#Documentary
November 2018 Film Preview
As the weather gets cooler, it’s the perfect time to spend an evening indoors with a great flick. And November promises a wide selection of women-centric and women-made films for just that...
Ava DuVernay Is Working with Netflix on a Prince Documentary
Ava DuVernay is making it rain purple at Netflix. The “Wrinkle in Time” helmer is working with the streamer on a Prince documentary, Deadline confirms. Set to cover the iconic...
Sheila Nevins Will Receive Hamptons Doc Film Fest’s Career Achievement Award
Sheila Nevins is adding the Lumiere Career Achievement Award to her dozens of Emmys and Peabodys. Per The Hollywood Reporter, the former president of HBO Documentary Films will receive the honor at...
Chicken & Egg Pictures Receives Amicus Award at IDA Documentary Awards
Given at the IDA Documentary Awards, the Amicus Award “honors individuals or organizations in recognition of their work supporting the essential needs of the nonfiction media landscape.”...
Immigrant Women Taking Center Stage: Crowdfunding Picks
Because of the Trump administration, immigrants have become particularly vulnerable in recent years. Accordingly, art has been forced to respond to this crisis quickly and effectively. Seeing...
Sandra Luckow’s “That Way Madness Lies…” Acquired by First Run Features, Receives Release Date
“That Way Madness Lies…” sees award-winning filmmaker Sandra Luckow turning the camera on her own family. The doc about her brother’s struggles with mental health has been...
Trailer Watch: Alexandra Pelosi Travels to Middle America in “Outside the Bubble”
Alexandra Pelosi is bursting her own bubble. “I may live in liberal America, but I know that this is not the only America,” the director explains in a trailer for her upcoming HBO...
Bryce Dallas Howard Is Directing a Documentary About Dads
Bryce Dallas Howard has kicked off production on her feature directorial debut. The “Jurassic World” actress is helming “Dads,” a documentary about “what it means to be...
Trailer Watch: Harvey Weinstein Is Exposed in “The Reckoning: Hollywood’s Worst Kept Secret”
Harvey Weinstein used to be thanked more often than God at the Academy Awards. Unsurprisingly, he wasn’t mentioned in a single acceptance speech this year. A new trailer for “The...
Exclusive: Margarethe von Trotta to Be Honored with Retrospective at NYC’s Quad Cinema
Coinciding with the release of her latest film, “Searching for Ingmar Bergman,” the Quad will celebrate the work of Margarethe von Trotta with a retrospective. In a Women and Hollywood...
Anna Odell’s “X&Y” to Open 2018 Stockholm Film Fest, 42% of Features in Competition Women-Directed
Anna Odell is set to kick off the 2018 edition of the Stockholm International Film Festival. According to ScreenDaily, the fest will host the world premiere of “X&Y,” the Swedish...
“Free Solo,” “RBG,” and “Dark Money” Among 2018 Critics’ Choice Documentary Awards Nominees
“Free Solo” tops the 2018 Critics’ Choice Documentary Awards nominations. Directed by Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and Jimmy Chin, the National Geographic title tells the story...
DOC NYC 2018 Unveils Lineup, 50 Percent of Features in Competition are Women-Directed
DOC NYC proves — yet again — that plenty of women-directed films are ready to be programmed at fests. This year’s edition of America’s largest documentary festival features...
Trailer Watch: Margarethe von Trotta Pays Tribute in “Searching for Ingmar Bergman”
“Bergman’s films have been my constant companions. This is where it all began for me,” says Margarethe von Trotta in a new trailer for “Searching for Ingmar Bergman.”...
Trailer Watch: A New Lawyer Tries to Free Steven Avery in “Making a Murderer” Part 2
Part 1 of “Making a Murderer” presented the conviction, exoneration, and second conviction of Steven Avery — as well as the conviction of his nephew, Brendan Dassey — for the...
Upcoming Docuseries “Ink & Paint” Will Spotlight Unrecognized Women of Disney Animation
The New York Times has been writing better-late-than-never obits for some of history’s most notable, yet previously ignored, women. Now Deadline reports that Disney is set to give its...
Trailer Watch: Nigerian Schoolgirls Speak Out in “Stolen Daughters: Kidnapped by Boko Haram”
“Freedom means you can do what you want, and by God’s grace I will get it,” says one of the young women featured in “Stolen Daughters: Kidnapped by Boko Haram.” Gemma...
Trailer Watch: “Feminists: What Were They Thinking?” Explores Feminism of Yesterday and Tomorrow
“All of us gained from the fact that there was a women’s rights movement,” says one of the characters in “Feminists: What Were They Thinking?” The upcoming Netflix doc...
Trailer Watch: Chef Samin Nosrat Explores What Makes Food Delicious in “Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat”
Chef Samin Nosrat has, by her own account, spent her entire life in pursuit of flavor. She’s traveled around the world exploring what defines good cooking — and she’s sharing her...
Trailer Watch: “Weed the People” Explores Government Resistance to Cannabis Treatment
“When your kid’s got cancer, the rule book goes out the window,” says one of the characters featured in “Weed the People.” Abby Epstein’s new documentary explores...
Weekly Update for September 28: Women Centric, Directed, and Written Films Playing Near You
WOMEN AND HOLLYWOOD WANTS YOUR INPUT Women and Hollywood strives to provide resources that are helpful to our readers and our community. We would be grateful if you took a few moments to participate...
Trailer Watch: An Unjust Prison Stint Tears a Family Apart in “The Sentence”
In the trailer for upcoming documentary “The Sentence,” a young girl receives a phone call from her mother. Before they are connected, an automated recording plays: “This call is...
Season 2 of Laura Ricciardi and Moira Demos’ “Making a Murderer” Gets Release Date
The first season of Netflix’s nonfiction hit “Making a Murderer” introduced audiences to Steven Avery, a Wisconsin man convicted of the sexual assault and attempted murder of Teresa...
Trailer Watch: Director Kim Snyder Returns to Newtown for “Lessons from a School Shooting”
Father Bob Weiss’ church hosted the funerals of eight of the children who died during the Sandy Hook Massacre in December 2012. Like the rest of the Newtown, Connecticut community, he has been...
Trailer Watch: Sandi Tan Investigates Her Missing Film and Collaborator in “Shirkers”
“When I was 18 the thing I wanted more than anything was to make a movie,” says director Sandi Tan in a new trailer for “Shirkers.” “I had the idea that you found...
International Documentary Association Awards $850,000 to Journalistic Documentaries
Documentary filmmaking is all the more important in the era of “fake news.” So the fact that the International Documentary Association (IDA) has announced a cohort of 12 films that will...
Weekly Update for September 14: Women Centric, Directed, and Written Films Playing Near You
FILMS ABOUT WOMEN OPENING Where Hands Touch – Written and Directed by Amma Asante “Where Hands Touch” is a coming of age story set in the most brutal of times: Germany, 1944. Leyna (Amandla...
Sales: Claire Denis’ “High Life,” Anne Fletcher’s Jennifer Aniston-Starrer “Dumplin,” & More
A number of women-helmed projects have found homes in recent days. A24 acquired North American distribution rights to Claire Denis’ English-language debut, “High Life”; Netflix...
Pics from Aislinn Clarke & Tinna Hrafnsdóttir Among Boudica Films’ New Female-Led Projects
Boudica Films, the Rebecca Long and Ian Davies-led UK film fund that supports women-centric and -made pics, has announced its latest slate of projects. Per Screen Daily, two movies about...
Trailer Watch: A Legend Sings Her Heart Out in “Maria By Callas”
“An artist develops. You do things by instinct, but we learn, we suffer, we mature. I have to feel what I do,” says Maria Callas in a trailer for a new doc about the iconic opera singer....
TIFF Deals: “The Elephant Queen,” “Maiden,” and “Aniara”
Dozens of films are screening daily at the Toronto International Film Festival, but the fest is also a business hub. Just as many deals are being made behind the scenes, and these are just a few that...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Astra Taylor – “What Is Democracy?”
Astra Taylor is a filmmaker, writer, and political organizer. Her book “The People’s Platform: Taking Back Power and Culture in the Digital Age” won the American Book Award in 2015. Taylor is a...
Weekly Update for September 7: Women Centric, Directed, and Written Films Playing Near You
FILMS ABOUT WOMEN OPENING I Am Not a Witch – Written and Directed by Rungano Nyoni (Opens in NY; Opens in LA September 14) When eight-year-old Shula (Maggie Mulubwa) turns up alone and...
TIFF 2018 Women Directors: Meet Naziha Arebi — “Freedom Fields”
Naziha Arebi has made short films shown worldwide, completed a series of educational shorts on Libyan reconciliation, and directed a short doc about the assassinated Libyan activist Salwa...
Fall 2018 Film Preview
By Keno Katsuda and Antora Majumdar Although 2018 is more than halfway over, there are still plenty of amazing women-centric and women-created films yet to be released. Emma Thompson leads one of the...
“Liyana” Acquired by Abramorama
Abramorama has snagged the rights to “Liyana,” a documentary featuring South African storyteller Gcina Mhlophe. Directed by Amanda and Aaron Kopp, the film made its world premiere at the...
Trailer Watch: The Right to Choose Is On the Line in “Reversing Roe”
“Life is winning again,” Vice President Mike Pence gloats in the trailer for “Reversing Roe” — but women’s rights are not. As Brett Kavanaugh’s Supreme...
September 2018 Film Preview
While the summer movie season is winding down, the release of films by and about women is not. September features a bevy of women-driven indies and star-studded studio releases. The month kicks off...
Dana Nachman on Her Guide Dog Documentary “Pick of the Litter”
Dana Nachman is an award-winning filmmaker of both fiction and documentary films. Nachman’s 2018 feature documentary, “Pick of the Litter,” was sold within 48 hours of its premiere at...
Trailer Watch: Maggie Smith, Judi Dench, & More Unite in “Tea with the Dames”
Maggie Smith, Judi Dench, Eileen Atkins, and Joan Plowright crack open champagne and spill the beans in a new trailer for “Tea with the Dames.” The upcoming documentary sees the legendary...
Trailer Watch: NYC’s “Queen of the Night” Is Celebrated in “Susanne Bartsch: On Top”
Susanne Bartsch, the legendary fashionista and party hostess, is known for accepting, supporting, and honoring marginalized communities, and LGBTQ folks in particular. She “was the one who...
Trailer Watch: An Actress and Activist Explores Her Roots in “Jane Fonda in Five Acts”
“This is the beginning of my last act. In order to know how to go forward, I’m going to have to know where I’ve been,” says Jane Fonda in the first trailer for “Jane...
Exclusive: Betty White Recalls Her TV Debut in “First Lady of Television” Clip
We all know Betty White. Whether it’s “Golden Girls,” “Hot in Cleveland,” or “The Mary Tyler Moore Show,” she’s been a mainstay on TV for as long as...
Growing Pains: Crowdfunding Picks
Flip through one of your old photo albums. How does it feel? Regardless of the time period you are looking back on, you’re probably experiencing a fairly strong emotional response. Maybe it’s...
Trailer Watch: Netflix Doc “City of Joy” Turns the Camera on Women in the Eastern Congo
“We had no experience with war. When we first heard the word rape we didn’t know what it was,” says one of the characters at the center of “City of Joy.” The upcoming...
TIFF’s Documentary Program Includes Films from Rashida Jones, Alexis Bloom, & More
The Toronto International Film Festival is less than a month away, and the fest is dropping announcements almost daily. Today marks the unveiling of the fest’s Documentary and Midnight Madness...
Trailer Watch: #Female Pleasure Follows the Global Struggle for Sexual Liberation
Described as a “plea for the liberation of female sexuality in the 21st century,” “#Female Pleasure” tells the story of five women around the world fighting “for a...
Abigail Disney’s Fork Films Announces $625,000 in Grant Funding to Docs
Fork Films is at it again. Abigail Disney’s company announced that it has provided $625,000 in grant funding to 16 new documentaries “that align with the company’s dedication to...
Severely Gender Imbalanced Venice Fest Will Screen a Dude’s Doc About Women in Film
In news that could either be an attempt to rectify its exclusion of women directors or a simple fuck-you, Venice Film Festival is premiering the first four hours of an epic 16-hour doc about women...
HBO Acquires Rights to “At the Heart of Gold: Inside the USA Gymnastics Scandal”
HBO has snagged the worldwide rights to Erin Lee Carr’s “At the Heart of Gold: Inside the USA Gymnastics Scandal.” The premium cable network announced the news in a press release,...
Trailer Watch: “Love, Gilda” Tells the Story of Comedy Legend Gilda Radner
“There was so much in the world that had yet to be carved out for women,” says Amy Poehler in a new trailer for “Love, Gilda.” The “Parks and Rec” alumna is...