Films
IDA Creates New Fund for Feature-Length Docs
Documentary filmmakers, take note: The International Documentary Association (IDA) is launching a new fund. The Enterprise Documentary Fund, created with significant support from the John D. and...
Laura Nix Honored as the 2017 Sundance Institute and Discovery Impact Fellow
Laura Nix has been named as the 2017 Sundance Institute and Discovery Impact Fellow, Deadline reports. “The Yes Men are Revolting” director is the second recipient of the fellowship, which...
Gina Prince-Bythewood to Direct “Marvel’s Cloak and Dagger” Pilot for Freeform
Gina Prince-Bythewood just made the Marvel Cinematic Universe a bit more palatable to women. After reports from Season Zero and Geeks of Color mentioned her involvement in the upcoming Freeform...
Trailer Watch: Jewish Comedians Get “The Last Laugh”
“It’s much more fun to laugh than not to laugh,” Carl Reiner explains in the new trailer for “The Last Laugh.” As fun as it is, laughter is also key to cultural and literal survival in...
Oscar 2017 Nominations: #OscarsSoWhite Gets a Slight Makeover
The 2017 Oscar nominations are in, and the more inclusive group of actors and films to receive nods suggests that the Academy’s decision to invite a diverse new class of members was, as expected,...
Gita Pullapilly and Aron Gaudet to Direct Their Black List Script “Crook County”
“Crook County,” a Black List script from Gita Pullapilly and Aron Gaudet, is officially on its way to the big screen. Deadline writes that the partners and spouses will direct the film, “based...
“Fresh Off the Boat” Team Secures Pilot Order from NBC for Family Comedy
NBC has ordered a pilot for an untitled comedy based on the life of “Fresh Off the Boat” producer Kourtney Kang, The Hollywood Reporter confirms. The project marks the first comedy pilot the...
Sundance 2017 Women Directors: Meet Zoe Lister-Jones — “Band Aid”
Zoe Lister-Jones is an actor, director, writer, and producer who is currently starring in CBS’ “Life in Pieces.” She recently co-starred in “Confirmation” for HBO. As a...
Sundance Deals: “Novitiate,” “Fun Mom Dinner,” and “The Big Sick” Find Homes
The Sundance Film Festival isn’t even halfway through yet, but there have already been some exciting deals and developments for films by and about women. Maggie Betts’ “Novitiate” and...
Casting News: Anne Hathaway Gets “Nasty,” “UnREAL” Finds Female Suitor
Anne Hathaway has signed on to MGM’s upcoming “Dirty Rotten Scoundrels” remake, now titled “Nasty Women.” And speaking of nasty women, two of our favorites from the small screen,...
Sundance 2017 Women Directors: Meet Barbara Kopple — “This is Everything: Gigi Gorgeous”
Barbara Kopple is a two-time Academy Award winning filmmaker. A director and producer of narrative films and documentaries, her two most recent projects are the documentaries “Miss Sharon...
Megan Ellison’s Annapurna Pictures Launches Distribution and Marketing Op
Megan Ellison is one step closer to taking over Hollywood. Annapurna Pictures is launching a full-service distribution and marketing operation, a press release has announced. The first project...
Trailer Watch: Melanie Lynskey is a Vigilante in “I Don’t Feel at Home in This World Anymore”
Ruth (Melanie Lynskey, “Togetherness”) is struggling to exist in a world with so many selfish, entitled jerks in “I Don’t Feel at Home in This World Anymore,” a Netflix original film that...
Sundance 2017 Women Directors: Meet Pamela Yates — “500 Years”
Pamela Yates is a co-founder and current creative director of Skylight, a media company dedicated to creating feature length documentary films and digital media tools that advance awareness of human...
Sundance 2017 Women Directors: Meet Jennifer Brea — “Unrest”
Jennifer Brea is a filmmaker, writer, and data wrangler. She earned her AB in Politics from Princeton University, and is a TED Fellow. Prior, she was a freelance journalist in China and East and...
Sundance 2017 Women Directors: Meet Sydney Freeland — “Deidra & Laney Rob a Train”
Sydney Freeland is an Emmy-nominated filmmaker. Her debut feature, “Drunktown’s Finest,” premiered at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival, and went on to receive the Jury Prize at LA Outfest and a...
Sundance 2017 Women Directors: Meet Marti Noxon — “To the Bone”
Marti Noxon is the creator and executive producer of Bravo’s first scripted drama series, “Girlfriends’ Guide to Divorce,” and the co-creator and executive producer of the acclaimed Lifetime...
Sundance 2017 Women Directors: Meet Amanda Kernell — “Sami Blood”
Amanda Kernell has directed a number of shorts, including “Stoerre Vaerie,” or, “Northern Great Mountain,” which premiered at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival and won the Best Swedish Short...
Sundance 2017 Women Directors: Meet Catherine Bainbridge— “Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked the…
Sundance 2017 Women Directors: Meet Catherine Bainbridge— “Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked the World” Catherine Bainbridge is a writer, producer, and director, and the co-founder of Rezolution...
Sundance 2017 Women Directors: Meet Catherine Bainbridge— “Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked the World…
Sundance 2017 Women Directors: Meet Catherine Bainbridge— “Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked the World” “Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked the World” Catherine Bainbridge is a writer, producer,...
Sundance 2017 Women Directors: Meet Pascale Lamche — “Winnie”
Pascale Lamche is an award-winning filmmaker who has made feature documentaries and series both as a writer-producer and writer-director for key broadcasters internationally. Her films have...
Sundance 2017 Women Directors: Meet Rory Kennedy— “Take Every Wave: The Life of Laird Hamilton”
An Academy Award nominated, Primetime Emmy Award winning director and producer, Rory Kennedy’s work deals with some of the world’s most pressing issues — poverty, political corruption,...
Sundance 2017 Women Directors: Meet Lone Scherfig — “Their Finest”
In her native Denmark, Lone Scherfig began her career directing award-winning commercials and television dramas. Her feature film credits include “An Education,” “One Day,” and “The...
CINEMATOGRAPHERS XX Members Make Their Mark on Sundance 2017
Female DPs are making at splash at Sundance 2017. Back in spring of last year, female cinematographers banded together to form a new, supportive group called CINEMATOGRAPHERS XX, which aims to...
Sundance 2017 Women Directors: Meet Janicza Bravo — “Lemon”
Janicza Bravo wrote and directed “Gregory Go Boom,” a Sundance Grand Jury Prize-winning short film. Her other credits include “Man Rots from the Head,” “Woman in Deep,” and an episode of...
Weekly Update for January 20: Women Centric, Directed, and Written Films Playing Near You
“Starless Dreams” Films About Women Opening This Week Starless Dreams (Documentary) (Opens in NY) A haunting portrait of stolen childhood, “Starless Dreams” plunges us into the lives of...
Sundance 2017 Women Directors: Meet Ramona S. Diaz — “Motherland”
Ramona S. Diaz is an award-winning Asian-American filmmaker. Her film credits include “Spirits Rising,” “Imelda,” “The Learning,” and “Don’t Stop Believin’: Everyman’s...
Jane Green’s “The Beach House” to Receive Film Adaptation
Jane Green has written a whopping 18 novels, and 17 of them have been bestsellers. One of her books is finally getting the big screen treatment: Good Deed Entertainment has acquired the rights to...
Octavia Spencer Named Hasty Pudding Woman of the Year
The year is off to a great start for Octavia Spencer. The Academy Award winner’s latest film, “Hidden Figures,” has dominated the box office two weekends in a row, and now the actress has been...
Seed&Spark Launches #100DaysOfDiversity Initiative
Today, Inauguration Day, is sad for a lot of us. It’s surreal, like an unfunny comedy sketch gone awry. The good news: It’s also the first day of Seed&Spark’s new #100DaysOfDiversity...
Teaser Watch: Kitty Green’s “Casting JonBenét” Will Give You Goosebumps
“My name is Anna and I’m auditioning for the role of JonBenét Ramsey,” a young aspiring actress announces in a newly released clip from Kitty Green’s “Casting JonBenét.” What comes out...
Sundance 2017 Women Directors: Meet Ry Russo-Young — “Before I Fall”
“Before I Fall” marks director Ry Russo-Young’s first wide-release movie. Her previous credits include “Nobody Walks,” which won a special Jury Prize at Sundance and was released...
Trailer Watch: “Motherland” Welcomes Us to the Busiest Maternity Ward on Earth
“I admit I’m crazy. Why wouldn’t I be?” a patient asks in the new trailer for “Motherland.” “The children come one after another. I don’t have enough love to give all of them. I wish...
Sundance 2017 Women Directors: Meet Laura Dunn — “Look & See: A Portrait of Wendell Berry”
Laura Dunn’s first feature documentary, “The Unforeseen,” executive produced by Robert Redford and Terrence Malick, premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, and was released theatrically and...
Amanda Kernell’s “Sami Blood” Lands U.S. Distribution
Amanda Kernell’s “Sami Blood” has secured North American distribution prior to its U.S. premiere at Sundance on January 20. Synergetic Distribution snagged the rights to the coming-of-age...
Sundance 2017 Women Directors: Meet Helene Hegemann — “Axolotl Overkill”
Helene Hegemann is a German writer and director. She has written two novels, including the German bestseller “Axolotl Roadkill.” Hegemann has directed award-winning work in film, theater, and...
Guest Post: What I Learned from Documenting the Aftermath of Sandy Hook
Guest Post by Kim A. Snyder Chronicling the aftermath of the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre was without a doubt the most daunting endeavor I’ve ever undertaken in my twenty years as a...
Sundance 2017 Women Directors: Meet Marianna Palka — “Bitch”
Sundance Film Festival alum, humanist filmmaker, and proud Scotswoman Marianna Palka has previously directed the features “Good Dick” (2008), “I’m the Same” (2014), and “Always Worthy”...
“Cameraperson” Director Kirsten Johnson Receives Rooftop Films Grant
Kirsten Johnson is on a hot streak. Last week, her documentary “Cameraperson” won three awards at the Cinema Eye Honors. It’s on the Oscars short list and was the grand prize winner of the...
Quote of the Day: Blake Lively Emphasizes the Value of Women’s Stories
It’s hard to remember a time when Blake Lively wasn’t a movie star. The actress first came on the scene in “The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants,” an ode to the importance of female...
Trailer Watch: There’s No Tomorrow for Zoey Deutch in Ry Russo-Young’s “Before I Fall”
“Maybe for you there’s a tomorrow. But for some of us, there’s only today,” explains Samantha (Zoey Deutch, “Why Him?”), the teen protagonist of “Before I Fall.” A new trailer has...
Sundance 2017 Women Directors: Meet Alicia Scherson — “Family Life”
Now based in Chile, Alicia Scherson has studied, worked, and lived in Cuba, Spain, and the U.S. Her feature films “Play,” “Turistas,” and “Il Futuro” have been shown in theaters...
Film Editors Thelma Schoonmaker & Janet Ashikaga to Receive Career Achievement Awards
The American Cinema Editors will present Thelma Schoonmaker and Janet Ashikaga with Career Achievement awards during the ACE Eddie Awards, Deadline writes. The event will be held in Beverly Hills on...
Sundance 2017 Women Directors: Meet Christina Clusiau — “Trophy”
Christina Clusiau is a documentary filmmaker, cinematographer, and photojournalist based in Brooklyn, NY. In 2013, Clusiau co-founded Reel Peak Films, a production company specializing in short and...
Jessica Biel Anthology Thriller Gets Ordered to Series
Jessica Biel is returning to the small screen. She’s set to topline “The Sinner,” an anthology series that USA Network just ordered to series, the LA Times reports. The thriller marks Biel’s...
Sundance 2017 Women Directors: Meet Cate Shortland — “Berlin Syndrome”
Cate Shortland’s films have screened at film festivals around the world, including Cannes Film Festival and Sydney Film Festival. Her previous credits include “Somersault”...
Barbara Kopple’s “This Is Everything: Gigi Gorgeous” Gets Release Date
Barbara Kopple’s latest project has a release date. Following its world premiere at the Sundance Film Festival on January 24, “This Is Everything: Gigi Gorgeous” will launch February 8 on...
Sundance 2017 Women Directors: Meet Neasa Ní Chianáin — “In Loco Parentis”
Neasa Ní Chianáin started directing in 2001 with television documentaries. Her previous credits include the award-winning “Frank Ned & Busy Lizzie,” which won the Best Feature award at The...
Courtney Moorehead Balaker’s “Little Pink House” to Open Athena Film Festival
The Athena Film Festival announced today that “Little Pink House,” written and directed by Courtney Moorehead Balaker, will screen on Thursday, February 9 as the fest’s Opening...
Sundance 2017 Women Directors: Meet Susan Froemke— “Rancher, Farmer, Fisherman”
Susan Froemke is a four-time Emmy winner and non-fiction filmmaker with over thirty films to her credit, including Academy Award-nominated HBO documentary film “Lalee’s Kin,” “Grey...
“Outlander’s” Caitriona Balfe to Receive an Oscar Wilde Award
Two-time Golden Globe nominee and BAFTA winner Caitriona Balfe is set to receive an Oscar Wilde Award, a press release has announced. The Irish actress and “Outlander” star will receive the...