2018 saw the release of many acclaimed films from women directors, including Chloé Zhao’s “The Rider,” Debra Granik’s “Leave No Trace,” and Marielle Heller’s “Can You Ever Forgive Me?” Yet female filmmakers have largely been shut out this awards season, and — yet again — no women were nominated for the Best Director Academy Award. Just five women have ever received the nomination — Lina Wertmüller, Jane Campion, Sofia Coppola, Kathryn Bigelow, and Greta Gerwig. Only Bigelow has won the honor.

Seeking to call out the continued exclusion of female filmmakers at awards shows and to honor those women who made some of the best, yet overlooked, movies of 2018, a group called Friends and Supporters of Women Directors launched the #WomenDirect ad campaign. The full-page ad, which rolled out in Variety and The DGA Awards Tribute Program as well as on social media, pays tribute to 16 women helmers and their films.

A collective of 50 women directors led by Hanelle M. Culpepper (“Star Trek: Discovery”), Paige Morrow Kimball (“Sesame Street”), and Kimberly McCullough (“The Conners”), the Friends and Supporters pooled their resources for the ad and raised $17,000 in four days from outside donations.

“Choosing the films to honor was the hardest part of the experience,” Culpepper told Forbes. “Ultimately, we wanted to use a process that others could replicate.” She explained, “It’s not our opinion of which films were over-looked, it’s a consensus of data. We researched films that showed up on several ‘best of’ lists, and used their Meta-critic and Rotten Tomatoes scores.”

“The problem is systemic,” Kimball remarked about the dearth of accolades for women filmmakers. “It starts with the lack of opportunities given to female feature directors on large budgeted films. Smaller films don’t have the marketing dollars behind them to get them seen and voted for. It’s an un-level playing field.”

Check out the #WomenDirect ad below: