Films
SXSW 2018 Women Directors: Meet Nijla Baseema Mu’min — “Jinn”
Named one of 25 New Faces of Independent Film by “Filmmaker Magazine” in 2017, Nijla Baseema Mu’min’s short films have screened at festivals and venues across the country, including Outfest,...
SXSW 2018 Women Directors: Meet Nosipho Dumisa— “Number 37”
Nosipho Dumisa has directed and produced award-winning short films and commercials, and has extensive television credits. Dumisa is one of the first black female feature film directors from South...
SXSW 2018 Women Directors: Meet Lola Arias — “Theater of War”
Lola Arias is a writer, director, visual artist, and performer. Arias’ theater works have been performed at numerous festivals and venues including Théâtre de la Ville, Paris, Parque de la...
SXSW 2018 Women Directors: Meet Carol Brandt — “Pet Names”
Carol Brandt’s films have been shown at the New Orleans Film Festival, Milwaukee Short Film Festival, and the Beloit International Film Festival where her feature “Things Found on the Ground”...
Weekly Update for March 9: Women Centric, Directed, and Written Films Playing Near You
“A Wrinkle in Time” Films About Women Opening This Week A Wrinkle in Time — Directed by Ava DuVernay; Written by Jennifer Lee A reimagining of Madeleine L’Engle’s classic novel that...
#OscarsSoWhite Creator April Reign’s New Database Helps POC Find Work in the Biz
In 2015 April Reign spearheaded the #OscarsSoWhite movement to call out the Academy Awards’ lack of inclusivity among its acting nominees. The hashtag gained even more momentum in 2016, when the...
SXSW 2018 Women Directors: Laura Collado — “Constructing Albert”
Laura Collado has developed and produced several documentaries such as “La Casa” and “Yorgos.” “Constructing Albert” is her feature directorial debut. “Constructing Albert” will...
Sasheer Zamata to Star in Stella Meghie’s Next Film “The Weekend”
Sasheer Zamata and Stella Meghie are teaming up. The “SNL” alumna is set to topline “The Weekend,” a comedy from “Everything, Everything” helmer Meghie, Deadline reports. The pic sees...
SXSW 2018 Women Directors: Meet Alison Klayman — “Take Your Pills”
Alison Klayman’s debut documentary feature “Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry” premiered at the Sundance Film Festival where it was awarded a U.S. Documentary Special Jury Prize for Spirit of Defiance....
“Half the Picture” Doc About Women Directors Finds a Home
Women accounted for just 11 percent of directors working on the 250 top-grossing films in 2017. “Half the Picture” investigates why women are so often excluded from the director’s chair...
SXSW 2018 Women Directors: Meet Lynn Shelton — “Outside In”
Lynn Shelton’s feature credits include “Humpday,” “Your Sister’s Sister,” and “Laggies.” Her work has screened at festivals such as TIFF, Sundance, Cannes Directors’ Fortnight,...
Guest Post: What I Learned From Making a Doc About a Refugee
Guest Post by Kate McCaslin Much of what I know about filmmaking I learned this year from a Sudanese refugee named Rebecca Mabior. I admit it’s peculiar given that I’ve worked in the film...
SXSW 2018 Women Directors: Meet Jackie Van Beek and Madeleine Sami — “The Breaker Upperers”
Jackie Van Beek is a writer-director and actor who has made seven award-winning short films that have played at international festivals including Berlin, London, Palm Springs, and Melbourne. Her...
Fandango Study Investigates What Women Want at the Movies
Fandango is celebrating International Women’s Day by setting the record straight about female moviegoers. #TimesUp on the myth that women don’t frequent cinemas and are only interested in weepy...
SXSW 2018 Women Directors: Meet Suzi Yoonessi — “Unlovable”
Suzi Yoonessi is an award-winning Iranian American filmmaker. Her feature credits include “Dear Lemon Lima,” which premiered at the Los Angeles Film Festival, and “Daphne and Velma,” based...
SXSW 2018 Women Directors: Meet Kay Cannon— “Blockers”
Kay Cannon is an Emmy-nominated comedy writer, producer, and director. Her work has been awarded a Peabody and multiple Writers Guild Awards. Her first feature screenplay was the hit “Pitch...
ReFrame Pushes for More Inclusive Hiring in Hollywood with New Handbook
ReFrame, a Hollywood inclusion program that boasts 50 industry leaders among its ranks, has set its sights on updating show business’ current hiring practices — i.e. its habit of employing...
SXSW 2018 Women Directors: Meet Becca Gleason — “Summer ‘03”
Becca Gleason is the writer and director of three short films which made the rounds on the festival circuit; her directorial debut, “Molly,” won the LACMA Young Directors award, and her second...
Brie Larson and Michael B. Jordan Commit to Inclusion Rider
Frances McDormand’s Oscar speech is proving to be a game-changer in Hollywood. The “Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri” actress mentioned the words “inclusion rider” while accepting...
Trailer Watch: Ruth Bader Ginsburg Is a Superhero in Betsy West and Julie Cohen’s “RBG”
As her legendary dissents prove, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg knows how to turn a phrase. Her way with words is one of her trademarks — as is her exercise regimen — and...
SXSW 2018 Women Directors: Meet Yuqi Kang — “A Little Wisdom”
Born in Inner Mongolia, China, Yuqi Kang was awarded the Paula Rhodes Memorial Award for Exceptional Achievement in Social Documentary Film upon graduating the School of Visual Arts in New York. Her...
Daryl Hannah’s Feature Directorial Debut Scores Distribution Ahead of SXSW Premiere
Daryl Hannah’s feature directorial debut is set to make its world premiere at SXSW in just over a week, and the pic has already found a home. Deadline reports that Netflix has snagged global...
Tribeca 2018 Competition Lineup Is 44 Percent Women-Directed
The Tribeca Film Festival has unveiled its 2018 lineup and women directors are very well represented. As previously reported, Tribeca’s opening film will be Lisa D’Apolito’s Gilda Radner doc...
SXSW 2018 Women Directors: Meet Jayne Loader — “The Atomic Cafe”
Jayne Loader is a film director and writer. Originally released in 1982, “Atomic Cafe” was nominated for a BAFTA Award and selected for preservation in the United States’ National Film...
Ry Russo-Young to Direct Yara Shahidi-Starrer “The Sun Is Also a Star”
Ry Russo-Young is set to adapt another YA novel. The Hollywood Reporter confirms that she’ll follow up “Before I Fall,” released last year, with “The Sun Is Also A Star,” a star-crossed...
SXSW 2018 Women Directors: Meet Hannah Marks — “Shotgun”
Hannah Marks is an actress, writer, and director known for her roles in the BBC America/ Netflix series “Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency” and films such as “Anesthesia,”...
Alexandria Bombach’s Sundance Winner “On Her Shoulders” Acquired by Oscilloscope
After wowing audiences and critics alike at Sundance in January, “On Her Shoulders” has secured distribution. A press release announced that Oscilloscope Laboratories snagged the rights to...
Cheryl Dunye to Write and Direct Adaptation of “The Wonder of All Things”
The groundbreaking writer-director of “The Watermelon Woman” has a new project in the works. Cheryl Dunye will write and direct female-led supernatural story “The Wonder of All Things” for...
SXSW 2018 Women Directors: Meet Megan Griffiths — “Sadie”
M egan Griffiths recently directed two episodes of the HBO anthology series “Room 104” and an episode of the Epix comedy “Graves.” Her feature credits include “The Night Stalker,”...
Paramount Dedicates Building to Pioneering Director Dorothy Arzner
With 20 feature credits to her name, Dorothy Arzner is the most prolific female director of all time. History has neglected to give the trailblazing filmmaker her due, but Paramount recently honored...
Trailer Watch: Annette Bening and Saoirse Ronan Lead a Tangled Web of Love in “The Seagull”
“Remember all the laughter and the noise?” Irina (Annette Bening) reminisces in the trailer for “The Seagull.” “And the love affairs — so many love affairs.” Irina is talking about...
Trailer Watch: Maxine Peake Hits the Stand-Up Scene in “Funny Cow”
Life has always been “too much and not enough” for Maxine Peake’s character in “Funny Cow.” It’s only on-stage — and out of the reach of her abusive husband — that she seems...
Trailer Watch: Catherine Keener Fights Corporate Giants in “Little Pink House”
“I feel happy here. I feel like I’m home,” says Catherine Keener in a new trailer for “Little Pink House.” Written and directed by Courtney Moorehead Balaker, the drama sees Keener playing...
Rachel Morrison & Diane Warren Sign on to Amy Ziering & Kirby Dick’s Upcoming #MeToo Hollywood Doc
Two of last night’s Oscar nominees have boarded Amy Ziering and Kirby Dick’s upcoming doc about the lack of parity and diversity within Hollywood. “Mudbound” cinematographer Rachel Morrison...
Only 3.3 Percent of 2018’s Studio Films Are Women-Directed
“A Wrinkle in Time” is part of the 3.3 percent: Disney “A Wrinkle in Time,” “The Darkest Minds,” and “Blockers” — those are the only women-directed studio films you can look...
Indie Spirit Awards: Greta Gerwig, Dee Rees, and Agnés Varda Win Big
Saturday’s Indie Spirit Awards were a takedown of sexist bullshit and a celebration of inclusive talent. Hosts John Mulaney (“SNL”) and Nick Kroll (“Big Mouth”) had plenty to say about...
British Actresses Launch Campaign for Equal Representation on Stage and Screen
With two-thirds of screen time going to men, actresses in the UK turned activists this week and launched the Equal Representation for Actresses (ERA) campaign for gender equality in television,...
Eve Ensler on Her New One-Woman Show “In the Body of the World”
Ensler in “In the Body of the World”: Joan Marcus/bodyoftheworldplay.com Eve Ensler is a Tony Award-winning playwright, performer, author, and social activist. Twenty years ago her name became...
Weekly Update for March 2: Women Centric, Directed, and Written Films Playing Near You
“Red Sparrow” Films About Women Opening This Week Red Sparrow When she suffers a career-ending injury, Dominika (Jennifer Lawrence) and her mother are facing a bleak and uncertain future. That...
Biopic About Computer Scientist Grace Hopper in the Works
Another unsung heroine is set to receive some long overdue recognition. Computer scientist and Navy admiral Grace Hopper is getting the biopic treatment. Lauren Hynek and Elizabeth...
“Oh Lucy!” Writer-Director Atsuko Hirayanagi on Exploring Identity Through Comedy
Atsuko Hirayanagi was born in Nagano and raised in Chiba, Japan. She graduated from NYU Tisch School of The Arts, Asia, with an MFA in Film Production. Her shorts include “Mo ikkai,” “Wake,”...
Trailer Watch: “Fifty Shades of Grey” Rocks Jane Fonda and Diane Keaton’s Worlds in “Book Club”
Jane Fonda introduces her friends to Christian Grey in a new trailer for “Book Club.” The comedy sees four friends — played by Fonda, Diane Keaton, Candice Bergen, and Mary...
Film Adaptation of Ursula K. Le Guin’s “The Telling” On the Way, Leena Pendharkar to Write & Direct
Ursula K. Le Guin fans are still mourning the loss of the iconic sci-fi writer, but just over month after her death comes word that an adaptation of “The Telling” is in the works. The Hollywood...
Viola Davis and Lupita Nyong’o to Play Dahomey Amazons in “The Woman King”
Well, this sounds awesome: Viola Davis and Lupita Nyong’o are teaming up for a film about African female warriors. The Oscar winners will star in “The Woman King,” a story inspired by true...
Lena Waithe Joins Forces with Sight Unseen Pictures to Champion Underserved Voices
When Lena Waithe made history at last year’s Emmy Awards she used her time at the podium to recognize her “LGBTQIA family.” “I see each and every one of you,” the “Master of None”...
Vanessa Taylor to Adapt “Hillbilly Elegy”
The Oscar-nominated co-writer of “The Shape of Water” has booked her next gig. She’ll follow-up the otherworldly fairy tale with a gritty drama set in the Rust Belt, an adaptation of...
Trailer Watch: A Teen Will Do Whatever It Takes to Keep Her Family Together in “Sadie”
Sadie misses her dad. She writes him letters while he serves tours in the military, and no matter the distance between them, she remains extremely attached to him and anxiously awaits his visits....
French Film Industry Introduces 50/50 by 2020 Gender Equality Initiative
Members of the French film industry are gearing up their fight for gender equality just in time for Friday’s César Awards. Per Deadline, 300 artists and execs are lending their support to 5050...
Rashida Jones to Co-Write “9 to 5” Reboot with Tomlin, Fonda, and Parton in Talks to Star
Many of the issues at the heart of hit 1980 feminist comedy “9 to 5” still resonate in 2018: equal pay, workplace harassment, childcare, and “sexist, egotistical, lying, hypocritical bigots”...
Sundance Winners “I Think We’re Alone Now” and “Shirkers” Find Homes
Two big winners out of Sundance 2018 have secured distribution: Reed Morano’s post-apocalyptic drama “I Think We’re Alone Now” and “Shirkers,” Sandi Tan’s documentary about the bizarre...
March 2018 Film Preview
It’s Women’s History Month! We can’t think of a better time to celebrate women in film, whether behind the camera or on-screen. On International Women’s Day (March 8), Netflix debuts...