#Women Directors
Weekly Update for July 5: Women Centric, Directed, and Written Films Playing Near You
FILMS ABOUT WOMEN OPENING My Days of Mercy – Directed by Tali Shalom-Ezer (Also Available on VOD) Two sisters, Lucy and Martha, regularly protest capital punishment at state executions. Lucy...
“Vita & Virginia” Gets U.S. Release Date
“Vita & Virginia” will hit theaters stateside August 23. Chanya Button’s drama is inspired by a true story and depicts the friendship and love affair between Virginia Woolf and...
BlackStar Film Fest Announces 2019 Lineup, Will Honor Marcia Smith
The BlackStar Film Festival has announced its 2019 lineup. A celebration of black, brown, and indigenous films from around the world, the Philadelphia-based fest also revealed the recipient of this...
Justina Machado to Make Directorial Debut in Season 4 of “One Day at a Time”
More good “One Day at a Time” news to celebrate: Justina Machado is set to make her directorial debut on the recently resuscitated sitcom. Deadline confirms that she’ll direct an ep...
Home Away from Home: VOD and Web Series Picks
Home is the place you’re meant to feel most comfortable. For many people, it’s with their families, their belongings, and their own space. But that isn’t always possible, particularly for those...
Weekly Update for June 28: Women Centric, Directed, and Written Films Playing Near You
FILMS ABOUT WOMEN OPENING Ophelia – Directed by Claire McCarthy; Written by Semi Chellas (Available on VOD July 2) Something is rotten in medieval-era Denmark, where political intrigue swirls...
Judith Helfand to Be Honored with San Francisco Jewish Film Fest’s Freedom of Expression Award
Documentary filmmaker and activist Judith Helfand is set to receive the Freedom of Expression Award at the 39th San Francisco Jewish Film Festival (SFJFF), a press release confirms. The award is...
EIFF 2019 Women Directors: Meet Mary McGuckian – “A Girl from Mogadishu”
Mary McGuckian is an Irish writer, director, and producer known for her collaborative approach to working with actors. She has worked on 12 films, including “The Price of Desire,” “The Bridge...
51Fest Announces Inaugural Lineup: “After the Wedding,” “For Sama,” & More
Now here’s a fest that recognizes the existence of women directors and the importance of female-led stories. 51Fest, presented by Women in the World and IFC Center, has unveiled the lineup for...
July 2019 Film Preview
Summertime can often be a grim time to go to the movies, as male-dominated blockbusters and a deluge of sequels clog the box office. But this July looks especially promising for original films by and...
EIFF 2019 Women Directors: Meet Lydia Dean Pilcher – “Liberté: A Call to Spy”
Lydia Dean Pilcher is an Academy Award-nominated and two-time Emmy-winning producer, with over 35 feature films with directors including Gina Prince-Bythewood and Mira Nair. Her credits include...
Lena Khan Kicks Off Production on Disney+ Original Movie “Flora & Ulysses”
Lena Khan is taking a Newberry Award-winning children’s book about a comic book fan who befriends a super-powered squirrel to the big screen. The director just kicked off production on Walt...
Alice Waddington’s “Scarlet” Acquired by Netflix
It’s looking like Alice Waddington will follow up “Paradise Hills” with “Scarlet.” The former, her feature directorial debut, premiered at Sundance in January. Netflix...
New Program from Refinery29 and Kate Spade Gives Women Directors Opp to Helm Video Short
Media company Refinery29 and fashion brand Kate Spade are working together to provide opportunities to emerging women directors. According to WWD, the businesses are partnering on “Pilot Season,”...
Susan Johnson to Direct Mckenna Grace-Starrer “Rabbit Cake” for Amazon Studios
Mckenna Grace’s rapidly expanding resume is adding another impressive title: the actress is set to make history as one of Hollywood’s youngest producers. The 12-year-old...
EIFF 2019 Women Directors: Meet Emily Harris – “Carmilla”
Emily Harris is a visual storyteller spanning film, theater, exhibition, and installation. Her work has been shown at major film festivals and museums worldwide including the V&A Museum London,...
Trailer Watch: Elizabeth Banks Introduces a New Generation to “Charlie’s Angels”
“I think women can do anything,” says Kristen Stewart in the first trailer for “Charlie’s Angels.” Seconds after making the pronouncement, she proves that...
Susan Johnson to Direct a Fairy Tale for Disney+
Susan Johnson set millions of viewers’ hearts aflutter with Netflix’s “To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before,” and now she’ll set their imaginations ablaze. The...
EIFF 2019 Women Directors: Meet Ásthildur Kjartansdóttir – “The Deposit”
Ásthildur Kjartansdóttir is a director, writer, and producer. Her films have screened at film festivals around the world. Two of her documentaries were nominated for Best Documentary by the...
EIFF 2019 Women Directors: Meet Susanne Heinrich – “Aren’t You Happy?”
Susanne Heinrich is a German filmmaker and author. She published four books between the ages of 19 and 25 and was nominated for the Ingeborg Bachmann Prize. Following her first short film,...
Lucrecia Martel Named Venice Jury President
Lucrecia Martel will serve as president of the jury at this year’s Venice Film Festival, Variety confirms. The Argentinian filmmaker’s last feature, “Zama,” premiered at the 2017...
Trailer Watch: A First Date Goes Sideways in Lena Waithe & Melina Matsoukas’ “Queen & Slim”
Queen and Slim’s first date seems to be going pretty well, even if starts off a bit shakily. Queen (Jodie Turner-Smith, “Nightflyers”) decided to go out with Slim (Daniel Kaluuya,...
EIFF 2019 Women Directors: Meet Greta Bellamacina – “Hurt By Paradise”
Greta Bellamacina is an actress, filmmaker, and poet. She was born in London and made her acting debut in “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire” at the age of thirteen. She trained at The...
Weekly Update for June 21: Women Centric, Directed, and Written Films Playing Near You
FILMS ABOUT WOMEN OPENING Endzeit – Ever After – Directed by Carolina Hellsgård; Written by Olivia Vieweg (Opens in NY; Opens in LA June 28) A zombie apocalypse provides the backdrop for...
EIFF 2019 Women Directors: Meet Ruth Platt – “The Black Forest”
Ruth Platt co-created a theater company which was nominated twice for Time Out Critics Choice runs. Her short film featuring Maxine Peake, “The Heart Fails Without Warning.” was selected...
Female Biker Drama “Black Mambas” in Development at BET Networks
“Rebel” creator Amani Walker has a female-led biker series in development at BET Networks. Deadline broke the news. Titled “Black Mambas,” the one-hour New Orleans-set drama...
Emily Dean to Make Feature Directorial Debut with Sony Pictures Animation’s “Tao”
After a decade spent working as a storyboard artist on pics such as “The Lego Batman Movie” and “The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part,” Emily Dean is set to make her feature...
Trailer Watch: A Teen Seeks Answers About a Night She Can’t Remember in Pippa Bianco’s “Share”
“Do you have an image from that night?” 16-year-old Mandy (Rhianne Barreto, “Hanna”) is asked in a new trailer for “Share.” The highschooler can’t remember...
Elizabeth Banks Will Be the First Woman Director to Receive Pioneer of the Year Award
Elizabeth Banks is breaking another boundary. The mogul will be the first woman director to be honored with the Will Rogers Motion Picture Pioneers Foundation’s (WRMPPF) Pioneer of the Year...
Andrea Savage’s “I’m Sorry” Renewed for a Third Season
Andrea Savage is going to apologize for at least another year. “I’m Sorry,” the TruTV comedy she created, executive produces, and toplines, has been renewed for a third season set...
Rosamund Pike to Topline TV Adaptation of “The Wheel of Time” for Amazon
Rosamund Pike is switching gears from the harsh realities of battle to a fantasy epic. The Oscar nominee, who most recently played war correspondent Marie Colvin in “A Private War,” will...
Rachel Morrison to Make Feature Directorial Debut with Boxing Drama “Flint Strong”
A history-making cinematographer is set to make her feature directorial debut. Rachel Morrison, who became the first female DP to score an Oscar nod, will helm “Flint Strong” for...
Laugh It Off: Crowdfunding Picks
Comedy has long been a vehicle to talk about the issues plaguing society. From projects like podcast-turned-HBO series “2 Dope Queens” to favorites like “Full Frontal with Samantha Bee,”...
Janet Mock Makes History with Overall Netflix Deal
Janet Mock is making history again. In 2018, the trailblazer co-wrote and directed an episode of “Pose,” making her the first trans woman of color to write and direct a TV ep. Now she’s...
Emma Westenberg to Direct MGM’s “Buffalo Flats”
Emma Westenberg will follow up her vulva-themed, Grammy-nominated collaboration with Janelle Monáe with her first studio feature. The “Pynk” music video director has been tapped to helm...
Guest Post: What I Learned From Revisiting My 1984 Documentary “Before Stonewall”
Guest Post by Greta Schiller “Before Stonewall” traces the making of America’s lesbian and gay community from the turn of the century to the Stonewall Riots. I never imagined the...
Number of Women Directors, Writers, & More at U.S. Film Fests Reaches Historic High
The number of women at film festivals such as SXSW, Tribeca, and AFI Fest is reaching a critical mass. Dr. Martha M. Lauzen and the Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film have published...
Dee Rees Will Write and Direct Musical Fantasy “The Kyd’s Exquisite Follies”
“Mudbound” helmer Dee Rees is collaborating with Santigold on her next project. Rees has signed on to direct musical fantasy “The Kyd’s Exquisite Follies,” based on her own...
“Raise Hell: The Life & Times of Molly Ivins” Acquired by Magnolia
Janice Engel’s award-winning tribute to Molly Ivins has secured North American distribution. Deadline reports that Magnolia acquired rights to Sundance doc “Raise Hell: The Life &...
Aisling Walsh to Direct BBC Adaptation of “Elizabeth Is Missing” Starring Glenda Jackson
Aisling Walsh will follow up “Maudie” with a BBC One adaptation of “Elizabeth Is Missing.” Based on Emma Healey’s 2014 mystery novel of the same name, the one-off...
Dr. Nelly Ben Hayoun, Rosamund Pike, & More to Attend BFI’s Woman with a Movie Camera Summit
BFI’s inaugural Woman with a Movie Camera Summit sold out in 2018, so it comes as no surprise that the popular event is coming back for a second edition. Returning to BFI Southbank on June 22,...
Weekly Update for June 14: Women Centric, Directed, and Written Films Playing Near You
FILMS ABOUT WOMEN OPENING American Woman In a blue-collar town in Pennsylvania, a 32-year-old woman’s (Sienna Miller) teen daughter goes missing and she is left to raise her infant grandson alone....
Locarno Film Festival to Open with Ginevra Elkann’s “Magari”
The 2019 Locarno International Film Festival will kick off with Italian filmmaker Ginevra Elkann’s feature directorial debut. Cineuropa confirmed that “Magari” has been chosen as...
Sophia Takal to Direct Blumhouse Reboot of “Black Christmas”
Sophia Takal is re-teaming with Blumhouse for another female-led horror pic. She’s been tapped to direct a reboot of “Black Christmas” for the production company behind “Get...
Mary Holland & Betsy Sodaro Will Topline Maureen Bharoocha’s Arm-Wrestling Comedy “Golden Arm”
May the best biceps win. Indie arm wresting comedy “Golden Arm” has cast its leads. A press release announced that Mary Holland (“Veep,” “Mike and Dave Need Wedding...
Under the Radar: “A Woman’s Work” Tackles Gendered Notions of Labor
How many hours of practice does it take to become an NFL cheerleader? In Lacy Fields’ case, approximately 10,560 over 18 years. Yet after she finally accomplished that feat, joining the Oakland...
Sarah Phelps to Adapt Agatha Christie’s “The Pale Horse” for BBC and Amazon
Sarah Phelps is bringing her fifth Agatha Christie adaptation to the small screen. Variety confirms the award-winning screenwriter will pen a two-part series based on Christie’s “The Pale...
Laura Luchetti’s “Twin Flower” Acquired by Film Movement
Film Movement has snagged North American rights to teen runaway drama “Twin Flower.” According to Variety, a small U.S. theatrical run is planned. Written and directed by Laura Luchetti,...
S.J. Chiro to Direct Mira Sorvino in “East of the Mountains” Adaptation
Mira Sorvino and S.J. Chiro are teaming up for an adaptation of father-daughter story “East of the Mountains.” The former will star in the drama based on David Guterson’s 1999...
Winners Announced for Bumble’s Second Female Film Force Competition
Bumble is awarding five women-made short films funding as part of its second Female Film Force competition. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the winning projects include a comedic drama about...
Desiree Akhavan & Haifaa al-Mansour Among ReFrame Rise’s Inaugural Class of Women Directors
Not only did the 2019 Women In Film Annual Gala honor Amy Poehler, Issa Rae, Elizabeth Debicki, Cathy Schulman, and more, it also featured the launch of ReFrame Rise Directors Program,...