Festivals
Hot Docs 2016 Women Directors: Meet Nicole Ma — “Putuparri & the Rainmakers”
Nicole Ma is an award-winning director and producer of new media, for Yiwarra Kuju: Canning Stock Route Project, and the inaugural exhibitions for the National Museum of Australia. Ma’s work...
Hot Docs 2016 Women Directors: Meet Tal Barda — “The Wonderful Kingdom of Papa Alaev”
Tal Barda is a graduate of Tel Aviv University’s Film and Television Department. She is also a graduate of Le Mirail University in France. Her directing and producing credits include “A...
Trailer Watch: Maïwenn’s “Mon Roi” Hits the U.S.
Filmmaker Maïwenn may be best known stateside for playing Diva Plavalaguna in “The Fifth Element,” but her notable French filmmaking career may soon take off in the U.S. thanks to...
Hot Docs 2016 Women Directors: Meet Christy Garland — “Cheer Up”
Before moving to documentary filmmaking, Christy Garland directed several award-winning dramatic and comedic shorts, while working in the film industry as an assistant director. The Canadian...
Hot Docs 2016 Women Directors: Meet Min Sook Lee — “Migrant Dreams”
Award-winning filmmaker Min Sook Lee has a diverse and prolific portfolio of multimedia work. Lee has directed numerous critically acclaimed social documentaries, including “My Toxic Baby,”...
Hot Docs 2016 Women Directors: Meet Aude Leroux-Lévesque — “Living with Giants”
In 2009, Aude Leroux-Lévesque moved to Bangladesh to co-direct her first documentary, “Call Me Salma.” The film aired on Direct 8, ARTE, EBS Korea, and screened at over a dozen film festivals....
Hot Docs 2016 Women Directors: Meet Nettie Wild— “KONELĪNE: our land beautiful”
Nettie Wild is one of Canada’s leading documentary filmmakers. She is best known for her award-winning documentary features “FIX: The Story of an Addicted City” (2002), “A Place Called...
Hot Docs 2016 Women Directors: Meet Nimisha Mukerji — “Tempest Storm”
An award-winning director of film and television, Nimisha Mukerji’s work has been featured on National Geographic and VICE. Her critically acclaimed debut feature “65_RedRoses” was selected by...
Hot Docs 2016 Women Directors: Meet Maria Arlamowsky — “Future Baby”
Maria Arlamowsky lives and works in Vienna, Austria. She studied at the University for Music and Performing Arts Vienna, the Film Academy, and Donau University in Krems. (Press materials) “Future...
Hot Docs 2016 Women Directors: Meet Joanna Sokolowski and Kate Trumball-LaValle — “Ovarian Psycos”
Documentary filmmakers Joanna Sokolowski and Kate Trumbull-LaValle met while earning their M.A. in Social Documentation at the University of California, Santa Cruz. Directing their thesis films, the...
Cannes Final Juries Curiously Feature Female Actors and Male Directors
The Un Certain Regard Jury: Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Film Festival, which will run from May 11–22 this year, has announced the jury members of the Un Certain Regard, Camera D’Or, and...
Hot Docs 2016 Women Directors: Meet Aslaug Holm— “Brothers”
Aslaug Holm is an award-winning director, cinematographer, and editor, as well as a partner and founder at Fenris Film since 1992. She has directed over 20 documentaries, including “The Rich...
LA Film Festival Unveils 2016 Lineup with 43% Women Directors
“Paint it Black”: LA Film Festival The LA Film Festival has revealed the lineup for its 2016 edition. Women directors are very well represented in the 22nd annual fest— take note, Cannes. The...
Hot Docs 2016 Women Directors: Meet Molly Reynolds — “Another Country”
Molly Reynolds specializes in screen-based storytelling and digital media production. When she isn’t earning a living as a consultant in the digital sphere, she makes documentaries, including...
Hot Docs 2016 Women Directors: Meet Samira Goetschel — “City 40”
Samira Goetschel is an Iranian-born American award-winning filmmaker based in Los Angeles. An alumnus of NYU Film School, her graduating film, “Clown de la Vie,” won Best Short Film at the New...
Hot Docs 2016 Women Directors: Meet Viveka Melki— “After Circus”
Viveka Melki is a storyteller working primarily in film. Her projects shed light on social issues that are often overlooked and focus on the resilience and hope of individuals and communities...
Hot Docs 2016 Women Directors: Meet Susan Gluth — “Urmila: My Memory Is My Power”
Susan Gluth was born in Hamburg. After practical training as a forest ranger, cook, and veterinarian, she studied business and commerce, followed by film at the University of Television & Film...
Karlovy Vary Film Festival to Feature Mexican Female Directors
“Amazing Cat Fish”: Karlovy Vary Film Festival The Karlovy Vary Film Festival, which runs from July 1–9 this summer, has announced this year’s fest will include a special segment focusing on...
Hot Docs 2016 Women Directors: Meet Eva Orner — “Chasing Asylum”
Academy and Emmy Award winner Eva Orner is an Australian filmmaker based in Los Angeles. According to her bio, Orner wrote, directed, and produced the feature documentary “The Network,” set...
Cannes Film Festival Jury Includes Kirsten Dunst, Valeria Golino, Vanessa Paradis, and Katayoon…
Cannes Film Festival Jury Includes Kirsten Dunst, Valeria Golino, Vanessa Paradis, and Katayoon Shahabi The Cannes Film Festival has announced the complete Jury for the 69th fest, which will run...
Hot Docs 2016 Women Directors: Meet Rama Rau — “League of Exotique Dancers”
Rama Rau is an award-winning writer-director whose credits include cyber bullying doc “No Place to Hide: The Rehtaeh Parsons Story” (2015), which had its world premiere at Hot Docs and was among...
Cannes Classics Highlights Carrie Fisher, Debbie Reynolds and Women of Old Hollywood
Though the Cannes Film Festival made some additions to its Competition, Un Certain Regard and special screenings this morning, absolutely zero of them are films made by women. So we turn instead to...
Tribeca Film Fest Awards Rachel Tunnard, Ingrid Jungermann, Priscilla Ananay and More
Jo Irvine “Adult Life Skills” Tribeca Film Festival has announced the award winners for its 15th annual run. The fest is still running until April 24, and you can read all of our interviews with...
Cannes Classics Highlights Carrie Fisher, Debbie Reynolds and Women of Old Hollywood
Though the Cannes Film Festival made some additions to its Competition, Un Certain Regard and special screenings this morning, absolutely zero of them are films made by women. So we turn instead to...
IFP Opens Submissions for IFP Film Week
Independent Filmmaker Project (IFP) is now accepting submissions for IFP Film Week. The 38th annual installment of the event will take place in Brooklyn September 17–22. IFP welcomes submissions...
Tribeca 2016 Women Directors: Meet Maura Axelrod — ‘Maurizio Cattelan: Be Right Back’
Maura Axelrod has been producing news and documentaries for over 15 years. She began at ABC News in New York as a writer and producer. She lived and worked as producer for AP Television News in the...
2016 Tribeca Women Directors: Meet Maura Axelrod -“Maurizio Cattelan: Be Right Back”
Maura Axelrod has been producing news and documentaries for 15 years. She started at ABC News in New York as a writer and producer, then lived and worked in the Middle East and the Caribbean,...
Tribeca 2016 Women Directors: Meet Kristi Zea — ‘Everybody Knows… Elizabeth Murray’
“Everybody Knows… Elizabeth Murray” is the documentary directorial debut for Kristi Zea, a two time Oscar-nominated production designer and producer. Her narrative directorial debut...
Watch Mia Wasikowska’s Directorial Debut As Her Second Film Premieres at Tribeca
Just as her second directorial effort premieres at the Tribeca Film Festival this week, Mia Wasikowska’s first directorial project can now be seen online. Wasikowska, who has starred as the...
Tribeca 2016 Women Directors: Meet Kristi Zea — “Everybody Knows… Elizabeth Murray”
“Everybody Knows… Elizabeth Murray” is the documentary directorial debut for Kristi Zea, a two time Oscar-nominated production designer and producer. Her narrative directorial debut...
Award-Winning Race-Car Doc ‘Speed Sisters’ Acquired by First Run Features
“Speed Sisters” is racing towards a theatrical release. First Run Features has acquired the U.S. rights to Amber Fares’ debut feature and will release the portrait of the first all-woman...
Tribeca 2016 Women Directors: Meet Sophie Goodhart — ‘My Blind Brother’
Sophie Goodhart began her career in news and documentaries for UK television. She is perhaps best known for her short film “My Blind Brother,” which screened in competition at Cannes in 2003...
Cannes Directors’ Fortnight Features Laura Poitras’ ‘Risk,’ Sólveig Anspach’s Last Film and 2 Debuts
The Cannes Film Festival has revealed the selections for the Directors’ Fortnight sidebar of the festival, a non-competitive section awarded by the Société des Réalisateurs Français. Last...
NBCUniversal Short Film Festival Now Open for Submissions
Short film directors, if you dare to dream of being the next Tina Fey, have we got a contest for you. NBCUniversal has announced that its 11th annual Short Film Festival is now accepting...
Tribeca 2016 Women Directors: Meet Liza Johnson — ‘Elvis & Nixon’
Liza Jonhnson is a writer and director whose feature films “Return” (2011) and “Hateship Loveship” (2013) have screened at the Cannes, Toronto, New York, Berlin and Rotterdam film festivals,...
Tribeca 2016 Women Directors: Meet Ferne Pearlstein — ‘The Last Laugh’
Ferne Pearlstein is is a prize-winning cinematographer, a feature film editor and a writer/director whose work has won numerous awards and been screened and broadcast around the world. In 2003...
Cannes Critics’ Week Lineup Unveiled: Chloe Sevigny, Julie Ducournau and More
The lineup for Critics’ Week at the Cannes Film Festival has been announced. Only one of seven films in Competition in the 55th installment of the Cannes’ sidebar is directed by a woman: Julia...
Tribeca 2016 Women Directors: Meet Vanessa Gould — ‘Obit’
Vanessa Gould is a filmmaker, editor and camera operator working in Brooklyn. Her film “Between The Folds” premiered on PBS’s “Independent Lens” in December 2009 and was re-broadcast the...
Tribeca 2016 Women Directors: Meet Priscilla Anany — ‘Children of the Mountain’
Priscilla Anany was born in Ghana and migrated to the U.S. She studied Fine Arts at the University of North Carolina’s School of Arts’ School of Filmmaking and obtained her Master’s degree in...
Tribeca 2016 Women Directors: Meet Marina Person — ‘California’
Director, TV show host and actress, Marina Person graduated in Cinema from the University of São Paulo. She directed the 2007 feature documentary “Person,” selected for the Locarno and Trieste...
Tribeca 2016 Women Directors: Meet Alma Har’el — ‘LoveTrue’
Alma Har’el is a music video and film director, best known for her documentary “Bombay Beach,” which took the top prize at Tribeca Film Festival in 2011, received a nomination for a 2011...
Tribeca 2016 Women Directors: Meet Lydia Tenaglia — ‘Jeremiah Tower: The Last Magnificent’
Lydia Tenaglia is co-founder and executive producer of ZeroPoint Zero Production, Inc. (ZPZ), creators of the Emmy- and Peabody- Award winningseries, “Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown” and...
Cannes 2016 Lineup: 15% Women Directors in Main Competition
Today marks the annual ritual which feels almost like torture — the unveiling of the Cannes Film Festival lineup. This year the main competition boasts three female directed films out of...
Trailer Watch: ‘Our Little Sister’ Might Be This Year’s ‘Mustang’
“Our Little Sister,” another foreign Cannes 2015 favorite, is finally hitting the U.S. and a new trailer has premiered making the film seem like it may be this year’s “Mustang.” (I.e. a...
Tribeca 2016 Women Directors: Meet Katie Holmes — ‘All We Had’
Katie Holmes’ acting credits include “Touched With Fire,” “Woman in Gold,” “Ray Donovan,” “Batman Begins” and “Dawson’s Creek.” “All We Had” is her directorial...
Tribeca 2016 Women Directors: Meet Ingrid Jungermann — ‘Women Who Kill’
Ingrid Jungermann created the WGA-Nominated web series “F To 7th,” featuring Amy Sedaris, Michael Showalter and Gaby Hoffmann. A television version of “F To 7th” is currently in development,...
Tribeca 2016 Women Directors: Meet Kadri Kõusaar — ‘Mother’
Kadri Kõusaar is an Estonian novelist and film director. She has also worked as a radio DJ and television host, and has a universitydegree in Spanish language and literature. Kõusaar made her...
Tribeca 2016 Women Directors: Meet Leyla Bouzid — ‘As I Open My Eyes’
Leyla Bouzid is a Tunisian born and raised filmmaker. She studied French literature at the University of Paris and film directing at La Fémis. Her shorts “Soubresauts” (2011) and “Zakaria”...
IDFA Founder Ally Derks To Step Down from Post in 2017
Legendary International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam (IDFA) founder and director Ally Derks is set to step down from her post in 2017. Derks will spend most of next year as a fellow in...
Trailer Watch: Animal Rights Evolve in Chris Hegedus and D A Pennebaker’s ‘Unlocking the Cage’
A trailer has arrived for “Unlocking the Cage,” Chris Hegedus and D A Pennebaker’s eye-opening Sundance animal rights doc. “When you imprison a chimpanzee, the chimpanzee understands that...
20 Films By Women We Hope to See at Cannes
The Cannes Film Festival has been notoriously unkind to women. Between enforcing a ludicrous rule prohibiting women from wearing flats on the red carpet, to its usually low number of female...