News
Margaret Atwood’s “MaddAddam” Trilogy Coming to TV
Yet another Margaret Atwood adaptation is coming to the small screen. A re-telling of the Canadian author’s “MadAddam” trilogy — consisting of “Oryx and Crake,” “The Year of the...
Sundance 2018 Women Directors: Meet Crystal Moselle — “Skate Kitchen”
Crystal Moselle is best known for her Sundance Grand Jury Prize award-winning documentary “The Wolfpack.” She served as producer on “Excavating Taylor Mead,” and in the last decade she has...
Tiffany Haddish Signs First-Look Deal With HBO
Whether she’s telling epic stories about a Groupon swamp tour, trying out different pronunciations of “Get Out” star Daniel Kaluuya’s name, or doing unmentionable things to a grapefruit,...
Helen Mirren to Play Catherine the Great in HBO/Sky Miniseries
Helen Mirren has portrayed both Queen Elizabeths and Queen Charlotte, and she’ll soon take on another famous monarch, Catherine the Great. The Hollywood Reporter confirms that the Oscar winner...
“Murphy Brown” Revival on the Way, Candice Bergen to Star
Murphy Brown will soon be back at the FYI desk. Deadline reports that CBS has ordered a 13-episode revival of Diane English’s “Murphy Brown.” The sitcom, which centers on Candice Bergen’s...
Meryl Streep Joins Season 2 of “Big Little Lies”
Movie star after movie star has flocked to the small screen, and now Meryl-freaking-Streep is following suit. Variety reports that the three-time Oscar winner is heading to Monterey. She’ll join...
Pam MacKinnon Will Head San Francisco’s American Conservatory Theater
Broadway director Pam MacKinnon will soon be making her way to the West Coast. The New York Times confirms that the “Parisian Woman” helmer will succeed Carey Perloff as American Conservatory...
Sundance 2018 Women Directors: Meet Susan Lacy — “Jane Fonda in Five Acts”
Susan Lacy has received multiple Emmy and PGA Awards. She created PBS’ “American Masters.” Her directing credits include “Spielberg,” “Judy Garland: By Myself,” and “Joni Mitchell: A...
“Conviction” Co-Creator Liz Friedlander Directing ABC Crime Dramedy Pilot
Liz Friedlander is the first hourlong directing hire of the 2018–19 season. Deadline writes that the “Conviction” co-creator will helm and EP the pilot of ABC’s straight-to-series crime...
Sundance Deals: Betsy West and Julie Cohen’s “RBG” Gets Distribution
“Colette” and Debra Granik’s “Leave No Trace” are in good company. Betsy West and Julie Cohen’s Ruth Bader Ginsburg documentary “RBG” is one of the latest flicks to get a deal at...
TV Actors and Writers Share Their Salaries Via Google Doc
Making salaries more transparent is a major step towards pay equality. Just look what happened when the world discovered the discrepancy between Michelle Williams and Mark Wahlberg’s compensation...
2018 Writers Lab for Women Screenwriters Over 40 Now Accepting Submissions
If you know or are a female screenwriter over age 40, this is for you: The Writers Lab’s 2018 program is accepting submissions. Produced by IRIS and New York Women In Film & Television...
Jessica Chastain and Octavia Spencer Band Together for Favored Nations Deal on New Film
News of Jessica Chastain and Octavia Spencer’s on-screen reunion just got that much sweeter. “The Help” co-stars are re-teaming for a holiday comedy, and thanks to Jada Pinkett Smith, we now...
Trailer Watch: A Line Is Crossed in “Mary Kills People” Season 2
Mary Harris believes in her work. “Death gives life meaning,” the secret euthanasia provider (Caroline Dhavernas, “Hannibal”) declares in the trailer for Season 2 of Lifetime’s “Mary...
Limited Series from “Erin Brockovich” Writer Susannah Grant on the Way at Netflix
Susannah Grant scored an Oscar nod for penning “Erin Brockovich,” and now the writer has found inspiration in another true story. Deadline reports that Netflix has given an eight-episode order...
Apply Now: Disney and Nissan Launch Search for Next Visionary Director
Ava DuVernay just accepted the PGA’s Visionary Award, and now she’s playing a role in a nationwide search to find the next visionary filmmaker. Timed to coincide with the release of DuVernay’s...
Guest Post: Why I Stepped in Front of the Camera for My Short About Grief and Aging
Guest Post by Susan Bay Nimoy In 1979 I was one of six women in the Directors Guild of America that confronted the male-run Hollywood machine by demanding more directing opportunities for women....
Yara Shahidi, Gillian Jacobs, Jessica Sanders, & More to Direct Season 2 of “Shatterbox Anthology”
Details about Season 2 of “Shatterbox Anthology” have emerged. A press release has announced the directors participating in this run of Refinery29’s women-directed short film series. The...
Melissa McCarthy, Dee Rees, and Nancy Meyers Directing Oscar Shorts for Walmart
What a difference a year makes. After hiring all male directors for its Oscar shorts project in 2017, Walmart has brought on all women to direct its 2018 campaign. Melissa McCarthy, Dee Rees...
CBS’ First 2018–19 Pilot Orders Are All from Female Creators
CBS has made its first pilot orders for the 2018–19 season and each of the three projects is from a woman creator. According to Variety, the network has tapped two comedies, Gloria Calderon...
Benita Ozoude and Giselle Bonilla Named Horizon Award Winners at Sundance
The Horizon Awards were given out this Saturday at the Sundance Film Festival. A press release announced Benita Ozoude and Giselle Bonilla as this year’s recipients. The pair were presented the...
Rachel Weisz to Topline Sci-Fi “Cloud One”
Rachel Weisz has recently led a Holocaust drama, a gothic mystery, and a forbidden romance, and the Oscar winner is taking on yet another genre in her latest role. She’s signed on to star in...
Sundance 2018 Women Directors: Meet Amy Adrion — “Half the Picture”
Amy Adrion is a graduate of the MFA film directing program at the University of California, Los Angeles. Her prior credits include “Shoegazer,” “The Home of Split Pea Soup,” and “Sucks...
Mo’Nique Calls Out Netflix for Gender and Racial Bias, Receives Support from Wanda Sykes
Mo’Nique is pushing for a Netflix boycott over the streamer’s “gender bias and color bias.” Per Page Six, the comedian and Oscar-winning actress posted a video on Instagram revealing that...
Sundance Deals: Keira Knightley-Starrer “Colette” and Debra Granik’s “Leave No Trace” Score Deals
Sundance kicked off a few days ago and the business side of the Park City fest is just heating up. The largest indie fest in the U.S. is hosting the world premieres of 100 films, many of which are...
SAG and PGA 2018: Wins for Nicole Kidman and Women-Led Projects
Women’s voices were heard loud and clear this past weekend, and not just at the second annual Women’s March. The 2018 PGA and SAG Awards ceremonies also took place, on Saturday and Sunday...
Veena Sud Reuniting with Mireille Enos for New Feature
“The Killing’s” creator and leading lady are re-teaming for a new project. Mireille Enos is starring in “Between the Earth and the Sky,” a family drama from Veena Sud. Deadline reports...
Cleopatra Series Headed to Freeform
“Cleopatra” by Michelangelo: WikiCommons Looks like Elizabeth II and Victoria won’t be the only queens with their own TV shows. Deadline reports that Freeform is close to giving the green light...
Sundance 2018 Women Directors: Meet Anouk Whissell — “Summer of ’84”
Anouk Whissell is a Montreal-based filmmaker and animator. Made with her filmmaker collaborators François Simard and Yoann-Karl Whissel, Anouk Whissell’s debut feature, “Turbo Kid,” premiered...
Sundance 2018 Women Directors: Meet Bernadett Tuza-Ritter— “A Woman Captured”
Bernadett Tuza-Ritter is a Hungarian independent film director and editor. Her 2013 film “Cinetrain — Russian Winter” won the audience award at Vision du Reel documentary festival. “A...
Sundance 2018 Women Directors: Meet Ísold Uggadóttir — “And Breathe Normally”
Ísold Uggadóttir is an award-winning director from Iceland whose short films have screened at over 100 festivals including Telluride, Sundance, and New Directors / New Films at MoMA, and the Film...
Sundance 2018 Women Directors: Meet Augustine Frizzell — “Never Goin’ Back”
Augustine Frizzell is the director of “I Was A Teenage Girl” and “Minor Setback,” both of which premiered at SXSW and screened at many other festivals worldwide. “Never Goin’ Back” is...
Sundance 2018 Women Directors: Meet Valeria Bertuccelli— “The Queen of Fear”
Valeria Bertuccelli is an Argentine actress who has spent the last 20 years acting for television and film. Her past credits include films that have screened at film festivals all over the world,...
Sundance 2018 Women Directors: Meet Heather Lenz — “Kusama — Infinity”
Writer, director, and producer Heather Lenz has worked on film and television projects in various roles including as a researcher on programs for The History Channel and Food Network. She was also...
Pixar Producer Darla K. Anderson to Be Honored by Advanced Imaging Society
Award-winning producer Darla K. Anderson will soon add another honor to her résumé. The Pixar Animation Studios producer will receive the Harold Lloyd Award for Filmmaking at next month’s...
Trailer Watch: Alicia Vikander Embraces Her Destiny in “Tomb Raider”
“At some point we have to face up to who we are and who we’re meant to be,” Lara Croft (Alicia Vikander) is told in a new trailer for “Tomb Raider.” The bike courier is being urged to...
Agnès Varda Has a New Doc in the Works
One of the most influential filmmakers in French cinema is set to share her “own vision of art” with the world. Variety reports that Agnès Varda is working on a new, as-yet untitled documentary...
Julie Dash and Nina Menkes Named First Recipients of Eos World Fund for Women Directors
Director and producer Gwen Wynne (“Wild About Harry”) is set to unveil a new funding initiative for female filmmakers. A press release announced that she’s launching the Eos World Fund at...
“Toy Story 4” to Be Penned by Black List Writer Stephany Folsom
Woody and Buzz are coming back, and Stephany Folsom is penning their next adventure. Disney-Pixar has hired the screenwriter to take over “Toy Story 4,” Variety reports. Rashida Jones and...
Sundance 2018 Women Directors: Meet Alexandria Bombach — “On Her Shoulders”
Alexandria Bombach is an award-winning filmmaker from Santa Fe, New Mexico. She founded her production company, Red Reel, in 2009. Bombach directed and produced the Emmy Award-winning series...
Sundance 2018 Women Directors: Meet Christina Choe — “Nancy”
Christina Choe — recipient of an HBOAccess Directing Fellowship and a MacDowell Colony artist residency — is a writer and director whose short films have screened at Telluride Film...
Barbara Kopple Will Receive Hot Docs’ 2018 Outstanding Achievement Award
Documentary filmmaker Barbara Kopple is truly a force to be reckoned with. She has received not one but two Academy Awards atop a bevy of other honors. Now, Kopple will receive the Outstanding...
Take The Lead Announces Inaugural 50 Women Can Change the World Cohort
Take The Lead, a nonprofit dedicated to gender equality throughout leadership positions across all sectors, has just announced the first leadership cohort partaking in their new female-driven media...
“Yours in Sisterhood” Doc Brings ’70s Era Ms. Magazine Letters to Life
A lot has changed since Ms. magazine launched in 1971 — and a lot hasn’t. This ironic truth is something Irene Lusztig explores in her performative documentary, “Yours in Sisterhood.”...
Sundance 2018 Women Directors: Meet Sara Colangelo — “The Kindergarten Teacher”
Sara Colangelo is a New York-based writer and director whose short films have screened at festivals around the world, including Sundance, Tribeca, and SXSW. Colangelo’s debut feature, “Little...
Lupita Nyong’o Will Celebrate Beauty With Children’s Book
Academy Award winner Lupita Nyong’o is no stranger to using her public platform to share and discuss issues that matter. She has consistently campaigned for more diverse female role models and...
American Society of Cinematographers to Honor Angelina Jolie
The American Society of Cinematographers (ASC) will honor Academy Award winner Angelina Jolie with the ASC Board of Governors Award at this year’s ASC Awards for Outstanding Achievements, Variety...
Lea Thompson’s Feature Directorial Debut “Year of Spectacular Men” Acquired by MarVista
“Back to the Future’s” Lea Thompson has made her way to the director’s chair. Her directorial debut, “The Year of Spectacular Men,” premiered at last year’s LA Film Fest. According to...
Quote of the Day: Ellen Pompeo on Asking for What She Deserves
Equal pay in Hollywood is back in the news in the wake of Michelle Williams and Mark Wahlberg’s wildly different paydays for “All the Money in the World’s” reshoots becoming public...
Sundance 2018 Women Directors: Meet Cathy Yan — “Dead Pigs”
Cathy Yan is a filmmaker whose work has been recognized by the Sundance New Voices Lab and IFP Film Week. Yan’s comedic series “According to My Mother” won Best Drama Pilot at the New York...
Kristen Wiig to Star in Reese Witherspoon-Produced Comedy Series for Apple
Over the past year, Apple has been making its way into producing original content in order to compete with streaming services such as Netflix, Amazon, and Hulu. Now, it has just secured its first...