#Films
Producer Heather Rae Inks Deal with Endeavor, Will Develop Pics from Indigenous Filmmakers
“Frozen River” producer Heather Rae and Endeavor Content are teaming up to make movies by Indigenous filmmakers. Variety reports that Rae signed a three-film development deal with the...
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...
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...
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...
Weekly Update for October 2: Women Centric, Directed, and Written Films Opening
FILMS ABOUT WOMEN OPENING AND COMING TO STREAMING/VOD Once Upon a River – Written and Directed by Haroula Rose “Once Upon a River” Based on the best-selling novel by Bonnie Jo...
Pick of the Day: “The Great American Lie”
Burnt out educators, activists fighting for minimum wage in the restaurant industry, unemployed factory workers voting against their own best interests, single parents holding down four jobs to get...
Doc About Human Rights Activist Nasrin Sotoudeh Acquired by Virgil Films, Olivia Colman Narrates
Audiences will soon have the chance to learn more about Nasrin Sotoudeh and the #FreeNasrin movement. “Nasrin,” a documentary following the Iranian lawyer, human rights activist, and...
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...
Trailer Watch: Alexandra Kotcheff and Hannah Leder Take Care of Business in “The Planters”
Martha Plant (Alexandra Kotcheff) buries knick-knacks and tchotchkes in cookie tins and — without fail — the lucky folks who stumble upon this “treasure” leave cash in...
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...
Trailer Watch: A Struggling Single Mom Builds a House for “Herself” in Phyllida Lloyd’s Latest
The housing crisis is hitting a single mother of two hard in Phyllida Lloyd’s “Herself.” A new trailer for the drama sees Sandra (Clare Dunne) struggling to get her daughters to school...
Reflecting on Relationships: VOD and Web Series Picks
As we brace for the cool, crisp evenings and shorter days of fall, this month’s VOD and web series picks invite reflections on all types and facets of relationships. Quirky romances, friendships,...
Weekly Update for September 18: Women Centric, Directed, and Written Films Opening
“Black Lives Matter” FILMS ABOUT WOMEN OPENING AND COMING TO STREAMING/VOD All In: The Fight for Democracy (Documentary) – Directed by Liz Garbus and Lisa Cortés In anticipation...
TIFF 2020 Women Directors: Meet Aisling Chin-Yee – “No Ordinary Man”
Aisling Chin-Yee is an award-winning producer, writer, and director based in Montreal, Canada and Los Angeles, California. She made her feature directorial debut with 2019’s “The Rest of...
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...
Join the Girls Club for a Conversation with “Misbehaviour” Director Philippa Lowthorpe
Philippa Lowthorpe will discuss “Misbehaviour,” her pic about the historic 1970 Miss World pageant, at the next Girls Club event. The conversation will take place Tuesday, September 22,...
TIFF 2020 Women Directors: Meet Farnoosh Samadi – “180° Rule”
Farnoosh Samadi is an Iranian award-winning director, writer, and member of the Academy. Samadi’s “The Silence” was nominated for a Palme d’Or at Cannes in 2016, and her short film “Gaze”...
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,”...
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...
Trailer Watch: CJ Crim Celebrates Women, Activism, and Social Justice in “Resisterhood”
People of color, immigrants, LGTBQ folks, women — life in America has become very frightening for all of these groups and more since Trump’s election nearly four years ago. But, in spite...
Trailer Watch: Jennifer Siebel Newsom Exposes “The Great American Lie” in Her New Doc
For too many people, the American Dream — the idea that, in the U.S., you can start with nothing but achieve anything — isn’t just a fantasy, but a complete hoax. Jennifer Siebel...
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,...
Study: The Number of Female Speaking Characters in Top Films Hasn’t “Meaningfully Increased Since 2007”
Dr. Stacy L. Smith and the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative have released their latest study, “Inequality in 1,300 Popular Films: Examining Portrayals of Gender, Race/Ethnicity, LGBTQ &...
TIFF 2020 Women Directors: Meet Madeleine Sims-Fewer – “Violation”
Madeleine Sims-Fewer studied film production at York University and completed an MFA in acting at Drama Centre London. She met Dusty Mancinelli at the 2015 TIFF Talent Lab and the pair joined forces...
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...
TIFF 2020 Preview: Frances McDormand Hits the Road, Female DJs Get Their Due, & More
The Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) hasn’t gone entirely digital this year, but the fest has adapted to life in a COVID-19 world. Set to take place September 10-19, the 45th edition...
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...
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...
Weekly Update for September 4: Women Centric, Directed, and Written Films Opening
FILMS ABOUT WOMEN OPENING AND COMING TO STREAMING/VOD Mulan – Directed by Niki Caro; Written by Lauren Hynek, Elizabeth Martin, Amanda Silver, and Rick Jaffa Acclaimed filmmaker Niki Caro...
Trailer Watch: Maya Newell’s “In My Blood It Runs” Chronicles an Aboriginal Boy’s School and Home Lives
In the trailer for “In My Blood It Runs,” an Aboriginal woman discusses her concerns about her children. “Dujuan is the one I worry about the most,” she says....
Venice 2020 Women Directors: Meet Celine Held – “Topside”
Celine Held is a Brooklyn-based filmmaker. She works as a co-writer and director with her partner Logan George. Their work as a team has premiered in competition at SXSW, Sundance Film Festival, and...
Venice 2020 Women Directors: Meet Mona Fastvold – “The World to Come”
Mona Fastvold is a New York and Oslo-based writer-director. In early 2012 Mona received a prestigious development grant from the Norwegian Film Fund followed by production support for her directorial...
Venice 2020 Women Directors: Meet Nicole Garcia – “Lovers”
Nicole Garcia is a French director, screenwriter, and actress. Her credits include “From the Land of the Moon,” “A View of Love,” and “Charlie...
Trailer Watch: A Young Activist Becomes Radicalized in Venice’s “And Tomorrow the Entire World”
Is violence ever really justified? How far could — or should — one go to stop fascism or Nazism? Is peaceful protest actually effective? These are some of the questions Julia von Heinz...
Weekly Update for August 28: Women Centric, Directed, and Written Films Opening
FILMS ABOUT WOMEN OPENING AND COMING TO STREAMING/VOD Driven to Abstraction (Documentary) – Directed by Daria Price “Driven to Abstraction” unravels a mutating tale of self-delusion,...
American Black Film Fest 2020 Women Directors: Meet Alana Barrett-Adkins – “Asunder, One Flesh Divided”
Alana Barrett-Adkins is a director, actor, and producer. She is the CEO/Artistic Director of Rock Alari Studios, which has produced projects including the play “Women of Adonai,” the web...
Alana Mayo Named Prez of Re-Launched Orion Pictures, Label’s New Focus Will Be Inclusive Storytelling
Under Alana Mayo’s leadership, MGM’s Orion Pictures will be dedicated exclusively to inclusion on-screen and off. Variety has confirmed Mayo has been hired as Orion’s new president,...
American Black Film Fest 2020 Women Directors: Meet Teniola Olatoni Ojigbede – “The New Normal”
Teniola Olatoni Ojigbede is the CEO and Creative Head of Sourmash Stories Production. “The New Normal” will screen at the 2020 American Black Film Festival, which takes place August...
American Black Film Fest 2020 Women Directors: Meet Chyna Robinson – “No Ordinary Love”
Director, writer, and producer Chyna Robinson made her film debut with “Greenwood: 13 Hours,” a short that won 18 awards. “No Ordinary Love” marks her feature debut. In...
Weekly Update for August 21: Women Centric, Directed, and Written Films You Can Watch from Home
FILMS ABOUT WOMEN COMING TO STREAMING/VOD Lingua Franca – Written and Directed by Isabel Sandoval After securing a job as a live-in caregiver for Olga (Lynn Cohen), an elderly Russian woman in...
Trailer Watch: Fox Rich Fights for Her Husband’s Freedom in Garrett Bradley’s “Time”
Throughout the new trailer for “Time,” Garrett Bradley’s Sundance award-winning documentary, Fox Rich tries to get an update on a ruling concerning her husband, Rob. He’s...
American Black Film Fest 2020 Women Directors: Meet Drew V. Marke – “Get Luke Lowe”
Drew V. Marke has written short films which have been selected for international festivals such as Encounters and Sci-Fi London, won a Film London award, and been screened at the David Lean cinema...
Weekly Update for August 14: Women Centric, Directed, and Written Films You Can Watch from Home
FILMS ABOUT WOMEN COMING TO STREAMING/VOD Represent (Documentary) – Directed by Hillary Bachelder The past few years have seen a record-breaking number of women running for office. Hillary...