FILMS ABOUT WOMEN OPENING
The Bookshop – Written and Directed by Isabel Coixet (U.S. Release) (Opens in NY and LA)
England, 1959. Free-spirited widow Florence Green (Emily Mortimer) risks everything to open a bookshop in a conservative East Anglian coastal town. While bringing about a surprising cultural awakening through works by Ray Bradbury and Vladimir Nabokov, she earns the polite but ruthless opposition of a local grand dame (Patricia Clarkson) and the support and affection of a reclusive book loving widower (Bill Nighy). As Florence’s obstacles amass and bear suspicious signs of a local power struggle, she is forced to ask: is there a place for a bookshop in a town that may not want one? (Press materials)
Find screening info here.
The Children Act (Opens in the UK; Opens in the U.S. September 14)
“The Children Act”
Fiona Maye (Emma Thompson) is an eminent High Court judge in London presiding with wisdom and compassion over ethically complex cases of family law. But she has paid a heavy personal price for her workload, and her marriage to American professor Jack (Stanley Tucci) is at a breaking point. In this moment of personal crisis, Fiona is asked to rule on the case of Adam (Fionn Whitehead), a brilliant boy who is refusing the blood transfusion that will save his life. Adam is three months from his 18th birthday and still legally a child. Should Fiona force him to live? Fiona visits Adam in the hospital and their meeting has a profound emotional impact on them both, stirring strong new emotions in the boy and long-buried feelings in her. (Press materials)
Find screening info here.
Support the Girls
“Support the Girls”
Lisa (Regina Hall) is the last person you’d expect to find in a highway-side “sports bar with curves,” but as general manager at Double Whammies, she’s come to love the place and its customers. An incurable den mother, she nurtures and protects her girls fiercely — but over the course of one trying day, her optimism is battered from every direction. Double Whammies sells a big, weird American fantasy, but what happens when reality pokes a bunch of holes in it? (Press materials)
Find screening info here.
The Happytime Murders
“The Happytime Murders”
No Sesame. All Street. “The Happytime Murders” is a filthy comedy set in the seedy underbelly of Los Angeles where puppets and humans coexist. Two clashing detectives with a shared secret, one human (Melissa McCarthy) and one puppet, are forced to work together again to solve the brutal murders of the former cast of a beloved classic puppet television show. (Press materials)
Find screening info here.
Arizona (Also Available on VOD)
Cassie (Rosemarie DeWitt) is a real estate agent and single mom struggling to keep it all together. Things go from bad to worse when a disgruntled client, Sonny (Danny McBride), confronts Cassie’s boss and accidentally kills him. Having witnessed the crime, Sonny kidnaps Cassie to keep her quiet until he figures out what to do. But he makes one outrageously bad — and bloody — decision after another, until things completely spiral out of control. (Press materials)
What Keeps You Alive (Also Available on VOD)
“What Keeps You Alive”
How much can you really know about another person? The unsettling truth that even those closest to us can harbor hidden dimensions drives this thrillingly unpredictable, blood-stained fear trip. Jackie (Hannah Emily Anderson) and Jules (Brittany Allen) are a couple celebrating their one-year anniversary at a secluded cabin in the woods belonging to Jackie’s family. From the moment they arrive, something changes in Jules’ normally loving wife, as Jackie (if that even is her real name) begins to reveal a previously unknown dark side — all building up to a shocking revelation that will pit Jules against the woman she loves most in a terrifying fight to survive. (Press materials)
FILMS MADE BY WOMEN OPENING
“Hot to Trot”: Chris Phan
Hot to Trot (Documentary) – Directed by Gail Freedman (Opens in NY; Opens in LA September 14)
An immersive character study — and an idiosyncratic attack on bigotry — “Hot to Trot” gets up on the stage and goes behind the scenes to discover the captivating but little known world of same-sex competitive ballroom dance, a world where expressions of personal passion become a political statement, and where one false step can crush aspirations. (Press materials)
Parwaaz Hai Junoon – Written by Farhat Ishtiaq
“Parwaaz Hai Junoon,” a tribute to the Pakistan Air Force (PAF), is a feel good story based around the life of its cadets. The film will take our audiences through the events and experiences that take place at the PAF training academy. With a fresh and young ensemble of actors, this vibrant story focuses on their love of flying, love for our country, and the bond between a group of girls and boys who overcome various challenges to become Pakistan’s top notch fighter pilots. (Press materials)
Last Curtain Call – Directed by Jennifer Tadlock (Also Available on VOD)
An aspiring rock star finally gets his big break in the music industry after having neglected everyone he loves and is now trying to make up for lost time, but will he be too late? (Press materials)
Load Wedding – Written by Fizza Ali Meerza and Nabeel Qureshi
“Load Wedding” is a social comedy encircling the stigmas attached in our society to weddings with just the right blend of light hearted comedy, ironic situations, and intense emotions. The story unfolds with Raja (Fahad Mustafa), who lives in a small town with his parents and an unmarried sister; Baby Baji. The plot takes a twist when Raja finally musters up the courage to profess his feelings for Meeru (Mehwish Hayat) but life throws a curve ball at him. The sudden demise of his father that very day leaves Raja with the responsibility of filling in his father’s shoes and also finding a husband for his sister. (Press materials)
TV PREMIERES
“The Innocents”
Switch (Web Series) – Created and Written by Stavroula Toska (Available Now on switchtheseries.com)
Stella (Stavroula Toska) is a broken woman with a dark past who begins training as a dominatrix at Athena’s Temple aka The Temp, New York’s most exclusive BDSM Establishment. Through Stella’s eyes we meet the women and men who inhabit the world of BDSM and Elizabeth (Olympia Dukakis), the woman who built an empire out of the BDSM industry and who will soon change the course of Stella’s life. (Press materials)
The Innocents – Created by Hania Elkington and Simon Duric (Premieres August 24 on Netflix)
When teenagers Harry (Percelle Ascott) and June (Sorcha Groundsell) run away from their repressive family lives to be together, they are thrown into an extraordinary journey of self-discovery that derails their innocent dream. Secrets kept from them by their respective parents test their love to the breaking point, and the extraordinary gift they possess unleashes powerful forces intent on dividing them forever. (Press materials)
Safe Harbour – Created by Belinda Chayko, Phil Enchelmaier, and Simon Kennedy (Premieres August 24 on Hulu)
“Safe Harbour”
On a yachting holiday from Darwin to Indonesia, five Australians come across a broken-down fishing boat, full of desperate asylum seekers. The Australians decide to help, towing the refugees, but when they wake the next morning the fishing boat is gone. Five years later they meet some of the refugees again and learn the truth. Someone cut the rope between the two boats and, as a result, seven people died when the fishing boat sank. The revelation drives a wedge of mistrust between the Australians, as they grapple with protecting themselves and doing the right thing. The refugees struggle with their desire for justice and, possibly, revenge. Old secrets come to light, relationships are shattered, and lives are put in danger. And one question hangs over it all – who cut the rope? (Press materials)
VOD/STREAMING RELEASES
“The Guardians”
The Sisters Plotz – Directed by Lisa Hammer; Written by Lisa Ferber (Available Now on Amazon Prime)
Book Club – Written by Erin Simms and Bill Holderman (VOD, August 28)
Brand New Old Love – Written and Directed by Cat Rhinehart (VOD, August 28)
The Elephant and the Butterfly – Directed by Amélie van Elmbt; Written by Amélie van Elmbt and Matthieu de Braconier (VOD, August 28)
The Guardians – Written by Marie-Julie Maille, Frédérique Moreau, and Xavier Beauvois (VOD, August 28)
WOMEN AND HOLLYWOOD IN THE NEWS
Why Hollywood’s diversity numbers haven’t budged (Women’s Media Center)
After #MeToo, Hollywood women seize power behind TV camera (Reuters)
PICKS OF THE WEEK FROM WOMEN AND HOLLYWOOD
Kelly Marie Tran in “Star Wars: The Last Jedi”: Lucasfilm
Both Sloan Science in Cinema Filmmaker Fellowships Go to Women Writer-Directors
Under the Radar: Yoko Yamanaka’s “Amiko” Is A Raw Coming-of-Age Story
IMDbPro’s New App Includes Tap-to-Call WIF Sexual Harassment Hotline Feature
Hollywood Girls News Steals Content
Lillian Yu Sells Chinese Holiday-Themed Rom-Com Spec to New Line
Jodie Whittaker-Led “Doctor Who” Features Female Writer of Color For the First Time
Quote of the Day: “Star Wars’” Kelly Marie Tran Refuses to Be Silenced by Online Harassment
Exclusive: Betty White Recalls Her TV Debut in “First Lady of Television” Clip
Forbes’ Highest-Paid Actresses 2018: Scarlett Johansson Is No. 1, Gal Gadot Makes the Cut
Writer to Watch: “Sierra Burgess Is a Loser” Scribe Lindsey Beer
Follow Women and Hollywood on Twitter @WomenaHollywood and Melissa Silverstein @melsil.
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