ALL POSTS
Sarah Silverman’s ‘I Smile Back’ and Two Other Female-Centric Films Land Distribution
Three female-centric dramas are heading to the big screen. “I Smile Back,” which stars Sarah Silverman as a self-destructive wife and mother, will be distributed by Broad Green Pictures....
SXSW Women Directors: Meet Hannah Fidell — ‘6 Years’
Hannah Fidellwrote and directed the feature film “A Teacher,” which premiered at Sundance 2013and went on to play such festivals as SXSW, where she won the Chicken & EggAward. In 2012, her...
SXSW Women Directors: Meet Samantha Futerman — ‘Twinsters’
Samantha Futerman is a Korean American adoptee from New Jersey. She attended the Professional Performing Arts School in New York City and graduated from Boston University in 2009 with a BFA in...
Audra McDonald Returns to Broadway in Meta-Musical ‘Shuffle Along’
Six-time Tony winner Audra McDonald will head back to Broadway in a new musical in 2016. McDonald will star as stage performer Lottie Gee in a production that looks back at musical-theater history,...
SXSW Women Directors: Meet Lina Mannheimer — ‘The Ceremony’
After obtaining a degree in film and art history from the University of Nebrija in Madrid, Lina Mannheimer embarked on a Master’s of Science program at the Stockholm School of Economics. She also...
Guest Post: Making a Magical Realist Film About a Boy Who Smells Like Rotting Fish
There are countless films with unique ideas and storylines, but I believe my firstfeature film, “Treading Water,” is the only one about a boy who smells like fish. This idea caught my attention...
SXSW Women Directors: Meet Olivia Wyatt — ‘Sailing A Sinking Sea’
Olivia Wyatt is a filmmaker and photographer based in Los Angeles. She is a member of the Sublime Frequencies film and music collective. Her first feature, “Staring Into the Sun,” is about...
Disney Can’t ‘Let It Go’: ‘Frozen’ Sequel in Development
Disney has announced the inevitable “Frozen” sequel. The Oscar-winning film (for Best Animated Feature and Best Original Song) has earned $1.27 billion at the global box office, as well as many...
SXSW Women Directors: Meet Katharine Emmer — ‘Life in Color’
Katharine Emmer is a graduate of New York University, where she was the recipient of the Tisch Artistic Achievement Award. She has appeared on ABC’s “Desperate Housewives” and made her acting...
SXSW Women Directors: Meet Sara Hirsh Bordo — ‘A Brave Heart’
“A Brave Heart” is Sara Hirsh Bordo’s film directorial debut. She has held senior roles at Paramount Pictures and MGM Studios as Co-Founder of NowLive and Producer of TEDxAustinWomen. In 2012,...
Kerry Washington to Play Anita Hill in HBO Movie ‘Confirmation’
Kerry Washington has landed another high-profile role. The “Scandal” star will play law professor Anita Hill in “Confirmation,” a HBO movie about Clarence Thomas’ Supreme Court-nomination...
Study: Female Characters Are Trapped Under Professional Glass Ceilings in the Movies
Back in February, Dr. Martha Lauzen observed in her annual Celluloid Ceiling Report that male characters are nearly twice as likely (61%) to be identified with a profession than their female...
SXSW Women Directors: Meet Ondi Timoner — ‘BRAND: A Second Coming’ and ‘The Last Mile’
Director and producer Ondi Timoner won the Grand Jury Prize at Sundance twice — for “Dig!” (2004) about the collision of art and commerce through the story of two bands and “We Live in...
Is There Life in ‘iZombie’?
Study: Women Made up the Majority of Moviegoers in 2014
It’s broken-record time again. For the 5th year ina row, women made up the majority of moviegoers in US and Canada in 2014, according to newresearch released by the MPAA. Women also purchased 50%...
SXSW Women Directors: Meet Shannon Sun-Higginson — ‘GTFO: Get The F#$% Out’
Shannon Sun-Higginson is a documentary filmmaker from New York City. In 2009, her first documentary short, “Hapa Perspectives,” aired on Current TV. She has worked as a Production Coordinator...
SXSW Women Directors: Meet Rebecca Johnson — ‘Honeytrap’
Rebecca Johnson makes her feature-film debut with “Honeytrap” after a string of short-film successes, including the award-winning “Top Girl,” which played at more than 30 festivals...
Reese Witherspoon and Bruna Papandrea Option Female Special-Ops Book ‘Ashley’s War’
The bibliophilic producing team of Reese Witherspoon and Bruna Papandrea has optioned another female-centric book. The film rights to journalist Gayle Tzemach Lemmon’s “Ashley’s War: The...
SXSW Women Directors: Meet Micah Magee — ‘Petting Zoo’
Micah Magee graduated from the University of Texas with a dual degree in Plan II Honors and Radio-Television-Film. In addition to making films, Magee worked as managing and programming director of...
Watch: E!’s Late-Night Newbie Grace Helbig Gets Promo, Premiere Date
SXSW Women Directors: Meet Nelly Ben Hayoun — ‘Disaster Playground’
Award-winning director and designer of experiences Nelly Ben Hayoun is a critical explorer and a fearless and passionate provocateur. Wired Magazine awarded Nelly Ben Hayoun with an Innovation...
Elizabeth Banks to Play Billie Jean King in HBO’s ‘Battle of the Sexes’
Elizabeth Banks and Paul Giamatti will star as Billie Jean King and Bobby Riggs in a HBO movie about the two tennis stars’ 1973 Battle of the Sexes. The 29-year-old King handily defeated the...
SXSW Women Directors: Meet Karyn Kusama — ‘The Invitation’
Karyn Kusama wrote and directed her first feature film, “Girlfight,” in 1999. The film won the Director’s Prize and shared the GrandJury Prize at the 2000 Sundance Film Festival. It went on to...
Trailer Watch: Exploding Castles and Movie-Star Unicorns Add Magic to ‘Inside Out’
A newly cut trailer for Pixar’s “Inside Out” is here, and it’s a tearjerker. The latest spot for the animated feature, voiced in part by Amy Poehler, Mindy Kaling, and Phyllis Smith, takes...
Trailer Watch: A Sex Surrogate’s Life is Turned Upside Down in ‘She’s Lost Control’
A trailer has been released for multiple Independent Spirit Awards nominee “She’s Lost Control.” We were enthralled by Helen Hunt’s performance as a sex surrogate in 2012’s “The...
2015 Longlist for Baileys Women’s Prize Includes Sarah Waters, Anne Tyler, Ali Smith
Sarah Waters’ “The Paying Guests,” Anne Tyler’s “A Spool of Blue Thread,” Ali Smith’s “How to be Both,” and Xiaolu Guo’s “I Am China” are among the twenty books longlisted...
Watch: Amy Schumer Riffs on Hollywood’s Bullsh*t Beauty Standards, Being Labeled a “Sex Comic”
Watch: Britt Robertson and George Clooney Fight to Fix the Future in ‘Tomorrowland’
Dakota Johnson to Star in and Executive Produce Romantic Tragedy ‘Forever, Interrupted’
Newly minted star Dakota Johnson has lined up her first post-”50 Shades” project. Johnson will take the lead role in and executive produce an adaptation of Taylor Jenkins Reid’s debut novel...
Listen: Women and Hollywood Podcast #9: ‘The Hunting Ground’ Producer Amy Ziering
https://medium.com/media/9d3c542a418a8a5083eb03ce22a58600/href
Watch: Julia Louis-Dreyfus’ Selina Meyer Gets a Promotion in ‘Veep’ Season 4
After a stellar third season, “Veep” finally returns to the airwaves on Sunday, April 12. A new trailer for the HBO comedy finds Julia Louis-Dreyfus’ Selina Meyer, who flamed out spectacularly...
Watch: Amy Poehler, Jenny Slate, Cameron Diaz Commemorate Int’l Women’s Day with ‘Not There’ PSA
https://medium.com/media/4d27489cc07caf17804240a953eb5868/href
Tribeca FF Announces Lineup for High-Profile Spotlight Screenings: Claudia Llosa, Leslye Headland
While women directors are well-represented in the international categories at the upcoming 2015 Tribeca Film Festival, they feature much less prominently in the high-profile Spotlight section. TFF...
Lorene Scafaria’s Next Film, ‘The Meddler,’ to Star Susan Sarandon and Rose Byrne
Writer-director Lorene Scafaria (“Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist,” “Seeking a Friend for the End of the World”) has booked her next film. Susan Sarandon will play Marnie Minervini, a...
Trailer Watch: Caitlin Moran’s Hilarious Coming-of-Age Sitcom ‘Raised By Wolves’
‘The Daily Show’s’ Samantha Bee to Become One of 2015’s Only Two Female Late-Night Hosts
Samantha Bee, the longest-serving correspondent ever on “The Daily Show,” has taken herself out of the running to become Jon Stewart’s replacement. Instead, the comedienne will headline her...
Weekly Update for March 6: Women Centric, Directed and Written Films Playing Near You
Films About Women Opening This Week October Gale — Written and Directed by Ruba Nadda Toronto doctor Helen Matthews (Patricia Clarkson,) mourning the death of her husband, retreats to the...
Quote of the Day: Salma Hayek Explains Why She’s a Feminist
Salma Hayek has been making headlines for identifying as a feminist in a recent interview with The Guardian. Hayek is the co-founder of Chime for Change, a charity dedicated to advancing women and...
Crosspost: Why Amy Pascal’s Advice to Women to “Know Their Worth” and “Walk Away” is an Insult
The following is crossposted from Julie Bush’s blog with permission of the author. It has been edited and condensed. In Hollywood, it’s rare to be told directly that you can’t get a job...
‘October Gale’ Writer-Director Ruba Nadda on Widowhood and Shooting During the Coldest Winter in Decades
Ruba Nadda is a Montreal-born, Toronto-based filmmaker. She attended York University and the Tisch School of the Arts at NYU. She has written and directed several feature films, including...
New & Noteworthy Women-Centric VOD Releases: Salma Hayek, America Ferrera, Teresa Palmer
VOD titles are in the midst of a breakthrough moment, with many films being released to theaters and available to stream simultaneously. The blockbuster format is still tried and true, but the...
‘Suffragette’ Wishes You A Happy International Women’s Day
We will have to wait until the fall to see the movie, but just in time for International Women’s Day on Sunday, the team of “Suffragette” — on screen and behind the scenes — has...
Brit Marling’s Co-Written Drama ‘The OA’ to Air on Netflix
Brit Marling has written another starring vehicle for herself. The indie actress has co-created and will star in “The OA,” a drama just picked up by Netflix. The show’s plot and premise are...
America Ferrera, Kate Mulgrew, Emily Bergl to Read 3 Plays from Lilly Awards’ Kilroys’ List
Actresses America Ferrera (“Ugly Betty”), Kate Mulgrew (“Orange is the New Black”), and Emily Bergl (“Desperate Housewives”) will headline the Lilly Awards Foundation’s inaugural...
Diablo Cody to Adapt Barbie for the Big Screen
Barbie has a new makeover coming her way. Oscar-winning screenwriter Diablo Cody (“Juno,” “Jennifer’s Body,” “Young Adult,” “Paradise”) will rewrite the script for the iconic...
Anika Noni Rose Cast in CBS’ Ava DuVernay-Directed Civil-Rights Pilot ‘For Justice’
Tony winner Anika Noni Rose (“Caroline, or Change”) will headline “For Justice,” a CBS drama about a FBI agent’s investigations into hate crimes across the country. Rose will play Special...
Apocalypse and Patriarchy in USA Network’s Archaeological Thriller ‘Dig’
Her body you may recognize, because it’s the poster art for the show. “Dig” is literally written on this young woman’s naked back, along with a bleeding hieroglyph that’s been carved...
Melanie Laurent’s ‘Breathe’ Sold to Film Movement
Variety reports that the U.S. rights to Melanie Laurent’s sophomore feature, “Breathe,” have been sold to Film Movement, an arthouse distributor based in NY. The feature, based on a book with...
WGA Study: Declines for Female and Minority TV Writers “Across the Board”
Over the last three years, the employment of women and minority TV writers has suffered a sharp fall. According to a WGA-West study comparing the 2011–12 and 2013–14 TV seasons, writers rooms...
Women Directors Well Represented in Tribeca Fest’s First Round of Announced Films
The lineups of two international categories at the 2015 Tribeca Film Festival have been announced, and female directors are well represented in both competition lineups. Eight of the 12 World...
The Big O: 12 Must-See Feminist Films Saluted by the Oscars
If any year proved how entrenched Hollywood’s female troubles are, it was 2014, and not just because the bench of best-actress candidates in the Oscar race was far from deep. Also problematic was...