#Women Directors
Swati Bhise’s “The Warrior Queen of Jhansi” Lands at Roadside Attractions
Swati Bhise’s directorial debut has secured distribution stateside. Roadside Attractions acquired U.S. rights to historical epic “The Warrior Queen of Jhansi,” Deadline reports....
Trailer Watch: Mindy Kaling and Emma Thompson Give “Late Night” a Makeover
“You’re welcome, America,” says Emma Thompson in the final trailer for “Late Night.” The spot suggests that filmgoers have plenty to thank the Brit for, with critics and...
Tina Gordon to Direct Youth Choir Comedy “Praise This” for Universal
“Sister Act” fans, take note: another musical comedy about a choir is on the way. “Little” helmer and co-writer Tina Gordon has been tapped to direct Universal Pictures’...
“Russian Doll” Renewed for Season 2
Prepare for “Gotta Get Up” to get stuck in your head again: “Russian Doll” is coming back. Netflix has renewed the critically acclaimed Natasha Lyonne-starrer for a second...
Apply Now: North Face’s Move Mountains Grant for Women Directors
If you’re a woman filmmaker with a love for the Great Outdoors, then The North Face has the grant for you. The apparel company has announced the Move Mountains Filmmakers Grant, “a...
Stunt Coordinator Shauna Duggins to Make Directorial Debut with “Guardian”
The Emmy-winning stunt coordinator behind Zoya the Destroyer and Liberty Belle’s epic battles in the ring is stepping behind the camera. “GLOW’s” Shauna Duggins is set to make...
Trailer Watch: Elsa and Anna Go North in “Frozen 2”
Elsa is following in Arya Stark’s footsteps and embarking on an epic mission into the unknown. A trailer has dropped for “Frozen 2,” and sees Disney’s game-changing sisters,...
Ali Stroker, “Hadestown” Team, and More Make History at the 2019 Tony Awards
Last night’s 73rd Annual Tony Awards marked many firsts for women who are paving the way on Broadway, both onstage and off. The show was indicative that post-#MeToo, the course of history for...
Angela Chen Receives Inaugural AGBO/AFI Conservatory Development Grant
Angela Chen’s next project just received a major boost. The writer, director, editor, and producer has been named as the inaugural recipient of the AGBO/AFI Conservatory Development Grant, a...
Ofra Bloch’s “Afterward” Lands at Abramorama
Abramorama has claimed North American theatrical rights to Ofra Bloch’s feature debut, “Afterward.” The doc examining the emotional and psychological wounds of victims and...
Weekly Update for June 7: Women Centric, Directed, and Written Films Playing Near You
FILMS ABOUT WOMEN OPENING Late Night – Directed by Nisha Ganatra; Written by Mindy Kaling (Opens in Select Theaters; Opens Wide June 14) “Late Night” is the movie I have been...
Public Theater’s 2019-20 Season Includes “For Colored Girls” and Hillary Clinton Musical
Hillary Clinton, Ntozake Shange, Leigh Silverman, and Jeanine Tesori are just a few of the names that will be featured at the Public Theater next season. Per The New York Times, the Off Broadway...
“Queen Sugar” Announces Additional Women Directors for Season 4
Lacey Duke, C. Fitz, Pratibha Parmar, Deborah Kampmeier, and Stacey Muhammad will be among the ranks of “Queen Sugar’s” all-women directors. A press release has announced that these...
Kay Cannon Will Direct Treasure-Hunt Comedy “79ers” for Lionsgate
Only two months after news broke that Kay Cannon would direct Sony Pictures’ retelling of “Cinderella” comes word that the “Blockers” filmmaker will helm yet another...
Trailer Watch: A Beekeeper’s Way of Life Is Upended in Sundance Winner “Honeyland”
“We only take half,” Hatidze Muratova, the last in a long line of Balkan beekeepers, explains to a young boy as she removes a honeycomb from a hive. “Half for them. Half for...
Trailer Watch: Jillian Bell & Michaela Watkins Inherit a “Sword of Trust” in New Lynn Shelton Pic
In Lynn Shelton’s latest film, Cynthia (Jillian Bell) inherits a very unique object when her grandfather dies: a sword with an apparent connection to the Civil War. “What you are looking...
Trailer Watch: Alice Englert Questions Her Faith and Faces a Snake in “Them That Follow”
Set deep in Appalachia, “Them That Follow” tells the story of Mara (Alice Englert), a young woman preparing for her wedding day. Mara’s got a lot more than floral arrangements and...
Apply Now: Oxford Film Fest’s Female Filmmaker Retreat
Oxford, Mississippi’s film festival will be hosting a Female Filmmaker Retreat during its 2020 edition. Scheduled to take place March 16-19, 2020 at Oxford’s Camp Hopewell, the retreat...
Trailer Watch: Petra Costa Captures Brazil at “The Edge of Democracy”
“I fear our democracy was nothing but a short-lived dream,” says Petra Costa in a new trailer for “The Edge of Democracy.” The Sundance documentary explores the evolving...
AFI to Honor Lesli Linka Glatter
Lesli Linka Glatter is set to receive an honorary Doctorate of Fine Arts from the American Film Institute (AFI). A press release announced that the prolific director will be recognized for her...
Binge Worthy: Crowdfunding Picks
Sometimes there’s no better way to decompress from a long day or a stressful week than watching an episode of your favorite show. Or four. Or 10. There’s no shame in a good binge-watching...
Sandi Tan to Write and Direct Adaptation of Elif Batuman’s “The Idiot”
Sandi Tan is set to tell another autobiographical coming-of-age story, but this time she’s working with someone else’s source material. The “Shirkers” helmer will write and...
Karen Moncrieff to Write and Direct Adaptation of Alice Sebold Memoir “Lucky”
Another Alice Sebold adaptation is in the works. Ten years after Saoirse Ronan-starrer “The Lovely Bones” hit theaters comes word that Sebold’s award-winning memoir...
The Academy to Honor Lina Wertmüller and Geena Davis
The Academy is set to honor the first woman to receive an Oscar nomination for directing and an Oscar-winning trailblazer who pushed the conversation about gender equality in the entertainment...
Jane Campion’s “The Power of the Dog” Acquired by Netflix
Netflix has snagged most worldwide rights to Jane Campion’s latest, “The Power of the Dog.” The streamer is planning a 2021 theatrical and streaming premiere for the adaptation of...
June 2019 Film Preview
The summer movie season is kicking off with dozens of films helmed by and centered on women. From Sundance pics to mega blockbusters, June promises to be a month chock-full of exciting...
Sally Rooney’s “Normal People” Heading to Hulu
“Normal People” is coming to the small screen. Hulu handed out a straight to series order on a 12-episode, half-hour drama based on Irish author Sally Rooney’s buzzy best-selling...
Weekly Update for May 31: Women Centric, Directed, and Written Films Playing Near You
FILMS ABOUT WOMEN OPENING Too Late to Die Young – Written and Directed by Dominga Sotomayor (Opens in NY; Opens in LA June 7) “Too Late To Die Young” Set in post-Pinochet Chile in...
Debra Granik to Receive Honor from Boston Society of Film Critics
Writer-director Debra Granik has been named as the inaugural receipt of the Boston Society of Film Critics’ (BSFC) Career Spotlight Award, an honor celebrating mid-career filmmakers. “Debra...
Sundance London 2019 Women Directors: Meet Alison Klayman – “The Brink”
Alison Klayman’s directorial debut, “Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry,” won a U.S. Documentary Special Jury Prize for Spirit of Defiance at Sundance Film Festival and was shortlisted for the...
Trailer Watch: Alia Shawkat and Holliday Grainger Are “Animals” in Sophie Hyde’s Latest
Alia Shawkat’s not ready for the party to end in a new UK trailer for “Animals.” An adaptation of Emma Jane Unsworth’s novel of the same name, the dramedy tells the story of...
Trailer Watch: Nanfu Wang & Jialing Zhang Revisit China’s One Child Policy in “One Child Nation”
Born during the height of China’s controversial, headline-making attempt to address its population crisis, Nanfu Wang never gave much thought to the One Child Policy. That all changed when the...
Naomi Kawase Begins Filming “Comes Morning”
Cannes darling Naomi Kawase has kicked off filming on her latest project, “Asa ga Kuru,” or “Comes Morning.” Inspired by a 2015 Mizuki Tsujimura novel, the Japanese...
Edinburgh Film Fest’s 2019 Lineup Includes “Go Back to China,” “The Black Forest,” & More
Nearly 43 percent features and shorts screening at the 2019 Edinburgh International Film Festival are directed or co-directed by a woman, the BBC reports. Slated to take place June 19-30, this...
Trailer Watch: Melissa McCarthy, Tiffany Haddish, and Elisabeth Moss Run “The Kitchen”
“Pretty doesn’t matter. It’s just a tool that women use,” says Melissa McCarthy in the first trailer for “The Kitchen.” Set in the ’70s, Andrea...
Apply Now: Chicken & Egg Pictures’ 2020 (Egg)celerator Lab
If you’re a woman or nonbinary director working on your first or second nonfiction feature, this is for you. Chicken & Egg Pictures is now accepting applications for its 2020 (Egg)celerator...
Karlovy Vary Film Fest’s 2019 Main Competition Lineup Is 25% Women-Directed
The Karlovy Vary International Film Festival has announced the lineup for its 54th edition. Cineuropa confirms 12 titles have been selected for the fest’s Main Competition. Three of those...
Sarah Streicher’s Amazon Pilot “The Wilds” Ordered to Series, Amy B. Harris Will Showrun
Amazon’s newest show will be “Mean Girls” meets “Lost” or more specifically, “part survival drama, part dystopic slumber party.” According to The Hollywood...
Our Bodies, Our Choice: VOD and Web Series Picks
Reproductive rights are under attack across the country. And while women throughout Hollywood are making their own efforts to defend access to safe abortion nationwide, there is still work to be done...
Trailer Watch: Ava DuVernay’s “When They See Us” Follows Central Park Five Before & After Conviction
In the latest trailer for “When They See Us,” Ava DuVernay’s Netflix miniseries about the Central Park Five, Antron McCray, Kevin Richardson, Yusef Salaam, Raymond Santana, and...
Cannes 2019 Winners Include “Portrait of a Lady on Fire,” “Atlantics,” and “For Sama”
Trailblazer Mati Diop has taken home Cannes Film Festival’s second-most prestigious prize. The French-Senegalese director made history as the first black female filmmaker to screen a feature in...
Weekly Update for May 24: Women Centric, Directed, and Written Films Playing Near You
FILMS ABOUT WOMEN OPENING Booksmart – Directed by Olivia Wilde; Written by Sarah Haskins, Susanna Fogel, Katie Silberman, and Emily Halpern “Booksmart” is one of the best movies I...
Cannes: “Bull” Director Annie Silverstein on Rodeo Culture and the Realities of On-Set Childcare
Interview by Becca Harrison Annie Silverstein won the Cinéfondation jury prize at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival for “Skunk,” a short about a 14-year-old girl whose pit bull is stolen by...
Louise Courvoisier’s “Mano a Mano” Takes Home Cannes Cinefondation Top Honor
Louise Courvoisier is leaving Cannes with a €15,000 grant (about $16,000 USD), the guarantee of having her debut feature screen at the fest, and the distinction of being named the first prize...
Cannes: Rebecca Zlotowski’s “An Easy Girl” Named Best French-Language Film at Directors’ Fortnight
Rebecca Zlotowski’s fourth feature has been honored at Cannes Film Festival. Her 2019 Directors’ Fortnight selection, “An Easy Girl,” won the sidebar’s prize for best...
“Gentleman Jack” Renewed for Season 2 at HBO and BBC
The Yorkshire lady of renown, the one who has the fairer sex under her spell, is sticking around. Deadline confirms “Gentleman Jack,” the HBO and BBC period drama about “first...
Quote of the Day: Gina Prince-Bythewood on Changing the Narrative About Women Directors
“I am seeing a definite shift, but it doesn’t mean that the numbers are not still absolutely abysmal,” Gina Prince-Bythewood tells Deadline in a new feature about the fight for gender parity...
Jill Magid on Exploring Art, Accessibility, and Legacy in “The Proposal”
Jill Magid is an artist, writer, and filmmaker whose work includes performance art and large and small-scale installations. She has been commissioned to make work for the Whitney Museum of American...
Maria Schrader Will Direct Netflix Miniseries Based on Deborah Feldman’s “Unorthodox”
Another woman-centric international series is in the works at Netflix. Production on “Unorthodox,” a miniseries inspired by Deborah Feldman’s best-selling memoir, has kicked off in...
Trailer Watch: A Writer Loses Her Mother and Gains a Double in Patricia Rozema’s “Mouthpiece”
Cass, a woman who has recently and unexpectedly lost her mother, is told “grief can manifest itself in unexpected ways” in a new trailer for Patricia Rozema’s latest....
Here & Queer: Crowdfunding Picks
Despite their place at the forefront of the women’s rights movement, queer women have long been marginalized, misunderstood, and underrepresented by media. The history and experiences of queer...