ALL POSTS
Guest Post: My First Year Running a Production Company
Guest Post by Devin Shepherd A little over a year ago, I started Wild Obscura Films, a production company, with my business partner, Nora Unkel. We focus on narrative, female-driven content created...
Listen: Podcast with “13th” Director Ava DuVernay
It’s amazing to be reminded that director Ava DuVernay didn’t pick up a camera until she was 33 years old. She has come so far in such a short time. I sat down with her last week and talked...
NBC Snags New Comedy About Siblings Created by Mindy Kaling
Mindy Kaling’s stacked resume continues to expand, Deadline reports. The creator, executive producer, and star of Hulu’s “The Mindy Project” just scored a put pilot commitment from NBC for a...
LFF 2016 Women Directors: Meet Shahrbanoo Sadat — “Wolf and Sheep”
Shahrbanoo Sadat is an Afghan screenwriter and director. Sadat’s first short fiction film, “Vice Versa One,” was selected at Directors’ Fortnight at Cannes in 2011. In 2013, she launched her...
LFF 2016 Women Directors: Meet C. Fitz— “Jewel’s Catch One”
C. Fitz is a creator, director, writer, and producer, as well as a television and marketing veteran. Her previous films include “Rancid,” “No More Roses,” “ShowGirls, Provincetown, MA,”...
LFF 2016 Women Directors: Meet Pepa San Martin — “Rara”
Pepa San Martin’s first film, “The Shower,” premiered at the 2011 Berlin Film Festival and won the DAAD Short Film Prize. Her second film, “Gleisdreieck,” will premiere at the Valdivia...
LFF 2016 Women Directors: Meet Fiona Tan — “Ascent”
Fiona Tan is an artist who works primarily in film and photography. Tan represented The Netherlands in the 2009 Venice Biennale. Her work can be found in numerous international art collections...
Chantal Akerman: May Her Memory Be for a Blessing
Guest Post by Jenni Olson “Chantal Akerman committed suicide yesterday.” That was all I could manage to write in my journal on the evening of October 6, 2015. It was also my 53rd birthday that...
October 2016 Film Preview
“The Girl on the Train” For those of you who are gearing up for awards season or are planning to celebrate Halloween at the movies, we at Women and Hollywood would just like to say you will not...
NYFF 2016 Highlights: Ava DuVernay, Annette Bening, and More
“13th” The 54th annual New York Film Festival opens with a bang today. One of our most anticipated titles of the year, never mind this particular fest, holds the honor of kicking off the...
Celebrating Nine Years of Women and Hollywood
Nine years ago this September (I never remember the exact date) I started a website on blogger called Women and Hollywood. I culled links about women in the entertainment industry, started going to...
Guest Post: How to Be an Ally — Tips for Men Working with Women in Film Production
by Graham Sheldon The entertainment industry has a massive problem. Women are rarely behind the camera, and it isn’t for lack of interest or effort on their parts. I consider myself lucky to...
“Audrie & Daisy” Director Bonni Cohen Talks Cyberbullying and Sex Crimes
Interview by Diana Martinez Since co-founding Actual Films in 1998, Bonni Cohen has produced and directed an array of award-winning films, including “The Island President,” “Inside...
Weekly Update for September 23: Women Centric, Directed, and Written Films Playing Near You
“Queen of Katwe” Films About Women Opening This Week Queen of Katwe — Directed by Mira Nair For ten-year-old Phiona Mutesi (Madina Nalwanga) and her family, life in the impoverished slum...
“Generation Startup” Directors on Pushing Boundaries and Starting Companies
“Generation Startup” directors Cynthia Wade and Cheryl Miller Houser shared their thoughts on starting their own companies, why it’s important for young people to pursue their business dreams,...
Elite Zexer’s “Sand Storm” is Israel’s Oscar Pick
Another women-directed feature is joining the Oscar race. Israel has chosen to submit “Sand Storm” to represent the country in the Best Foreign Language Film category at the 2017 Academy Awards,...
Sophie Goodhart on Guilt, Shame, and What Inspired “My Blind Brother”
Sophie Goodhart began her career in news and documentaries for UK television. “My Blind Brother” originated as a short. The short version of the film screened in competition at Cannes in 2003,...
What Happens When Women Hit 40 in Hollywood
By now, we’re aware of the fact that Hollywood is ageist. As Women and Hollywood previously reported, a study released by the Media, Diversity and Social Change Initiative at the University of...
TIFF 2016 Women Directors: Meet Kristina Kumrić — “Half A Man”
Kristina Kumrić has helmed several short fiction and documentary films. Her short documentary “Welcome to Igrane” won a special jury prize at the Vukovar Film Festival, and her short doc “i...
Women-Directed Films Dominate EFA Debut Film Nominees
Women directors are often shut out of awards conversations, nevermind nominations, but in a refreshing change of pace, female-directed films dominate the nominees for the European Film Awards’...
Weekly Update for September 16: Women Centric, Directed, and Written Films Playing Near You
“Bridget Jones’s Baby” Films About Women Opening This Week Bridget Jones’s Baby — Directed by Sharon Maguire; Co-Written by Helen Fielding and Emma Thompson After breaking up with...
“Miss Stevens” Director Julia Hart on the Need for Telling Female Stories
Interview by Laura Berger Julia Hart’s debut script “The Keeping Room” landed on the Black List and was made into a feature directed by Daniel Barber starring Brit Marling. She’s written...
TIFF 2016 Women Directors: Meet Alanis Obomsawin — “We Can’t Make the Same Mistake Twice”
Alanis Obomsawin’s directing credits include “70 Years of Resistance,” “Rocks at Whiskey Trench,” “Is the Crown at War with Us?,” “Hi-Ho Mistahey!,” and “Trick or Treaty?” In...
TIFF 2016 Women Directors: Meet Kelly Fremon Craig — “The Edge of Seventeen”
Kelly Fremon Craig started out writing sketch comedy and spoken word poetry in college, then landed an internship in the film division of Immortal Entertainment, where she read her first film script...
TIFF 2016 Women Directors: Meet Katherine Dieckmann — “Strange Weather”
Katherine Dieckmann’s films include “Motherhood,” “Diggers,” and “A Good Baby.” She began her career as a journalist, writing for such publications as Rolling Stone, The Village Voice,...
TIFF 2016 Women Directors: Meet Raja Amari — “Foreign Body”
Raja Amari’s previous features include “Satin Rouge” and “Buried Secrets.” She was born in Tunis and completed a Master’s degree in French literature at the University of Tunis, and...
TIFF 2016 Women Directors: Meet Bronwen Hughes — “The Journey is the Destination”
Bronwen Hughes is a Canadian-British film director based in New York and Hollywood. “The Journey is the Destination” is her fourth feature film. Hughes’ previous films include “Forces of...
TIFF 2016 Women Directors: Meet Erin Heidenreich — “Girl Unbound”
Director-writer-producer of documentaries, short films, and branded content, Erin Heidenreich’s voice has been shaped by the cultures she has immersed herself in across the globe. Set in the...
TIFF 2016 Women Directors: Meet Elite Zexer — “Sand Storm”
Interview by Eboni Boykin and Laura Berger Elite Zexer’s previous short films are “Take Note,” which won the Best Fiction Film Award at the Tel Aviv International Student Film Festival, and...
TIFF 2016 Women Directors: Meet Robin Swicord — “Wakefield”
Robin Swicord made her feature directorial debut with “The Jane Austen Book Club,” which she also penned the screenplay for. Her other screenwriting credits include “Memoirs of a Geisha,”...
TIFF 2016: Oscar-Worthy Performances, Nudity, and Other Highlights
“American Honey” The Toronto International Film Festival’s program is stacked. While our TIFF preview collected highlights from the slate, there were literally dozens of worthy...
TIFF 2016 Women Directors: Meet Emmanuelle Bercot — “150 Milligrams”
Emmanuelle Bercot’s previous directing credits include “Clément,” “Backstage,” “On My Way,” and “Standing Tall.” Bercot’s films have earned her many awards and honors,...
Katie Holmes’ Feature Directorial Debut Gets Distribution
Katie Holmes’ feature directorial debut has found a home. Gravitas Ventures has acquired the North American rights to “All We Had,” Holmes’ mother-daughter drama that premiered at the...
TIFF 2016 Women Directors: Meet María José Cuevas — “Beauties of the Night”
María José Cuevas’ practice draws from her experience in documentary, experimental video, design, and photography. She has collaborated on a variety of diverse cultural projects, which have...
TIFF 2016 Women Directors: Meet April Mullen — “Below Her Mouth”
April Mullen’s previous features include “88,” an action thriller, and “Dead Before Dawn 3D,” which confirmed Mullen as the youngest person and first female to direct a live action...
TIFF 2016: Meet Chloé Robichaud — “Boundaries”
Born in Quebec, screenwriter and director Chloé Robichaud lives and works in Montreal. Her first feature film, “Sarah préfère la course,” was selected for the 2013 Cannes Film Festival. Her...
TIFF 2016: Isabelle Huppert Seen Through the Male and Female Gaze
Here at TIFF there are three movies starring the amazing Isabelle Huppert, who seems to get better and better as she ages. I saw two of them — Mia Hansen-Love’s “Things to Come” and Paul...
TIFF 2016 Women Directors: Meet Selma Vilhunen — “Little Wing”
Selma Vilhunen is an Academy Award nominated director and screenwriter based in Helsinki, Finland. She has written and directed both documentaries and fiction films since 1998. Vilhunen’s short...
The Ties That Bond: Crowdfunding Picks
Julia Ngeow, writer and director of “Eudaemonia” Connecting with another person, really bonding with them, can be very difficult as an adult. Whether you’re making a new friend, attempting to...
TIFF 2016 Women Directors: Meet Amma Asante — “A United Kingdom”
Amma Asante’s previous directing credits include “Belle” and “A Way of Life.” Both films premiered at TIFF. Asante has been named by Variety as one of the Top Ten Directors to Watch, and...
“Fun Home” Writers Jeanine Tesori and Lisa Kron on Saying Goodbye to Broadway
Gabriella Pizzolo and Michael Cerveris in “Fun Home”: Joan Marcus Musicals take many years to develop, and when that development results in a successful Broadway run, saying goodbye can be...
“As I Open My Eyes” Writer-Director Leyla Bouzid on Arab Women and Revolution
Interview by Siân Melton Leyla Bouzid is a Tunisian born and raised filmmaker. She studied French literature at the University of Paris and film directing at La Fémis. Her shorts...
TIFF 2016 Preview: Women-Directed Films About Athletes, Geniuses, and Cannibals
“A United Kingdom” The Toronto International Film Festival kicks off today, and with nearly 30 percent of the program helmed by women (if you include shorts), there’s lots to look forward to....
The Revolutionary “Fun Home” Ends Its Broadway Run
The Original Broadway Cast of “Fun Home”: Joan Marcus Many will feel the loss when “Fun Home,” 2015’s Tony Award winner for Best Musical, closes on Saturday. I know I will. For roughly 17...
The Bold Directorial Sisterhood of “Queen Sugar”
“Queen Sugar”: OWN In the television season that concluded last year, show episodes directed by non-white women made up a whopping three percent of the total. White women, meanwhile, were a...
“Arrival” Festival Reviews and Twitter Reactions (Updated)
Starring Amy Adams and Jeremy Renner, Denis Villeneuve’s brainy sci-fi thriller “Arrival” is receiving strong buzz after its premiere at the Venice Film Festival. Following “Sicario,”...
“La La Land” First Reviews and Twitter Reactions (Updated)
August 31 marked not only the end of an overly heated month (both on and off the web), but also the beginning of this year’s fall festival season. That’s right. It’s Venice (#Venezia73) time....
September 2016 Film Preview
“Queen of Katwe” by Kate Gardner and Rachel Montpelier From tense horror films to powerful documentaries, the diversity of films this September shows that films by and about women span all...
Sex Scenes At a Size 22
Guest Post by Jen Ponton As an actress taking on your first lead role in a movie, there are a lot of things you need to be prepared to do: show up every day, be a good leader, know what you’re...
Quote of the Day: Ava DuVernay Explains, “The Onus is Not on the Marginalized to Educate”
Ava DuVernay is about to have a killer fall. Her first television series, “Queen Sugar,” will premiere on Oprah Winfrey’s OWN network, and she’s the first woman to open the New York Film...
Renee Zellweger Talks Aging, Beauty, and Power
Oscar winner Renee Zellweger recently sat down with The Hollywood Reporter for a wide-ranging, in-depth interview in anticipation of her eagerly awaited reprisal of her most beloved role. “Bridget...