BY Women and Hollywood
TIFF 2015 Women Directors: Meet Jocelyn Moorhouse — ‘The Dressmaker’
Jocelyn Moorhouse was born in Melbourne, Australia, and graduated from the Australian Film, Television and Radio School. She has previously directed the features “Proof,” “How to Make an...
TIFF 2015 Women Directors: Meet Danae Elon — ‘P.S. Jerusalem’
Upon graduating from high school, Danae Elon spent two years in compulsory military service as a non-commissioned officer to the United Nation forces in the area. At age 21, Elon left Israel to...
TIFF 2015 Women Directors: Meet Meghna Gulzar — ‘Guilty’
Meghna Gulzar is a Mumbai-based film writer and director. She began her career as chief assistant director to Saeed Akhtar Mirza on the National Award-winning Hindi feature film “Naseem” before...
Weekly Update for September 11: Women Centric, Directed and Written Films Playing Near You
Films About Women Opening This WeekBreathe — Written and Directed by Mélanie Laurent With her second feature, actress-turned-director Melanie Laurent has made one of the best movies of the...
TIFF 2015 Women Directors: Meet Lorene Scafaria — ‘The Meddler’
Lorene Scafaria was born in New Jersey. She is a writer, actor, director and recording artist. She wrote the screenplay for “Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist,” directed episodes of “New...
Women Driving Social Change: September 2015’s Crowdfunding Picks
This week’s crowdfunding picks are bound together by the focus that each project gives to human welfare, subversive countercultures and the fight for women’s rights. “The Seeds of Vandana...
TIFF 2015 Women Directors: Meet Catherine Corsini — ‘Summertime’
Catherine Corsini grew up in Seineet-Marne, France. She moved to Paris to pursue acting before becoming a filmmaker. Her numerous features as writer-director include “Poker,” “Les Amoureux,”...
‘The Mindy Project’ Returns!
Lately I’ve had this lingering sense of something missing in my life. Anticipating the end of summer, perhaps? Nope: It was the lack of Mindy Kaling, soon to be doubly remedied with the premiere...
TIFF 2015 Women Directors: Meet Hermon Hailay — ‘Price of Love’
Hermon Hailay is an independent filmmaker. She was born in Mekele, Ethiopia, and is now based in Addis Ababa. Her credits include the features “Balaguru,” “Yaltasebew” and “Price of...
Saying Goodbye to ‘Mamma Mia!,’ a Musical That Was Far More than “Fluff”
Themusical “Mamma Mia!,” which closes on Broadway this Saturday after 14 years, is considered the equivalent of what the literary and film industries refer to as “chick lit” and a “chick...
TIFF 2015 Women Directors: Meet Maris Curran — ‘Five Nights in Maine’
Maris Curran received a B.A. from Smith College and an M.F.A. from the Art Institute of Chicago. She directed the short “Margarita.” “Five Nights in Maine” is her first feature. (Press...
TIFF 2015 Women Directors: Meet Alexandra-Therese Keining — ‘Girls Lost’
Alexandra-Therese Keining was born in Lomma, Sweden, and is based in Stockholm. A writer, director and novelist, her feature films are “Hot Dog” and “Kiss Me,” which was a Breakthrough...
TIFF 2015 Women Directors: Meet Mai Masri — ‘3000 Nights’
Mai Masri is a Palestinian director who studied film at University of California, Berkeley and San Francisco State University. Her features include “Under the Rubble” and “Wild Flowers: Women...
TIFF 2015 Women Directors: Meet Catherine Hardwicke — ‘Miss You Already’
Catherine Hardwicke was born in McAllen, Texas. She worked as a production designer on numerous films, including “Tank Girl,” “Three Kings” and “Laurel Canyon.” Her previous directing...
TIFF 2015 Women Directors: Meet Leena Yadav — ‘Parched’
Leena Yadav was born in Mhow, India. She began her career as an editor on commercials and an assistant director for television. She made her directorial debut with “Shabd,” followed by “Teen...
The ‘Carol’ Trailer and the Unbearable Lightness of Anticipation
That rush of attraction. The exhilaration of discovery. The ache of longing. The shock of falling in love with a movie trailer. The first full-length trailers for the lesbian drama “Carol” were...
TIFF 2015 Preview: Under the Radar Films By and About Women You Shouldn’t Miss
This year’s edition of the Toronto International Film Festival is filled with bona fide stars of the screen and filmmaking worlds. With performances by Julianne Moore (“Freeheld,”...
Ava DuVernay to Expand Her Distribution Company Under New Name
Ava DuVernay knows that films by women and minority filmmakers don’t just need to be made, but also seen. To increase distribution for works by under-represented directors, DuVernay is expanding...
Quote of the Day: Nancy Meyers on Sexism in Hollywood
There is a long (not yet online) interview in NY Magazine with Nancy Meyers. A lot of it focuses on gender and Hollywood. The reality is Nancy was really one of two women (the other being Nora...
TIFF 2015 Women Directors: Meet Sanna Lenken — ‘My Skinny Sister’
Sanna Lenken was born in Gothenberg, Sweden, and studied directing at the Dramatiska Institutet in Stockholm. She has directed two seasons of the series “Double Life” and the short film...
Baseball Drama About Professional Baseball’s (Fictional) First Female Pitcher Finds Home Base at Fox
A new baseball drama centered on a young female pitcher has landed at Fox. The series, created by Dan Fogelman (“The Neighbors”) and Rick Singer (“American Dad!”), received a put pilot...
TIFF 2015 Women Directors: Meet Patricia Rozema — ‘Into the Forest’
Canadian filmmaker Patricia Rozema’s first feature, “I’ve Heard the Mermaids Singing,” won the Prix de la Jeunesse and was runner-up for the Camera d’Or at the 1987 Cannes Film Festival....
Study: 16.3% of European Theatrical Releases Directed by Women
The numbers for women in the American film industry are dire: Female filmmakers made less than 5% of studio pictures and just 10% of indie features from 2009–13. Things are a bit better for...
TIFF 2015 Women Directors: Meet Mina Shum — ‘Ninth Floor’
Born in Hong Kong and raised in Canada, Mina Shum is an independent filmmaker and artist. “Ninth Floor” is her first feature documentary. Her first feature, “Double Happiness” (1994),...
TIFF’s Cameron Bailey and Kerri Craddock Discuss Female Filmmakers and Best Bets at the Fest
As Women and Hollywood gets ready to hit the ground in Toronto to watch movies, attend parties and participate on panels, we asked TIFF Artistic Director Cameron Bailey, and Director of Festival...
TIFF 2015 Women Directors: Meet Geeta Gandbhir and Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy — ‘A Journey of a Thousand Miles: Peacekeepers’
Telluride: 4 Female-Centric Films About to Make a Splash This Awards Season
We need no reminders that the 2014–15 awards season didn’t fareparticularly well for women in front of or behind the camera. Among the eightBest Picture Oscar nominees, none were about a woman,...
TIFF 2015 Women Directors: Meet Eva Husson — ‘Bang Gang (A Modern Love Story)’
Eva Husson was born and raised in France, where she received her M.A. in English literature from the Sorbonne before pursuing a M.F.A. at the American Film Institute. She directed the short “Hope...
TIFF 2015 Women Directors: Meet Caroline Monnet — ‘Mobilize’
Caroline Monnet is a multidisciplinary artist who has exhibited in Canada and internationally at venues such as the Palais de Tokyo (Paris), Haus der Kulturen der Welt (Berlin), the Museum of...
Quote of the Day: Lina Wertmuller Explains Why Female Filmmakers are Ignored During Awards Season
In 1977, Lina Wertmuller became the first woman to ever be nominated for Best Director at the Academy Awards. It’s been nearly two decades since the “Seven Beauties” helmer was recognized with...
Sally Field, Miriam Colón, Meredith Monk, Others to Receive White House’s National Medals of Arts
The White House will bestow National Medals of Arts to actresses Sally Field and Miriam Colón, singer Meredith Monk, visual artist Ann Hamilton and the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, among...
Sight & Sound’s October ’15 Issue ‘The Female Gaze’ Spotlights Women Directors Throughout History
A couple of months back, the BBC released a list of the top 100 American films ever made, in which 98% of the titles were directed solely by men. This glaring omission of female filmmakers didn’t...
Watch: Agnes Varda’s Enigmatic Anti-Fairy Tale ‘Les 3 Boutons’ in Full
Telluride: Meryl Streep: “There is Something Wrong That There Are So Few Women [Directors]”
TIFF 2015 Women Directors: Meet Deniz Gamze Ergüven — ‘Mustang’
Deniz Gamze Ergüven was born in Ankara, Turkey, and studied literature and African history in Johannesburg and directing at La Fémis in Paris. She has directed the shorts “Mon trajet...
Venice Film Fest 2015 Women Directors: Meet Esther May Campbell — ‘Light Years’
Self-taught photographer and filmmaker Esther May Campbell has directed low-fi music vids, sex-education films, corporates for and about randy sailors, as well as Channel 4 dramas and the BBC’s...
The Resonance and Relevance of ‘Suffragette’
Each September brings severe disappointment for those of us interested in seeing women taken seriously in the Oscar race. And by that, I mean women on screen and behind the scenes. It seems that the...
Weekly Update for September 4: Women Centric, Directed and Written Films Playing Near You
Films About Women Opening This WeekNumber One Fan — Written and Directed by Jeanne Herry Muriel Bayen (Sandrine Kiberlain), a divorced beautician and mother of two, loves to tell stories. She...
Patricia Rozema, Sophie Deraspe and Other Female Canadian Talent To Be Feted at TIFF
Nine Canadian female directors and actors will be honored at the Toronto Film Festival this year. Telefilm Canada, a federal cultural agency that helps fund and promote Canadian film, and Birks...
Margaret Cho Discusses Her Sexual Assaults, Her New Song “I Want to Kill My Rapist”
A week after being cast as Ken Jeong’s sister in the upcoming ABC sitcom “Dr. Ken,” Margaret Cho has been profiled by Billboard in a wrenching, inspirational and stunningly candid interview...
New Film Series Celebrates Women Over 40 With Events in LA and NY
Anne Hathaway made headlines earlier this week for revealing that, at the ripe, old age of 32, she is now losing roles to younger actresses. The Oscar winner acknowledged that she herself played...
TCM and WIF LA Announce Initiative and Programming Celebrating Female Directors
Turner Classic Movies (TCM) has announced a multi-year initiative with Women in Film (WIF), Los Angeles, called Trailblazing Women. The partnership will serve to highlight women’s historical...
Laurie Anderson’s ‘Heart of a Dog’ Gets Distribution Deal With Abramorama, HBO Documentary Films
Laurie Anderson’s essay film “Heart of a Dog” has been acquired by Abramorama and HBO Documentary Films. The deal was announced just before the feature was to make its debut screening at the...
Kathleen Turner and Deborah Cox to Appear in Transgender Off-Broadway Play
Kathleen Turner and Deborah Cox have signed on to star in an off-Broadway play about a lesbian couple in which one of them begins to question her gender identity and contemplate sex-reassignment...
Venice Film Fest 2015 Women Directors: Meet Pietra Brettkelly — ‘A Flickering Truth’
Pietra Brettkelly is a multi-award-winning director and producer. Her 2008 film “The Art Star and the Sudanese Twins” won the World Cinema Documentary Editing Award at the Sundance Film Festival...
Quote of the Day: Emma Thompson Has Been a “Card-Carrying, Radical Feminist” Since She Was 19
Gem of a human Emma Thompson has weighed in on feminism and ageism in Hollywood once more with her typical blend of wit and wisdom, telling Vulture, “I’ve been a card-carrying, radical feminist...
Julie Lynn and Bonnie Curtis to Produce 2015 Governors Awards
The Academy’s 7th annual Governors Awards will bestow an Honorary Award to Gena Rowlands and Spike Lee and the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award to Debbie Reynolds. Making sure that the...
Venice Competitor ‘Marguerite,’ About Delusional Socialite, Acquired by Cohen Media Group
The French period drama “Marguerite,” about a ’20s socialite whose belief in her opera-singing abilities far exceeded her actual talents, has been acquired out of the Venice Film Festival....
Cate Blanchett to Play Lucille Ball in Authorized Biopic
Cate Blanchett isn’t known for her comedic roles, but that may change after she stars in her most recently announced project: a biopic about the life of Lucille Ball. One of the most famous women...
Six Up-and-Coming Women Writers Awarded $30,000 Rona Jaffe Awards
Two poets, a memoirist and three fiction writers have been named the winners of this year’s Rona Jaffe Awards. Each writer will win a $30,000 cash prize. The honorees are Meehan Crist, Vanessa...
Trailer Watch: Toni Collette and Drew Barrymore Deal With Cancer and Pregnancy in ‘Miss You Already’
Catherine Hardwicke’s “Miss You Already,” about life-long female friends dealing with birth and death at the same time, has a new trailer. Best pals Milly (Toni Collette) and Jess (Drew...