Films
Five Most Girl Power Moments from Comic-Con 2015
Despite the rampant misogyny in some nerd circles, it’s increasingly clear that girl power and feminism is a pretty great way to sell a movie or TV, since most of us prefer to live in the 21st...
Winners Announced For the HBO Diverse and Emerging Writers Fellowship, Six Women Chosen
Back in February we reported that HBO was launching a writing fellowship to find diverse and emerging writers. This week, the premium cable network announced the names of the nine aspiring writers...
Women in the Director’s Chair and Whistler FF Launch 4-Month Intensive For Female Directors
The Whistler Film Festival and Women in the Director’s Chair are teaming up to launch WIDC: Story & Leadership, a four-month intensive for women screen directors focusing on fiction feature...
Impact Partners Launches Fellowship for Emerging Documentary Producers at DOC NYC 2015
Impact Partners, a film fund and advisory service that funds independent socially-conscious cinema, has announced the launch of a new annual Emerging Documentary Producers Fellowship. Five...
Ava DuVernay Will Not Be Directing ‘Black Panther’ for Marvel
I wasn’t very surprised to read this weekend that Ava DuVernay will not be directing a Marvel movie. Quite frankly, to me, it always seemed like wishful thinking. While last week there were lots...
Katniss Everdeen, Art Heroines and Geek Fashion: Women and Hollywood’s 2015 Comic-Con Preview
Comic-Con is an unavoidable beast, and I use the word “beast” with great affection. Even if you’re not especially into geek-flavored pop culture, the convention is almost certainly on your...
Watch: Earth Has a New Hero in Extended Promo for ‘Supergirl’
A new 2-minute trailer for CBS’s “Supergirl” concludes with Kara Danvers/Kara Zor-El (Melissa Benoist) proclaiming, “Earth doesn’t have just one hero anymore.” When Supergirl swoops onto...
Watch: Amy Everson Asks Her Friend to Be Her Superhero Sidekick in Eerie, Heartbreaking ‘Felt’ Clip
There’s probably a much better way of asking your friend to join you in making the world a better place than prancing around in the woods with a giant rubber schlong swinging out of your...
Listen: Melissa Silverstein, Nicole Kidman, Others Discuss Gender Inequality in Hollywood on NPR
“That a movie with a female protagonist can be a big hit is no surprise, but for those who want to see more gender parity in Hollywood, the opportunities for women to make and star in blockbusters...
Change the Conversation at the Inaugural Hedgebrook Screenwriters Residency in Washington State
If you’re a screenwriter interested in receiving mentorship from industry vets and the chance to collaborate with other female scribes, take note: The Hedgebrook Screenwriters Lab is accepting...
Stowe Story Labs, Tangerine Entertainment Launch New Fellowship for Women Writers, Directors, Producers
Stowe Story Labs, a nonprofit that brings together emerging screenwriters, filmmakers and creative producers from around the world with industry mentors, is currently accepting applications for its...
New $25,000 Screenplay Prize to Promote “Strong and Complex Female Lead Characters”
Got a great screenplay with a compelling female protagonist and happen to be an Independent Filmmaker Project (IFP) member? If so, good news: You’ve got a chance at a $25,000 unrestricted grant....
June 2015 Film Preview
Summer brings more great news for those of us who long to see women-centric films in theaters.Many of the biggest and most anticipated films of the season are aboutwomen — and a fair portion...
2016 Athena Film Festival Now Accepting Submissions
Interested in submitting your film to the 2016 Athena Film Festival? The festival is now accepting submissions! Please read our criteria and fill out the form below to submit your application. What...
4 Female Directors Discuss What It Takes to Make a Passion Project
RichardLinklater’s “Boyhood” got a lot ofdeserved attention for the dedication it took to make a feature film over 12years. While that timeline was planned, getting a film made often turns out...
New Arab Women Filmmakers Scholarship at UCLA Film School Announced
A new initiative to “give voice to the unique perspective of Arab women” has been launched as a partnership between the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television (UCLA TFT) and the...
Producers Wanted Emily Blunt’s Character in “Sicario” to Be a Man
Emily Blunt has found critical success (if not quite blockbuster megabucks) in action flicks like “Looper” and “Edge of Tomorrow.” But she almost got shut out of the crime thriller...
Women and Hollywood Meet-Up in LA: Come and Network on June 5!
Women and Hollywood is hosting a LA meet-up next month, and you’re invited! The event will be a networking opportunity for people at all levels of the business to make connections in a relaxed...
CBS’s ‘Supergirl’ Gets Greenlit, Will Likely Become Fall’s Only Female-Centric Superhero Show
“Supergirl” is zooming toward the small screen as we speak. Focused on 24-year-old Kara Danvers/Kara Zor-El (Melissa Benoist), AKA Superman’s cousin, the CBS series is the first drama to be...
Quote of the Day: Mark Ruffalo on the Need for More Superheroines
The Hulk is channeling his rage for another good cause: the campaign for more movies about superheroines. Mark Ruffalo recently addressed some of the controversy surrounding “Avengers: Age of...
Marvel CEO Doesn’t Believe in Female Superheroes
Marvel CEO Ike Perlmutter has his mind made up about superheroines — they aren’t profitable. An email exchange between Perlmutter and Sony CEO Michael Lynton has been made public after...
An Open Letter to Joss Whedon from a Disappointed Feminist Fan After Watching ‘Age of Ultron’
Women & Hollywood’s Summer Preview, Part 1: May and June 2015
The summer movie landscape can often feel like a haze of one huge blockbuster after another, each more testosterone-drenched than the last. However, this summer is packed with titles about...
Is 2015 the Year of the Older Actress?
We at Women and Hollywood have noticed a trend: 2015 seems to be the year of the older actress. We can’t recall a year in the past decade or so with more female-centric projects led by actresses...
San Francisco Film Society Announces Recipients of Inaugural Women Filmmaker Fellowships
Jennifer Phang (“Advantageous”), Nikole Beckwith (“Stockholm, Pennsylvania”) and Stewart Thorndike (“Lyle”) have been selected as the inaugural recipients of the San Francisco Film...
Nicole Perlman and Meg LeFauve Confirmed to Write ‘Captain Marvel’ Movie
Marvel has hired two women writers, “Guardians of the Galaxy” co-writer Nicole Perlman and “Inside Out” co-writer Meg LeFauve, to pen the company’s first female-driven film. Marvel...
Meryl Streep Launches Fund for Women Screenwriters Over 40
One of the highlights of this year’s Tribeca Film Festival is the announcement of a new program funded by Meryl Streep to provide support and development opportunities for women screenwriters over...
Things We Learned from the Change of Directors for Wonder Woman
Not 48 hours ago, we learned that Michelle MacLaren, the woman who was going to break through DC’s superhero glass ceiling with “Wonder Woman,” had departed the project. Speculations abounded...
Thoughts on Michelle MacLaren Departing as Director of the Wonder Woman Film
I’ve seen a lot of firsts in my life. The first African-American woman to run for President. The first woman to be nominated for Vice President by the Democratic Party. The first woman in space....
Provincetown Film Society Launches Women Filmmakers Residency Program
The Gabrielle A. Hanna Film Institute, an initiative of the Provincetown Film Society, has announced the launch of a residency program for female filmmakers. The program will offer female...
Stage 32 and PGA Women’s Impact Network Launch Pitching Event for Female-Centric Scripts
Female protagonists at the movie theater are becoming an endangered species. To help tell more relevant and interesting stories to girls and women — an audience that has proven itself loyal...
Tribeca Film Institute All Access Grant Herald New Projects From Haifaa al-Mansour, Lana Wilson
“Wadjda” director Haifaa al-Mansour and “After Tiller” co-director Lana Wilson were among this year’s 15 awardees for the Tribeca Film Institute All Access grant. The program provides cash...
History Lesson: Female Superheroes Were Not Created to Excite Men
Comic book writer B. Clay Moore is urging fans of comics to revisit the history of female superheroes and their costumes. Best known for the “Hawaiian Dick” series, Moore wrote a Facebook post...
Mia Hansen-Løve, Jasmila Žbanić Among Finalists for German Women’s Film Festival Competition
The International Women’s Film Festival in Dortmund/Cologne has announced the eight finalists vying for the €15,000 RWE Film Award. The filmmakers in competition — all women directors...
33% of Contenders for San Francisco Festival’s Golden Gate Awards Directed by Women
Six women-directed films — three narrative, three nonfiction — will compete for the San Francisco International Film Festival’s Golden Gate Awards this year. The total of 18 films...
Quote of the Day: Paul Feig on Women Directors and Sexist Reactions to All-Female ‘Ghostbusters’
Paul Feig isn’t mincing words when it comes to sexism in Hollywood and beyond. While doing press at SXSW for “Spy,” his third collaboration with Melissa McCarthy, which premiered at the...
March 2015 Film Preview
While “Fifty Shades of Grey” may have dominated the February box office, March is set to bring audiences a love story of an entirely different color. Perhaps the month’s most talked about...
SFFS Announces 2015 Documentary Film Fund Finalists; 7 Women Directors Make the List
The San Francisco Film Society has announced the finalists for its 2015 Documentary Film Fund, with awards totaling more than $75,000 going towards feature-length documentaries in post-production....
HBO Launches Writing Fellowship To Find Diverse and Emerging Writers
If you’re an aspiring TV writer and a fan of HBO programming, today is your lucky day. HBO has announced the launch of the HBOAccess Writing Fellowship, which will offer emerging and diverse...
Engineering-Themed Competition Seeks ‘The Next (Female) MacGyver’
The Next MacGyver, a joint initiative of the National Academy of Engineering and the USC Viterbi School of Engineering, hopes to offer a new face in problem-solving under extreme pressure: a lady...
Crosspost: Holding Out For a Heroine: On Being a Woman and Loving Star Wars
The following is cross-posted from with permission from Sound on Sight.It is a truth universally acknowledged that a little girl in possession of a good imagination must be in want of a heroine. At...
First Winners of Women Cinematographers Grant Announced
Five female DPs have been selected as the first recipients of the Digital Bolex Grant for Women Cinematographers. The grant is the first of its kind, offering more than $10,000 in camera gear and...
Watch: Sundance’s Inspiring ‘She is a Best Director’ Celebrates Women
A new video released by the Sundance Film Festival makes a powerful case for the importance of female voices in film and television, including inspiring bits of wisdom from women spanning...
Marvel Comics Announces All-Female Avengers Team
Following news of Marvel’s first Muslim superheroine and the reimagining of Thor as a woman comes the announcement of an all-female Avengers team. “She-Hulk, Dazzler, Medusa, Nico Minoru, and...
Female Franchises Expand: More ’50 Shades’ and Possibly ‘Hunger Games’ on the Way
Get ready to see more women at the multiplex. If you’re a “Hunger Games” fan who won’t be ready to say goodbye to Katniss and the gang when “Mockingjay — Part 2” opens on November...
3 Women Directors Selected for Film Independent’s Directing Lab With Mentor Catherine Hardwicke
Remember these names: Philiane Phang, Christina Choe, and Sylvia Sether. According to Film Independent, these are some of the most promising talents in the world of independent filmmaking today....
The Force is with Felicity Jones: From Jane Hawking To Starring in Stand-Alone ‘Star Wars’ Movie
Felicity Jones is going from standing by the side of a theoretical physicist to starring in a big-budget blockbuster. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Jones, who recently earned an Oscar nom for...
February 2015 Film Preview
February is known as a month for lovers, but the films set to debut at the box office next month are much more varied than that particular stereotype would suggest. Fifty Shades of Grey is perhaps...
Joss Whedon: Blame Hollywood’s “Genuine, Intractable Sexism” for Lack of Female Superheroes
As the director of The Avengers and its upcoming sequel The Avengers: Age of Ultron, Joss Whedon has worked within the Marvel machine for the last five years. But the Buffy the Vampire Slayer...
Women In Film Awards $33,000 to Filmmakers in Sundance
More good news for female filmmakers at Sundance: Women In Film, Los Angeles awarded over $33,000 in cash and in kind-grants at “Unstoppable — The Road to Yes,” its 9th Annual Women in...
SF Film Society Introduces New Fellowship for Female Filmmakers
If you’re a regular reader of Women and Hollywood’s interviews, there’s a good chance you’ve noticed that a significant number of female filmmakers have shared that securing funding for...