ALL POSTS
Alice Gu Sees Her Doc “The Donut King” as the “Quintessential American Dream Story”
Alice Gu launched her career as a still photographer/cinematographer. Shooting docs has taken her from the favelas of Rio de Janeiro, to touring with rock bands throughout Europe, to following the...
Nicole Kidman to Topline and Exec Produce Amazon Drama “Things I Know to Be True”
Nicole Kidman has added yet another television project to her slate. The Oscar winner will star in and executive produce “Things I Know to Be True.” Amazon has ordered the adaptation of...
Uzo Aduba to Star in Season 4 of HBO’s “In Treatment”
Uzo Aduba is set to take over Gabriel Byrne’s therapist chair. According to Deadline, the three-time Emmy winner has signed on to topline Season 4 of “In Treatment” in a reimagined...
November 2020 Film Preview
By Shayna Maci Warner and Tatiana McInnis November is a varied, exciting month for women-forward filmmaking, sprinkled with dystopian thrillers, glimpses into grief and trauma-fueled paranoia, and...
Emma Thompson to Topline Sophie Hyde’s Sexual Awakening Comedy “Good Luck to You, Leo Grande”
For her next gig, Emma Thompson is getting her groove back. The Oscar-winning actress and screenwriter is set to star in Sophie Hyde’s “Good Luck to You, Leo Grande,” a comedy about...
Offering a “Brave Space to Create Unapologetically”: Crowdfunding Picks
This round of crowdfunding picks shares a focus on representing and tackling a range of intersecting social and cultural issues. They rely on humor, fantasy, and, of course, Zoom, to address the...
Sabrina Van Tassel on Uncovering Flaws in the System in “The State of Texas vs. Melissa”
Sabrina Van Tassel is a French-American film director and journalist. As an investigative reporter, Van Tassel has directed more than 45 documentary films over the last 15 years for major television...
Queer Family Felicitations: VOD and Web Series Picks
Queer family is an amorphous unit not quite like any other. For one thing, its permutations are endless; family could be anything from blood relatives, to acquaintances who look out for each other...
Weekly Update for October 16: Women Centric, Directed, and Written Films Opening
FILMS ABOUT WOMEN OPENING AND COMING TO STREAMING/VOD What the Constitution Means to Me (Filmed Stage Production) – Directed by Marielle Heller; Written by Heidi Schreck As Amy Coney...
AFI Fest 2020 Preview: A Romance That Transcends Borders, Rachel Brosnahan on the Run, & More
Over 50 percent of the titles set to screen at AFI Fest 2020 are directed by women. Slated to run until October 22, this year’s reimagined virtual festival kicks off today with Rachel...
Pick of the Day: “Time”
Even as it turns an unwavering eye on the criminal justice system, “Time” is an extremely hopeful film. Garrett Bradley’s documentary feature debut is the story of Fox Rich, a woman...
Trailer Watch: A Political Outsider Challenges the Democratic Party in “How to Fix a Primary”
In 2018, Abdul El-Sayed set out to be the Democratic candidate in Michigan’s gubernatorial race. As a young Muslim man and a political outsider — he is a doctor who ran Detroit’s...
Guest Post: How “Gilmore Girls” Rescued My Relationship with My Mother
By Alexandra Hidalgo On October 5, “Gilmore Girls” fans celebrated the 20th anniversary of the show’s premiere. For two decades, women around the world have seen themselves reflected in single...
Nina Menkes to Investigate Sexist Cinema Techniques with Doc “Brainwashed”
Nina Menkes is taking on the male gaze. The “Queen of Diamonds” director is working on “Brainwashed,” a documentary outlining the omnipresent cinematic techniques that...
Weekly Update for October 9: Women Centric, Directed, and Written Films Opening
FILMS ABOUT WOMEN OPENING AND COMING TO STREAMING/VOD The Forty-Year-Old Version – Written and Directed by Radha Blank A struggling playwright decides to reinvent herself as a rapper in...
Series About Baroque Artist Artemisia Gentileschi in Development at ViacomCBS
Get ready to learn more about Artemisia Gentileschi. A television series about the influential Baroque painter’s life is in the works at ViacomCBS International Studios, Deadline reports....
Diane Paragas on Her Portrait of an Aspiring Country Singer, “Yellow Rose”
Diane Paragas is an award-winning director, editor, cinematographer, and producer of narrative features, documentaries, and commercials. She owns and operates Civilian Studios, a Brooklyn-based...
Pick of the Day: “The Forty-Year-Old Version”
A struggling playwright decides to reinvent herself as a rapper in “The Forty-Year-Old Version,” this year’s winner of Sundance’s Directing Prize. Written and directed by Radha Blank, the...
Warsaw 2020 Women Directors: Meet Lili Horvát – “Preparations to Be Together For an Unknown Period of Time”
Lili Horvát grew up in Budapest. She studied audio-visual arts at the Sorbonne Nouvelle in Paris and film directing at the University of Theatre and Film in Budapest. “The Wednesday...
Quote of the Day: Isabel Coixet Encourages Emerging Filmmakers to “Embrace the Fog” in Awards Speech
The Spanish Ministry of Culture honored Isabel Coixet with its National Cinematography Prize at the San Sebastian Film Festival last month. While accepting the prestigious award, which recognizes...
Pick of the Day: “Aggie”
Before “Aggie” was selected for Sundance 2020, I had never heard of Agnes Gund. Unless you’re very tuned into the worlds of art and social justice, you probably haven’t...
Guest Post: How 2020 Changed Our Distribution Plans for Our Doc About Lesbian Icon Franco Stevens
By Jen Rainin and Rivkah Beth Medow Shivering at 4 a.m. in an empty drive-in theater parking lot was not how we expected to spend the day before our film “Ahead of the Curve’s” world...
October 2020 Film Preview
By Tatiana McInnis and Shayna Maci Warner This month, audiences can be entertained, intrigued, troubled, and inspired by a slate of diverse narratives and documentaries. October features the releases...
NYFF 2020 Women Directors: Meet Heidi Ewing – “I Carry You With Me”
Heidi Ewing’s documentary credits include “Jesus Camp,” which received an Oscar nomination, “One of Us,” and “Norman Lear: Just Another Version of You.” She...
Aisling Walsh and Lucinda Coxon Team Up for Holocaust Drama “One Life”
After tackling the life of Canadian folk artist Maud Lewis, Aisling Walsh is set to tell another tale based on a true story. Deadline reports that the “Maudie” filmmaker is in...
Billie Eilish Doc “The World’s a Little Blurry” in the Works at Apple
After dominating the charts Billie Eilish is ready to dominate the box office. The five-time Grammy winner has a documentary in the works. “Billie Eilish: The World’s a Little Blurry” will...
Weekly Update for September 25: Women Centric, Directed, and Written Films Opening
FILMS ABOUT WOMEN OPENING AND COMING TO STREAMING/VOD The Glorias – Directed by Julie Taymor; Written by Julie Taymor and Sarah Ruhl Journalist, fighter, and feminist Gloria Steinem is an...
Marsai Martin Is Hitting the Market with an Unscripted Series About Trailblazing Black Women
Marsai Martin is expanding her producing resume. The “Black-ish” star, who made history as the youngest person ever to executive produce a major studio feature with 2019’s...
BAFTA Announces Overhaul Designed to “Urgently Address a Lack of Diversity” in Awards
The British Academy of Film & Television Arts (BAFTA) is committing to “long-term substantial cultural and organizational change” in the wake of publishing its “in-depth,...
Miranda July Talks “Kajillionaire,” Connection, and Creativity at the Latest Girls Club Event
Prior to her feature directorial debut, “Me and You and Everyone We Know,” Miranda July formed her own movie club/distribution project for women filmmakers, Joanie 4 Jackie. As the...
Alia Shawkat and Nastasha Lyonne Team Up to Develop “Desert People” for Amazon
Alia Shawkat and Natasha Lyonne are joining forces. The multi-hyphenates are developing “Desert People,” a half-hour series at Amazon. Variety broke the news. Co-created by Shawkat and...
Black Actors Make History at the 2020 Emmy Awards
Black Lives Matter — that was among the main takeaways from last night’s Emmy Awards. From the winners’ speeches to the winners themselves, Black voices were recognized, amplified,...
Taffy Brodesser-Akner to Pen Adaptation of GQ Article “The Orthodox Hit Squad” for Sister
Taffy Brodesser-Akner’s next screen project will take on Rabbi Mendel Epstein and the radical methods he employed to help ultra-orthodox Jewish women seeking divorces. The “Fleishman Is...
TIFF 2020 Women Directors: Meet Roseanne Liang – “Shadow in the Cloud”
Roseanne Liang is an award-winning New Zealand-born Chinese director and screenwriter. Her autobiographical feature film “My Wedding and Other Secrets” was the top-grossing New...
Exclusive: Motorcycle Champ Ana Carrasco Gets Personal in “Ride Your Dream” Clip
With her 2018 World Supersport 300 Championship victory, motorcyclist Ana Carrasco not only became the first woman to win in the Superbikes WorldSPP300 category, she became the first woman to win a...
TIFF 2020 Women Directors: Meet Mayye Zayed – “Lift Like a Girl”
Mayye Zayed is an Egyptian filmmaker, director, producer, director of photography, and editor, and the founder of Cléo Media. She is the recipient of Film Independent’s Global Media Makers...
TIFF 2020 Women Directors: Meet Suzanne Lindon – “Spring Blossom”
Suzanne Lindon is a French director, writer, and actor. “Spring Blossom” is her first film. “Spring Blossom” will screen at the 2020 Toronto International Film Festival, which is taking place...
Hannah Rosenzweig & Wendy Sachs on “Surge” & Why We Should Tell (Many) Stories About Women in Politics
Hannah Rosenzweig is a documentary film director and long-time producer. She is the founder and president of Intention Media Inc. Since serving as Hillary Clinton’s personal videographer for...
TIFF 2020 Women Directors: Meet Sonia Kennebeck – “Enemies of the State”
Sonia Kennebeck is an independent documentary filmmaker and investigative journalist with 17 years of directing and producing experience. Her first feature-length film, “National Bird,”...
Attagirl Film Lab Unveils Inaugural Class, Majority of Projects Are Directed by Women and POC
Attagirl, a film lab supporting women and non-binary writers, directors, and producers, has selected the projects for its inaugural edition. A press release announced that 13 films have been chosen,...
TIFF 2020 Women Directors: Meet Stacey Lee – “Underplayed”
Stacey Lee’s work focuses on humanity, music, and movement. Her documentary short “Live Fast Draw Yung” premiered at Tribeca in 2015, winning awards in Atlanta and Tacoma. She was...
Weekly Update for September 11: Women Centric, Directed, and Written Films Opening
FILMS ABOUT WOMEN OPENING AND COMING TO STREAMING/VOD I Am Woman – Directed by Unjoo Moon; Written by Emma Jensen In 1966, single mother Helen Reddy (Tilda Cobham-Hervey) leaves her old life...
TIFF 2020 Women Directors: Meet Tracey Deer – “Beans”
Tracey Deer is a Mohawk filmmaker and the recipient of this year’s TIFF Emerging Talent Award. Deer is the director, co-creator, and co-showrunner of “Mohawk Girls,” for which she has been...
TIFF 2020 Women Directors: Meet Jennifer Abbott – “The New Corporation: The Unfortunately Necessary Sequel”
Jennifer Abbott is a Sundance and Genie award-winning filmmaker who has been making films about social, political, and environmental issues for 25 years. She is best known as one of the directors and...
Trailer Watch: Eva Noblezada Sings Her Truth in “Yellow Rose”
“I never fit in, never could win,” an aspiring country music performer sings in a new trailer for “Yellow Rose.” The drama tells the story of Rose (Eva Noblezada,...
TIFF 2020 Women Directors: Meet Emma Seligman – “Shiva Baby”
Emma Seligman is a Canadian filmmaker based in New York. She graduated from NYU’s Undergraduate Film & TV program in May 2017, where she made her first two short films, including her thesis,...
TIFF 2020 Women Directors: Meet Cathy Brady – “Wildfire”
Cathy Brady is a two-time Irish Film & Television Award-winning director. She was recognized for her short films “Small Change” and “Morning.” In 2011 she directed the...
Trailer Watch: Sabrina Van Tassel Unearths a Miscarriage of Justice in “The State of Texas vs. Melissa”
For 11 years, Melissa Lucio has been on death row: she was convicted for the murder of her two-year-old daughter, who died of blunt head trauma. But, according to Sabrina Van Tassel’s new...
Trailer Watch: Lily James Is Haunted By Her Husband’s Ex in “Rebecca”
A fairy tale transforms into a nightmare in “Rebecca,” an atmospheric Gothic pic based on Daphne du Maurier’s classic novel. A trailer for the Lily James-starrer kicks off with a...
Exclusive Featurette: Nicole Riegel on “Holler,” Her TIFF Pic About a Woman Struggling to Pay for College
“When I was a high school senior, I had a meeting with my guidance counselor. She told me that I would probably never go to college, and it was one of the most discouraging things that I think...
Guest Post: We Made a Movie During the Pandemic. Here’s How.
By Alexandra Boylan and Meredith Riley Stewart After two years, we were all systems go. The endless meetings, courting of investors, and flying from Los Angeles to Georgia for scouting trips had...