Film Directing Tips, Film Making Articles and Online Resources for the Independent Filmmaker » Women in Film

TFW Forum on Women Filmmakers

Peter D. Marshall — Thu, 17 May 2012 12:56:10 +0000

by Darnell L. Moore.

TFW is excited to highlight the inventive work of several phenomenal women filmmakers in a forum that runs from today through Friday. Carmen Torres, tiona m., Aishah Shahidah Simmons, Anna Barsan, Pratibha Parmar, and Nev Nnaji reflect on the plight of women filmmakers in a male-dominated industry, feminist approaches taken up in filmmaking, filmmaking as both an art form and modality for social change, and their processes.

Read the rest of this article from The Feminist Wire.

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Where All my Ladies at in the Microbudget, Independent Filmmaking Revolution?

Peter D. Marshall — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 12:18:34 +0000

by Vera Miao.

Have you ever heard of the “Bechdel Test”?

Invented by Alison Bechdel in her classic comic series, Dykes to Watch Out For, this ingeniously simple test has only three criteria to apply to any movie: (1) it has to have at least two women in it who (2) talk to each other about (3) something besides a man.

As an actress and filmmaker, I will not tempt depression and existential crisis again by thinking too hard about how many movies stand up to the Bechdel Test. But go ahead. Do it.

In 2006, I took a deep breath and left my full-time career in the non-profit, social justice world to test my theory that acting could be another step in doing my small part to create social change, this time through storytelling. And while I still believe in the beautiful, transformative power of storytelling, Hollywood has taught me a lot of hard realities about who really gets to tell what stories.The Bechdel Test says it much more simply. I shudder to think if any movies would hold up if we factored in people of color or of different sexual orientation in addition to women (or God forbid, all three).

Out of all movies in the U.S. released in 2011, only 5% were directed by women, 4% shot by women, 14% written by women, and 25% produced by women.

Read the rest of this article from Huffington Post.

Female filmmakers subject of Randolph College’s Driver Film Festival

Peter D. Marshall — Sat, 24 Mar 2012 13:02:18 +0000

by Casey Gillis.

Randolph College’s 2012 Driver Film Festival is focusing on female filmmakers this year.

“Women Behind the Lens,” set for this weekend, will feature talks and screenings with directors Tracey Deer, an up-and-coming Canadian filmmaker, and Robin Honan, who produced the Oscar-winning documentary “Freeheld.”

“The idea [for the festival] is to bring in people who are working in the field in different capacities to … meet with students,” says communications professor Jennifer Gauthier. “To give them a sense of what it’s like to be in the film industry and show lots of different kinds of work.”

Read the rest of this article from The Burg.

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Indian Filmmakers: For women, of women, by women

Peter D. Marshall — Sat, 17 Mar 2012 13:23:44 +0000

by Laxmi Birajdar.

A close-knit group of women film-makers, experts and technicians in the city are taking up women-centric issues steering clear of gender stereotypes, cliches and a set attitude towards women that is strongly reflected in Indian cinema.

As a writer, producer and director, Sumitra Bhave has made films like ‘Nital,’ ‘Ek Cup Chya’ and ‘Gho Mala Asa Hava.’ Her directorial approach avoids stereotypes, conventional gender biases and societal cliches.

The first film is about a leukoderma-affected woman who marries a doctor; the second is about the RTI Act from a woman’s perspective, while the third is about a comedy about a village girl looking for a suitable match.

However, exhibiting such films is a hurdle. “I pen and make my films with a different value system. There are subtle undertones that project the woman’s point of view. I choose not to show the conventional male perspective on feminine beauty and feminist issues. Such films resonate with a thinking audience. However, I have had to struggle to get my films through to the audiences because of middlemen like distributors and exhibitors. They need convincing,” Bhave said.

Read the res of this article from Times of India.

Oscars 2012: Where are the female directors?

Peter D. Marshall — Sat, 03 Mar 2012 13:11:41 +0000

by Linda Barnard.

At the 2010 Oscars, Kathryn Bigelow made history as she accepted the Academy Award for Best Director for her powerful dramatic thriller, The Hurt Locker, the first woman to take the prize.

It was a pivotal moment for women working behind the camera and a signal that the male-dominated industry was welcoming new voices into the elite filmmakers’ club. But the euphoria was short-lived.

“I think Bigelow was caught between a rock and a hard place,” says writer-director Leslie Ann Coles, founder and director of Toronto’s Female Eye Film Festival, which marks its 10th year next month.

“If she acknowledged, ‘Hey, I’m a woman director,’ the feminists said, ‘It’s not about being a woman, why make it an issue?’ At the same time, what she did — thank you.”

Read the rest of this article from The Star.

Sundance, Women In Film promote female filmmakers

Peter D. Marshall — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 13:15:33 +0000

by Sandy Cohen.

The Sundance Institute and Women In Film are working together to track female filmmakers who are showing their work at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival and plan to use the data to increase women’s presence in all areas of filmmaking.

The aim of the joint effort, announced Monday, is to “initiate a real hard look at why this constant lack of parity seems to exist in terms of the amount of women working in film and media and the amount of men,” said Cathy Shulman, president of Women in Film. “What does it really mean and why is it happening, and instead of talking about it every year as a fact, start to see if we could be part of a solution.”

Keri Putnam, president of the Sundance Institute, said the organizations were motivated by statistics that show that only 5 percent of the top 250 films last year were directed by women. That figure hasn’t changed since 1998.

Read the rest of this article from Associated Press.

Feminist Films and Women Filmmakers

Peter D. Marshall — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 13:06:49 +0000

from The Bay Net.

St. Mary’s College of Maryland’s fifth annual film series, Out of Bounds: Feminist Films and Filmmakers, will focus on the work of women filmmakers and women’s filmmaking collectives. It kicks off with Yun Suh, who will screen her film “City of Borders” at 8:15 p.m. Monday, Feb. 6, in Cole Cinema in the college’s Campus Center, and answer questions afterwards.

Read the rest of this article from The Bay Net.

Emirati women push boundaries in exploring social issues

Peter D. Marshall — Sat, 17 Dec 2011 13:47:04 +0000

by Imran Mojib.

Emirati filmmakers vying for the prestigious Muhr Awards at the Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF) 2011 explore diverse genres and present varied facets of life in the UAE and universal stories through science fiction, animation, music documentaries as well as short and full length feature films.

However, it is three women filmmakers who have surprised movie buffs and critics alike through their investigation of the socio-cultural scenario in the UAE.

London in a Headscarf, by UK-based Emirati director Mariam Al Sarkal, documents the journey of an Emirati girl who moves abroad to pursue higher education. Caught up in a difficult situation of holding onto her cultural identity even when in a foreign country, she realises the consequence of her decision and how her move may impact her eligibility as a potential bride. The film made its international premiere at DIFF.

Read the rest of this article from Gulf Today.

Julie Dash and the ongoing struggle of black women filmmakers

Peter D. Marshall — Sat, 17 Sep 2011 12:35:23 +0000

by Craig D. Lindsey.

In the realm of American independent film, Julie Dash’s Daughters of the Dust is a landmark. Shot on St. Helena Island in South Carolina with an $800,000 budget and starring a predominantly black cast, the film focuses on three generations of Gullah women.

Gullah refers to African-Americans who reside in the low-country Sea Islands of South Carolina and Georgia, and Dash’s story, set in 1902, narrates the emotionally charged conflicts that ensue when several family members decide to migrate to the mainland.

Dust premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 1991, where it was nominated for the Grand Jury Prize and won a cinematography award. It’s worth mentioning that the American indie scene was remarkably fertile in those days: Steven Soderbergh and Quentin Tarantino were finding their legs, and the 1991 Sundance festival included breakthrough films by Richard Linklater (Slacker) and Todd Haynes (Poison).

While those filmmakers went on to great success in both independent and mainstream film, Dash was left, shall we say, in the dust.

Read the rest of this article from Indyweek.

The Experiences of an Ethiopian Migrant Worker and Filmmaker in Lebanon

Peter D. Marshall — Wed, 07 Sep 2011 12:31:33 +0000

by Bini,

Rahel Zegeye from Ethiopia, talks about her passion for filmmaking and her desire to tell the experiences of Ethiopian migrant workers in Lebanon, where she lives and works.

Janie Shen of Migrant Workers Task Force has this to say about Rahel Zegeye: “A very talented and unique woman, she is most probably the one domestic worker in Lebanon (or the world?) who has put all her savings and free time to filmmaking.”

Rahel, you have been living and working in Lebanon for some years and made the film Beirut focusing on the experiences of a group of Ethiopian migrant workers living in Lebanon. What brought you to Lebanon and what inspired you to make the film?

Read the rest of this article from Newsdire.