaking Ballet,” Ends Up “Showbuns”
Trailer Watch: Mia Wasikowska Heads Back to Wonky Wonderland in ‘Alice Through The Looking Glass’
Mia Wasikowska is returning to Wonderland to reprise her role as Alice, and a new trailer gives us a sense of what adventures await her through the looking glass. Wasikowska will go from battling...
Elizabeth Banks to Play War Photographer Shot Down over the South Pacific in Adventure-Drama
Here’s the good news: Elizabeth Banks will play one of the first female war photographers in a new adventure-drama. The project will boast a woman director, Sloane U’Ren, and focus on the...
Studio Execs Talk Hollywood’s Pay Gap, Women Directors, Unequal Opportunities for Female Talent
“I actually think women drive the box office,” said Sony chairman Tom Rothman at The Hollywood Reporter’s annual executive roundtable. This year has been dominated by headlines about sexism...
Exclusive: ShortsHD Announces Month-Long Programming Special Highlighting Women-Helmed Shorts
ShortsHD, the world’s only television channel dedicated to short films, is launching a month-long programming special dedicated to films created, written and directed by women. “Films By Her”...
Women Direct Lifetime’s 5 Most Popular TV Movies After Network Bets on Female Helmers
Six months ago, Lifetime launched Broad Focus, a major initiative to have more women writing, directing, developing and producing content for the network. It’s too soon to say what kind of impact...
Watch: ‘Suffragette’ Joins Equality Now to Support #HopeforOurDaughters
“Suffragette” is teaming up with Equality Now — and the general public — to raise money towards ensuring a brighter tomorrow for girls and women. What are your hopes and dreams for...
Watch: Adorable Ad Recreates Iconic Movie Scenes With Diverse Action Heroines
Lily James to Portray History-Making Swimmer Gertrude Ederle in ‘Young Woman And The Sea’
Lily James is gearing up for another period piece, but this time around, the English actress will swap her well-worn corset for a swimsuit. James has signed on to play Olympic gold medalist and...
Apply to Essence’s 3rd Annual Shorts Competition for Black Women Filmmakers
Essence’s shorts competition is back, this time with a new theme: the modern black family. The third iteration of the magazine’s contest for African-American women directors is seeking...
Confessions From Above the Celluloid Ceiling: The Truth About White Male Privilege
I don’t remember the first time I really thought about white male privilege, but in retrospect, one incident stands out. I was visiting a school where I was hoping to shoot a scene for a film....
Women and Hollywood is Looking for Interns for 2016
Women and Hollywood is looking for two interns for 2016. The positions will begin in January and end in June. Applicants must be willing to commit to six months, 10–15 hours per week. We are...
Study: Nearly Two-Thirds of Theater Productions Written by White Male Playwrights
This year’s edition of The Count — a tally of regional, non-Broadway theater productions by playwrights’ gender and race — is out, and the results are grim. In the last three...
Nicole Kidman in Talks to Co-Star in “Wonder Woman”
Nicole Kidman, Amazon? Sure, why not. The 5'11" Oscar winner is reportedly in talks to co-star as a “high-ranking Amazon warrior” in Patty Jenkins’ “Wonder Woman,” according to...
SyFy Greenlights New Series About Female Van Helsing
SyFy has given a 13-episode series order to “Van Helsing,” a female take on the vampire hunter. The cable network promises a “bold and complex heroine” in Vanessa Helsing, the daughter of...
Gamechanger Films Announces Next Feature: Sarah Adina Smith’s ‘Buster’s Mal Heart’
Gamechanger Films, the studio devoted to women-directed narrative features, has announced its next project: Sarah Adina Smith’s “Buster’s Mal Heart.” The mystery will feature “Mr....
Quote of the Day: Reese Witherspoon Says Women Should Play 50% of the Roles On Screen
Receiving the American Cinematheque Award last Friday night, Reese Witherspoon made no secret of how she feels about how women are represented in Hollywood. “Women make up 50% of the population,...
Sandra Bullock to Head All-Female ‘Ocean’s Eleven’ Reboot
If you’re the betting sort, you’ll probably want to put some money down on the chances that more female-led reboots of franchises will be greenlit in the coming months. A new version of...
Keira Knightley Accepts Pay Cut for the Chance to Play an Interesting Female Character
Two-time Oscar nominee Keira Knightley has revealed that she accepted the scale rate — or the minimum set by a union — of $1,300 a week to star in “Therese Raquin,” her Broadway...
Trailer Watch: Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt Are an Emotional Mr. & Mrs. Smithereens in ‘By the Sea’
Just days ahead of its world premiere on November 5 at AFI Fest, “By the Sea” has a newly cut trailer. Written and directed by Angelina Jolie Pitt, the sun-drenched but dour-looking marital...
Catherine Hardwicke on the Universalness of ‘Miss You Already’ and Her Next Female-Centric Projects
It might seem puzzling that filmmaker Catherine Hardwicke isn’t more of a household name considering her achievements. Thanks to 2008’s “Twilight,” she held the record as the female director...
Elaine May to Direct Mike Nichols Doc
Elaine May has signed on to helm a PBS documentary about Mike Nichols, the Oscar-winning director of “The Graduate” and her old comedy partner. May will revisit Nichols’ career — which...
November 2015 Film Preview
Awards season is getting closer, and so several of the much-talked-about contenders — many of them grand romantic dramas — will open in theaters this November. The always glorious Cate...