Television is much kinder to women.
The opportunities are greater, the stories richer, riskier, and more varied. TV isn’t a haven for women by any means, but they do get more chances to prove themselves and their talents.
That situation is pretty apparent from looking at the list of nominees for the Directors Guild of America’s TV awards. Women directors are represented in every category for fiction shows. Beth McCarthy Miller is a nominee in two — Comedy Series (30 Rock) and Movies for Television and Mini-Series (The Sound of Music Live!).
The only scripted categories not to recognize a woman director are Variety/Talk/News/Sports and Variety/Talk/News/Sports — Special. The former is dominated by late-night talk shows and SNL — and both those have unacknowledged problems with sexism. (Late-night shows remain a realm of white men; SNL has gotten a lot better about women over the years, but every episode since 2006 has been directed by Don Roy King.) As for the Specials category, well, no one said sexism was dead.
Scroll down for the list of female nominees competing for the DGA-TV Awards:
MOVIES FOR TELEVISION AND MINI-SERIES
BETH McCARTHY-MILLER (Directed By)
ROB ASHFORD (Theatrical Direction By)
The Sound of Music Live!
(NBC)
McCarthy-Miller and Ashford’s Directorial Team:
- Associate Directors: Stefani Cohen, Susan Kopensky
- Stage Managers: Lynn Finkel, Howard Kolins, Jeff Markowitz, Jeffrey L. Pearl, Annette Powlis, Elise Reaves, Lauren Class Schneider, Karen Tasch Weiss, Tom Ucciferri
This is McCarthy-Miller’s tenth DGA Award nomination. She is also nominated this year for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Comedy Series for the “Hogcock!/Last Lunch” episode of 30 Rock. She was previously nominated in the Comedy Series category for 30 Rock episodes “Live from Studio 6H” in 2012, “Live Show” in 2010, “The Reunion Episode #304” in 2008 and “Somebody to Love” in 2007. She won the DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Musical Variety twice, in 2001 forAmerica: A Tribute to Heroes (co-directed with Joel Gallen) and in 2000 for the “Val Kilmer/U2” episode of Saturday Night Live. She was also twice nominated in that category for Saturday Night Live episodes “Christopher Walken & The Foo Fighters” in 2003 and the 25th Anniversary episode in 1999.
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DRAMATIC SERIES
LESLI LINKA GLATTER
Homeland, “The Star”
(Showtime)
Glatter’s Directorial Team:
- Unit Production Managers: Pavlina Hatoupis, J. David Brightbill
- First Assistant Directors: Sunday Stevens, Susan Walter
- Second Assistant Director: Kim Kennedy
This is Glatter’s fourth DGA Award nomination. She won the DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Dramatic Series in 2009 for the “Guy Walks Into an Advertising Agency” episode of Mad Men and was also nominated in this category for “Episode 32006” of Twin Peaks in 1990 and for the “Q & A” episode of Homeland in 2012.
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COMEDY SERIES
The nominees for the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Comedy Series for 2013 are (in alphabetical order):
GAIL MANCUSO
Modern Family, “My Hero”
(ABC)
Mancuso’s Directorial Team:
- Unit Production Manager: Sally Young
- First Assistant Director: Alisa Statman
- Second Assistant Director: Helena Lamb
This is Mancuso’s first DGA Award nomination.
BETH McCARTHY-MILLER
30 Rock, “Hogcock!/Last Lunch”
(NBC)
McCarthy-Miller’s Directorial Team:
- Unit Production Manager: Diana Schmidt
- First Assistant Director: Stephen Lee Davis
- Second Assistant Director: Vanessa Hoffman
- Assistant UPM: Bill Sell
This is McCarthy-Miller’s tenth DGA Award nomination. She is also nominated this year, together with Ashford, in the Movies for Television and Mini-Series category for The Sound of Music Live! She was previously nominated in this category for 30 Rock episodes “Live from Studio 6H” in 2012, “Live Show” in 2010, “The Reunion Episode #304” in 2008 and “Somebody to Love” in 2007. She won the DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Musical Variety twice, in 2001 for America: A Tribute to Heroes (co-directed with Gallen) and in 2000 for the “Val Kilmer/U2” episode of Saturday Night Live. She was also twice nominated in that category for Saturday Night Live episodes “Christopher Walken & The Foo Fighters” in 2003 and the 25th Anniversary episode in 1999.
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CHILDREN’S PROGRAMS
AMY SCHATZ
An Apology to Elephants
(HBO)
This is Ms. Schatz’s eighth DGA Award nomination. She won the DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Children’s Programs four times for A Child’s Garden of Poetry in 2011, Classical Baby (I’m Grown Up Now) “The Poetry Show” in 2008, ’Twas the Night in 2001 and Goodnight Moon & Other Sleepy Time Tales in 1999. She was also nominated an additional three times in this category forDon’t Divorce Me! Kids’ Rules for Parents on Divorce in 2012, Hard Times for an American Girl: The Great Depression in 2009 and Through a Child’s Eyes: September 11, 2001 in 2002.
