#Women Directors
Trailer Post: Frances McDormand and Chloé Zhao Hit the Open Road in “Nomadland”
“I’m not homeless. I’m just houseless,” says Frances McDormand in a new trailer for “Nomadland.” Written and directed by Chloé Zhao, the Oscar frontrunner tells...
Weekly Update for December 11: Women Centric, Directed, and Written Films Opening
FILMS ABOUT WOMEN OPENING AND COMING TO STREAMING/VOD The Stand-In – Directed by Jamie Babbit “The Stand-In” A washed-up movie star, Candy (Drew Barrymore), busted for tax...
Trailer Watch: Chloë Grace Moretz Faces Off Against a Gremlin in the Sky in “Shadow in the Cloud”
“You have no idea how far I’ll go,” warns Chloë Grace Moretz in a new trailer for Roseanne Liang’s “Shadow in the Cloud.” Set in WWII, the campy thriller tells...
Teen Dreams and Nightmares: VOD Picks
During hormone-addled, perpetually sleep-deprived teen years, life events can be so downright confusing that they take years of therapy, or at least out loud remembrances, to rediscover and accept....
Patty Jenkins Will Be the First Woman to Direct a “Star Wars” Movie
From Themyscira to a galaxy Far, Far Away, Patty Jenkins continues to make history. The “Wonder Woman” filmmaker is set to become the first woman to helm a “Star Wars” film....
Pick of the Day: “Finding Yingying”
A loving portrait of a young woman robbed of her bright future, “Finding Yingying” also serves as an indictment of the true crime genre, which all too often treats victims of violent...
Pick of the Day: “Through the Night”
Described by director Loira Limbal as “a love letter to single mothers and caregivers,” “Through the Night” takes us inside a 24-hour daycare center in New Rochelle, NY. The...
Taraji P. Henson to Make Feature Directorial Debut with High School Comedy “Two-Faced”
Taraji P. Henson is directing her first movie. Variety confirms the Oscar-nominated actress will helm, produce, and star in Bron Studios’ high school comedy “Two-Faced.” The project...
Trailer Watch: Meryl Streep and Jennifer Trainer Explore What It Means to Be a “Museum Town”
Directed by former MASS MoCA director of development Jennifer Trainer and narrated by Meryl Streep, “Museum Town” explores how the largest museum for contemporary art in the world ended...
Jiayan “Jenny” Shi on Deviating from Traditional True Crime Docs with “Finding Yingying”
Jiayan “Jenny” Shi is a documentary filmmaker and video journalist who is passionate about social justice issues regarding people of color. She shoots, edits, and produces video stories...
Pick of the Day: “Funny Boy”
“Why does everyone say I’m funny? What does that mean?” young Arjie (Arush Nand) asks in “Funny Boy.” His parents are trying to explain to him why he can’t dress up as the...
Naomi Kawase’s “True Mothers” Lands at Film Movement
Naomi Kawase’s latest has secured distribution stateside. Variety reports that Film Movement scored U.S. rights to “True Mothers,” the Japanese auteur’s Oscar hopeful. Part of...
Catalina Aguilar Mastretta to Direct Jojo Moyes Adaptation “The Giver of Stars” for Universal
Another woman-directed Jojo Moyes adaptation is in the works. The author’s novels have already served as the source material for Thea Sharrock’s 2016 Emilia Clarke-led box office hit...
Rose Glass’ “Saint Maud” Sweeps BIFA Nominations with Record-Breaking 17 Nods
The titular character of “Saint Maud” can rest assured: there is some good in the world! Rose Glass’ psychological horror drama received 17 British Independent Film Awards nods this...
KiKi Layne and Kasi Lemmons Join Forces on Skydance TV’s “Ring Shout”
KiKi Layne is coming to the small screen. Skydance Television nabbed rights to P. Djéli Clark’s fantasy historical novella “Ring Shout” in a “competitive situation,” and the...
Trailer Watch: Clare Dunne Takes On the Housing Crisis and a Toxic Ex in Phyllida Lloyd’s “Herself”
“We can’t go on like this,” Sandra (Clare Dunne), a struggling single mother of two, says in the trailer for Phyllida Lloyd’s new film, “Herself.” In need of new...
Queen Latifah and Millicent Shelton Team Up for Netflix Thriller “End of the Road”
Queen Latifah is set to star in another genre project. The Academy Award-nominated actress already has a gender-swapped “Equalizer” reboot in the works at CBS and now she’s set to...
Corinna Faith’s Supernatural Thriller “The Power” Lands at Shudder
Shudder’s got “The Power.” The streamer scored rights to the supernatural thriller for North America, UK, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand, Deadline reports. Described as being...
Tara Miele to Write and Direct Carol Burnett Biopic
Tara Miele has lined up her next project days ahead of the release of her latest feature, Sienna Miller-starrer “Wander Darkly.” She will follow up the romantic drama about a couple whose...
Trailer Watch: Old Friends Reunite in Meagan Good and Tamara LaSeon Bass’ “If Not Now, When?”
As highschoolers, BFFs Tyra (Meagan Good, “Think Like a Man”), Patrice (Tamara Bass, “All That Matters”), Deidre (Meagan Holder, “UnREAL”), and Suzanne (Mekia Cox,...
Pick of the Day: “A Suitable Boy”
“A Suitable Boy” hit quite a few milestones on its way to Acorn TV. The miniseries adaptation of Vikram Seth’s bestseller is the first TV show Mira Nair has directed; it’s the...
Weekly Update for December 4: Women Centric, Directed, and Written Films Opening
FILMS ABOUT WOMEN OPENING AND COMING TO STREAMING/VOD Nomadland – Written and Directed by Chloé Zhao “Nomadland” is a marvel. A master class by rapidly ascending writer-director...
Stella Hopkins on Tackling Grief and Taboos in “Elyse”
“Elyse” marks Stella Hopkins’ directorial debut. In collaboration with Margam Films, she is developing a documentary based on the life of Sir Anthony Hopkins. “Elyse”...
Pick of the Day: “La Leyenda Negra”
“Respect my existence or expect resistance.” These are the words high school senior and immigration rights activist Aleteia (Monica Betancourt) reiterates throughout “La Leyenda...
Pick of the Day: “Nomadland”
“Nomadland” is a marvel. A master class by rapidly ascending writer-director Chloé Zhao and ever-stalwart star Frances McDormand, the drama tells the story of Fern (McDormand), a woman...
Pick of the Day: “I’m Your Woman”
I have two theories about “I’m Your Woman,” Julia Hart’s latest feature and AFI Fest 2020’s opening film. The first: This movie is the photonegative of the classic...
A.V. Rockwell Making Feature Directorial Debut with “A Thousand and One,” Lena Waithe Producing
A.V. Rockwell is teaming up with Lena Waithe and Focus Features for her first feature film. A press release has announced that mother-son drama “A Thousand and One,” written and directed...
Dana Nachman on “Celebrating Everything Beautiful About Christmas” in USPS Doc “Dear Santa”
Dana Nachman is an award-winning filmmaker of both fiction and documentary films. The Walt Disney Company hired Nachman to remake her 2018 Slamdance festival documentary “Pick of the...
“Once Upon a Time in Venezuela’s” North American Streaming Rights Go to Topic
Topic has acquired North American streaming rights to “Once Upon a Time in Venezuela,” Venezuela’s submission for best international feature film at the 2021 Academy Awards. Variety...
“Happiest Season” Breaks Hulu Records, Writer-Director Clea DuVall Open to Making a Sequel
The pandemic may have thrown off “Happiest Season’s” original release plans, but it’s a major success story nonetheless. Clea DuVall’s LGBTQ+ holiday rom-com, from Sony’s...
April Mullen on Highlighting Targets and Victims of Governmental Subjugation in “Wander”
April Mullen is a mixed Anishinaabe Algonquin (Indigenous) director and producer. Her credits include “Below Her Mouth,” which made its world premiere at the Toronto International Film...
Hannah Olson Discusses Family, History, Consent, and Her Directorial Debut “Baby God”
Hannah Olson has series produced PBS’ “Finding Your Roots” for the past two seasons. Prior to that, she produced a number of films for PBS including “American Experience”...
Tina Mabry & Gina Prince-Bythewood Team Up for Searchlight’s “The Supremes at Earl’s All-You-Can-Eat”
Gina Prince-Bythewood’s got another adaptation in the works following the smash success of “The Old Guard.” She’s following up the Charlize Theron and KiKi Layne-led comic...
Carrie Brownstein Is Directing a Heart Biopic
Carrie Brownstein is paying tribute to her fellow rock goddesses. The Sleater-Kinney musician and “Portlandia” alumna is set to write and direct a biopic about Heart for Amazon Studios....
Trailer Watch: “On Pointe” Spotlights Students at New York City’s School of American Ballet
“On Pointe” takes viewers behind the scenes of a season at New York City’s School of American Ballet (SAB), where the competition is fierce and the pressure is on. A new trailer for...
“Babyteeth” Wins Big at Australian Academy Awards
The Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts (AACTA) just announced the winners of its 2020 awards ceremony, and Shannon Murphy’s “Babyteeth” has got plenty to...
December 2020 Film Preview
By Tatiana McInnis and Shayna Maci Warner December brings together cinematic stories of every magnitude. From big-budget, long-delayed superhero sequels and explorations of iconic singers, artists,...
Weekly Update for November 25: Women Centric, Directed, and Written Films Opening
FILMS ABOUT WOMEN OPENING AND COMING TO STREAMING/VOD Happiest Season – Directed by Clea DuVall; Written by Clea DuVall and Mary Holland Hark! The Herald Drag Queens Sing: Clea DuVall’s...
Trailer Watch: A Mother Investigates Her Son’s Disappearance in Border Drama “Identifying Features”
A woman searches for her missing son in a new trailer for Fernanda Valadez’s “Identifying Features.” Set in Mexico, the Spanish-language drama sees Magdalena (Mercedes Hernández)...
Join the Girls Club for a Conversation with “I’m Your Woman” Writer-Director Julia Hart
Julia Hart, co-writer and director of “I’m Your Woman,” will join the Girls Club for a conversation on Wednesday, December 2, at 3 p.m. EST. The event is open to the public. Be...
Pick of the Day: “Happiest Season”
Hark! The Herald Drag Queens Sing: Clea DuVall’s “Happiest Season” has finally arrived. Eagerly anticipated since it was first announced, the gay rom-com sees Kristen Stewart and...
Cinema Eye Honors Announces First Noms: “Hillary,” “I’ll Be Gone in the Dark,” and More
Cinema Eye Honors has announced its first wave of nominees. The awards, which recognize nonfiction and documentary filmmaking, will announce “higher-profile feature film nominations”...
IDA Documentary Award Nominations: “Crip Camp,” “Time,” & More
The International Documentary Association (IDA) has announced nominees for the 36th annual IDA Documentary Awards. Of 10 titles competing for Best Feature, three are directed or co-directed by women:...
Trailer Watch: Mira Nair Tells a Coming-of-Age Story in 1950s India in “A Suitable Boy”
“The key to a good marriage is to find a man who will give you the space to grow,” 19-year-old Lata (Tanya Maniktala) is advised in a new trailer for “A Suitable Boy.” Based...
Alejandra Márquez Abella in Negotiations to Direct “A Million Miles Away”
Alejandra Márquez Abella may be heading for the stars. The filmmaker is in talks to direct “A Million Miles Away,” a biopic of a Mexican American astronaut that’s set up at...
Ryann Liebl on Celebrating Friendship and Finding Your Way in “Mags and Julie Go on a Road Trip”
Ryann Liebl is an award-winning actress, filmmaker, writer, and director whose longstanding career has culminated in the launch of her production company REL Films and its first feature, “Mags...
“Preparations to Be Together” Named as Hungary’s Pick for Oscars’ International Film Category
Hungary has selected “Preparations to Be Together for an Unknown Period of Time” as its entry for Best International Film at the 2021 Academy Awards. Variety broke the news. Written and directed...
“Nomadland” Takes Home Best Film Honor at EnergaCamerimage Film Festival
“Nomadland” continues to pick up festival honors as we enter awards season. Variety reports that Chloé Zhao’s Frances McDormand-starrer won the Golden Frog and FIPRESCI jury honors at...
“La Madrina: The [Savage] Life of Lorine Padilla” Wins DOC NYC’s Audience Award
“La Madrina: The Savage Life of Lorine Padilla” has been named the 2020 winner of DOC NYC’s Audience Award, which sees audiences casting votes for their favorite feature film. Directed...
Dawn Porter Receives Mind the Gap’s Documentarian of the Year Award
Mind the Gap, Mill Valley Film Festival’s (MVFF) gender equality initiative, has named Dawn Porter as Documentarian of the Year. According to a press release, the “Way I See It”...
Weekly Update for November 20: Women Centric, Directed, and Written Films Opening
FILMS ABOUT WOMEN OPENING AND COMING TO STREAMING/VOD Run Mommie Dearest does her best impression of Marmee in “Run.” Picture-perfect, warm, and loving on the surface, Diane (Sarah Paulson) is a...