Lena Dunham says she primarily sticks to the script when directing, but finds that a few improvisational takes can add some pretty great moments to a film.
“I always, when I’m directing, tend to do a few takes totally to script and one take with a little bit of improv and then I’ll grab the best moments from that improvised take. It might just be a glance or a cough or a line,” Dunham told Women in Film CEO Kirsten Schaffer during Wrap Women’s Power Women Summit panel, Spotlight Conversation: View from the Director’s Chair.
Dunham then offered an analogy to further explain her directing choice: “The dish is the script and the improv is the garnish. You don’t change the substance of the scene but it’s a great way to add texture and realism. My favorite films are the ones where you’re...
“I always, when I’m directing, tend to do a few takes totally to script and one take with a little bit of improv and then I’ll grab the best moments from that improvised take. It might just be a glance or a cough or a line,” Dunham told Women in Film CEO Kirsten Schaffer during Wrap Women’s Power Women Summit panel, Spotlight Conversation: View from the Director’s Chair.
Dunham then offered an analogy to further explain her directing choice: “The dish is the script and the improv is the garnish. You don’t change the substance of the scene but it’s a great way to add texture and realism. My favorite films are the ones where you’re...
- 12/13/2022
- by Drew Taylor
- The Wrap
Wif has announced the honorees for the 2022 Wif Honors that will be held on Thursday, October 27 at The Beverly Hilton.
The annual benefit supports Wif’s educational and philanthropic programs and its advocacy for gender parity throughout the industry. This year’s Wif Honors will celebrate the women who are forging forward: laying the foundation to transform Hollywood for the better, with their ingenuity, vision, and persistence. To find out more about the event, visit www.wif.org/honors.
The iconic Crystal Award for Advocacy will be presented to:
Quinta Brunson for “Abbott Elementary” (in conversation with Sheryl Lee Ralph)
Gina Prince-bythewood for “The Woman King” (presented by Viola Davis)
Katie Silberman and Olivia Wilde in conversation about “Don’t Worry Darling”
The Jane Fonda Humanitarian Award will be presented by Jane Fonda to:
Michaela Coel
The Crystal Award for Advocacy honors outstanding individuals and groups of women who are creating...
The annual benefit supports Wif’s educational and philanthropic programs and its advocacy for gender parity throughout the industry. This year’s Wif Honors will celebrate the women who are forging forward: laying the foundation to transform Hollywood for the better, with their ingenuity, vision, and persistence. To find out more about the event, visit www.wif.org/honors.
The iconic Crystal Award for Advocacy will be presented to:
Quinta Brunson for “Abbott Elementary” (in conversation with Sheryl Lee Ralph)
Gina Prince-bythewood for “The Woman King” (presented by Viola Davis)
Katie Silberman and Olivia Wilde in conversation about “Don’t Worry Darling”
The Jane Fonda Humanitarian Award will be presented by Jane Fonda to:
Michaela Coel
The Crystal Award for Advocacy honors outstanding individuals and groups of women who are creating...
- 9/23/2022
- Look to the Stars
Applications are open for the Hire Her Back Fund, a grant supporting women filmmakers whose careers have been adversely impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. Members of Women in Film local chapters — Wif Los Angeles, New York Women in Film and Television, and Women in Film and Television Atlanta — are eligible to apply.
“We are grateful to all who have answered the call to support this fund so that we, along with our sister chapters in New York and Atlanta, can provide some relief to the women whose work in our industry has suffered,” Wif Los Angeles executive director Kirsten Schaffer said in a statement. “We hope that the fund can buoy these women and make it more possible to sustain their careers in entertainment.”
The fund is part of the Hire Her Back initiative launched in June, urging employers to fight for gender equality across film and television by implementing...
“We are grateful to all who have answered the call to support this fund so that we, along with our sister chapters in New York and Atlanta, can provide some relief to the women whose work in our industry has suffered,” Wif Los Angeles executive director Kirsten Schaffer said in a statement. “We hope that the fund can buoy these women and make it more possible to sustain their careers in entertainment.”
The fund is part of the Hire Her Back initiative launched in June, urging employers to fight for gender equality across film and television by implementing...
- 10/21/2020
- by Janet W. Lee
- Variety Film + TV
Women in Film Los Angeles on Wednesday launched Hire Her Back, an initiative to call on entertainment companies to continue to seek gender and racial equality in their hiring as the the industry looks to return to film and TV production after the Covid-19 shutdown.
Key to the initiative is the Hire Her Back Fund, a partnership among Wif, New York Women in Film & Television and Women In Film and Television Atlanta to provide grants to women in the industry whose livelihoods have been adversely affected by the pandemic. ShivHans Pictures founder Shivani Rawat has provided seed funding, and more contributions can be made at WiF.org. More info will be available next month about applying for the grants, which will be administered by The Actors Fund.
Wif said Wednesday that the overall campaign will be rolled out and amplified over the coming weeks, will also call attention to the...
Key to the initiative is the Hire Her Back Fund, a partnership among Wif, New York Women in Film & Television and Women In Film and Television Atlanta to provide grants to women in the industry whose livelihoods have been adversely affected by the pandemic. ShivHans Pictures founder Shivani Rawat has provided seed funding, and more contributions can be made at WiF.org. More info will be available next month about applying for the grants, which will be administered by The Actors Fund.
Wif said Wednesday that the overall campaign will be rolled out and amplified over the coming weeks, will also call attention to the...
- 6/11/2020
- by Patrick Hipes
- Deadline Film + TV
Women in Film Los Angeles launched the Hire Her Back Initiative on Wednesday. The initiative advocates the rehiring of women and people of color at the same rate and frequency as men as the entertainment industry looks to return from the coronavirus.
The campaign notes Covid-19 has had a disproportionate effect on women and people of color, citing higher unemployment rates for women than men in the month of May and historical data that shows women and people of color are not hired back into jobs at the same rate as men following an economic downturn.
Hire Her Back is a multimedia campaign that will lean on women in the screen industries to urge employers to adhere to equality in hiring as the industry moves toward the return of film and TV production. And Wif will also partner with New York Women in Film & Television (Nywift) and Women In...
The campaign notes Covid-19 has had a disproportionate effect on women and people of color, citing higher unemployment rates for women than men in the month of May and historical data that shows women and people of color are not hired back into jobs at the same rate as men following an economic downturn.
Hire Her Back is a multimedia campaign that will lean on women in the screen industries to urge employers to adhere to equality in hiring as the industry moves toward the return of film and TV production. And Wif will also partner with New York Women in Film & Television (Nywift) and Women In...
- 6/10/2020
- by Brian Welk
- The Wrap
“We call on leaders to join us in building a new normal that prioritises equity and career sustainability for women, especially women of colour, in the screen industries.”
Wif is launching the Hire Her Back multimedia campaign and calling on entertainment employers to achieve gender and racial parity as the industry plans to resume production.
Hire Her Back will call attention to the disproportionate impact of Covid-19 on women and people of colour and will roll out in the coming weeks with the support of industry figures.
Wif in partnership with New York Women in Film & Television (Nywift) and...
Wif is launching the Hire Her Back multimedia campaign and calling on entertainment employers to achieve gender and racial parity as the industry plans to resume production.
Hire Her Back will call attention to the disproportionate impact of Covid-19 on women and people of colour and will roll out in the coming weeks with the support of industry figures.
Wif in partnership with New York Women in Film & Television (Nywift) and...
- 6/10/2020
- by 36¦Jeremy Kay¦54¦
- ScreenDaily
When the Hollywood Foreign Press Association failed to nominate any women for Best Director at the 2020 Golden Globes, many in the industry were swift to point out a large catalog of eligible names that should’ve been up for consideration. The list is long, but if those names aren’t top of mind, we find that many voters inevitably default to the safer (read: male) options. Simply put: they need more visibility.
Women in Film is spearheading a campaign that aims to fix that. Wif’s #VoteForWomen initiative, in partnership with Women and Hollywood and New York Women in Film and Television, is meant to encourage voters to think of women when they fill out their awards ballots, but it’s also meant to show the enormous breadth of female talent that’s within the industry yet often fails to get recognized for the biggest honors in film and TV for the year.
Women in Film is spearheading a campaign that aims to fix that. Wif’s #VoteForWomen initiative, in partnership with Women and Hollywood and New York Women in Film and Television, is meant to encourage voters to think of women when they fill out their awards ballots, but it’s also meant to show the enormous breadth of female talent that’s within the industry yet often fails to get recognized for the biggest honors in film and TV for the year.
- 12/13/2019
- by Brian Welk
- The Wrap
A record 18 percent of movies slated for release in 2019 from Hollywood’s six major studios have a female director, a substantial jump from just 3 percent in 2018, TheWrap has found.
Sixteen of the 87 studio films slated for release in 2019 have at least one woman credited as director — up from just three last year, when fully half of the majors had zero female directors on their wide-release slates.
Another sign of progress: For the first time in history, all six major studios have at least one film directed by a woman on their slates in 2019.
And perhaps as a reflection of public outcry about gender parity in Hollywood from organizations like Women in Film, the female-directed projects reflect a wide gamut of genres and budgets, from Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck’s big-budget superhero movie “Captain Marvel” for Disney to Greta Gerwig’s starry literary adaptation of “Little Women” for Sony to...
Sixteen of the 87 studio films slated for release in 2019 have at least one woman credited as director — up from just three last year, when fully half of the majors had zero female directors on their wide-release slates.
Another sign of progress: For the first time in history, all six major studios have at least one film directed by a woman on their slates in 2019.
And perhaps as a reflection of public outcry about gender parity in Hollywood from organizations like Women in Film, the female-directed projects reflect a wide gamut of genres and budgets, from Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck’s big-budget superhero movie “Captain Marvel” for Disney to Greta Gerwig’s starry literary adaptation of “Little Women” for Sony to...
- 2/28/2019
- by Jeremy Fuster
- The Wrap
While 2018 saw the demand for gender equality in movies reach an all-time high in Hollywood, Cannes and beyond, two new studies this week have served as a sobering reminder that the push for better representation is a marathon, not a sprint.
USC Annenberg’s Inclusion Initiative study, conducted by Dr. Stacy L. Smith, found that just four female directors worked on the 100 top-grossing movies in 2018 — the lowest number in at least four years. Over the 12-year span of the study, only 4.3 percent of all 1,335 directors surveyed were women. That’s a ratio of 22 men to every woman.
Meanwhile, a new study by San Diego State University, “Celluloid Ceiling,” found that the percentage of women who directed the top-grossing 250 films dropped from 11 percent in 2017 to just 8 percent in 2018. When the list expands to 500 films, the year-to-year percentage still drops from 18 percent to 15 percent.
Also Read: Female Directors Dropped to Just 8 Percent...
USC Annenberg’s Inclusion Initiative study, conducted by Dr. Stacy L. Smith, found that just four female directors worked on the 100 top-grossing movies in 2018 — the lowest number in at least four years. Over the 12-year span of the study, only 4.3 percent of all 1,335 directors surveyed were women. That’s a ratio of 22 men to every woman.
Meanwhile, a new study by San Diego State University, “Celluloid Ceiling,” found that the percentage of women who directed the top-grossing 250 films dropped from 11 percent in 2017 to just 8 percent in 2018. When the list expands to 500 films, the year-to-year percentage still drops from 18 percent to 15 percent.
Also Read: Female Directors Dropped to Just 8 Percent...
- 1/6/2019
- by Jeremy Fuster
- The Wrap
On Wednesday, June 13th, Women In Film, Los Angeles (Wif) celebrated outstanding women in the entertainment industry with the 2018 Crystal + Lucy Awards presented by sponsors Max Mara, Lancôme and Lexus.
Ellen Pompeo Speaks Onstage
Credit/Copyright: Getty Images for Women In Film
The evening, themed “Ignited,” raised funds and awareness for Women In Film, La and its many educational and philanthropic programs, and its advocacy for gender parity for women throughout the industry.
The 2018 Crystal + Lucy Award honorees included the following: Brie Larson with The Crystal Award for Excellence in Film presented to her by actress and friend Jessie Ennis; Channing Dungey with The Lucy Award for Excellence in Television presented to her by actress Ellen Pompeo; Alexandra Shipp with the Women In Film Max Mara Face of the Future Award presented to her by actress Regina Hall and Max Mara Vice President Us Retail and Global Brand Ambassador Maria...
Ellen Pompeo Speaks Onstage
Credit/Copyright: Getty Images for Women In Film
The evening, themed “Ignited,” raised funds and awareness for Women In Film, La and its many educational and philanthropic programs, and its advocacy for gender parity for women throughout the industry.
The 2018 Crystal + Lucy Award honorees included the following: Brie Larson with The Crystal Award for Excellence in Film presented to her by actress and friend Jessie Ennis; Channing Dungey with The Lucy Award for Excellence in Television presented to her by actress Ellen Pompeo; Alexandra Shipp with the Women In Film Max Mara Face of the Future Award presented to her by actress Regina Hall and Max Mara Vice President Us Retail and Global Brand Ambassador Maria...
- 6/15/2018
- Look to the Stars
Women in Film is now accepting applications for its 2018 Finishing Fund and Belgian beer Stella Artois continuing its support of female filmmakers with the announcement of $100,000 in new grant funding.
The Women in Film Finishing Fund will award 10-15 grants in cash and in-kind gifts for films by and/or about women as represented in documentary, fiction, animated and/or experimental films, shorts or feature length. Stella Artois will provide four $25,000 grants for fiction and documentary films that inspire social change, with particular consideration given to films with a water theme.
To kick off the opening of the submission period, Wif and Stella Artois will host a screening of director Amy Adrion’s documentary “Half the Picture” in Los Angeles Thursday night. The film – a Stella Artois-funded Film Finishing Fund grant recipient last year — examines Hollywood’s discrimination against female filmmakers in the hiring of film and television directors, and features interviews with Ava DuVernay, Lena Dunham, Jill Soloway and others.
The film had its World Premiere at this year’s Sundance Film Festival and will open theatrically in June.
Also Read: Power Lunch With Dakota Fanning: 'You're Not Telling a Women's Story, You're Telling a Human Story' (Exclusive Video)
“The support from Stella Artois has truly magnified the impact of the Fund for our filmmakers,” said Wif executive director Kirsten Schaffer. “We have seen this in both their financial assistance toward completion of the films and also the platform given to these filmmakers through events like the ‘Filmmaker Roundtable’ at Sundance Film Festival. We are thrilled to continue our partnership with Stella Artois in empowering the next generation of films.”
An advocate of film and its community, Stella Artois hopes to inspire up-and-coming female filmmakers as the 2019 festival season approaches.
“By funding these grants, we’re thrilled to continue our commitment to women in the film industry and help them achieve their dreams,” said Stella Artois brand director, Anna Rogers. “It’s incredibly exciting to follow these films as they make a difference in the world and we hope to encourage other filmmakers to use their medium to do the same.”
Since its inception in 1985, the Film Finishing Fund has awarded more than $2 million worth of grants to cover 235 films from all over the world, films that have gone on to win Academy, Peabody, Berlin FilmFestival and Sundance Awards. This year alone, past grant winners premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, like, Amy Adrion’s “Half the Picture,” Stephanie Soechtig’s “The Devil We Know,” Christina Choe’s “Nancy,” and Heather Lenz’s “Kusama: Infinity.”
Applications are being accepted beginning April 26 through June 30 for the Women in Film Finishing Fund grants. Recipients will be announced in November. Interested filmmakers can visit the Wif website http://womeninfilm.org. Entrants do not have to be Women in Film members to apply for a grant. Detailed requirements will be available in the online application.
Read original story Women in Film’s $100,000 Finishing Fund Grants Open for Submission At TheWrap...
The Women in Film Finishing Fund will award 10-15 grants in cash and in-kind gifts for films by and/or about women as represented in documentary, fiction, animated and/or experimental films, shorts or feature length. Stella Artois will provide four $25,000 grants for fiction and documentary films that inspire social change, with particular consideration given to films with a water theme.
To kick off the opening of the submission period, Wif and Stella Artois will host a screening of director Amy Adrion’s documentary “Half the Picture” in Los Angeles Thursday night. The film – a Stella Artois-funded Film Finishing Fund grant recipient last year — examines Hollywood’s discrimination against female filmmakers in the hiring of film and television directors, and features interviews with Ava DuVernay, Lena Dunham, Jill Soloway and others.
The film had its World Premiere at this year’s Sundance Film Festival and will open theatrically in June.
Also Read: Power Lunch With Dakota Fanning: 'You're Not Telling a Women's Story, You're Telling a Human Story' (Exclusive Video)
“The support from Stella Artois has truly magnified the impact of the Fund for our filmmakers,” said Wif executive director Kirsten Schaffer. “We have seen this in both their financial assistance toward completion of the films and also the platform given to these filmmakers through events like the ‘Filmmaker Roundtable’ at Sundance Film Festival. We are thrilled to continue our partnership with Stella Artois in empowering the next generation of films.”
An advocate of film and its community, Stella Artois hopes to inspire up-and-coming female filmmakers as the 2019 festival season approaches.
“By funding these grants, we’re thrilled to continue our commitment to women in the film industry and help them achieve their dreams,” said Stella Artois brand director, Anna Rogers. “It’s incredibly exciting to follow these films as they make a difference in the world and we hope to encourage other filmmakers to use their medium to do the same.”
Since its inception in 1985, the Film Finishing Fund has awarded more than $2 million worth of grants to cover 235 films from all over the world, films that have gone on to win Academy, Peabody, Berlin FilmFestival and Sundance Awards. This year alone, past grant winners premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, like, Amy Adrion’s “Half the Picture,” Stephanie Soechtig’s “The Devil We Know,” Christina Choe’s “Nancy,” and Heather Lenz’s “Kusama: Infinity.”
Applications are being accepted beginning April 26 through June 30 for the Women in Film Finishing Fund grants. Recipients will be announced in November. Interested filmmakers can visit the Wif website http://womeninfilm.org. Entrants do not have to be Women in Film members to apply for a grant. Detailed requirements will be available in the online application.
Read original story Women in Film’s $100,000 Finishing Fund Grants Open for Submission At TheWrap...
- 4/27/2018
- by Umberto Gonzalez
- The Wrap
Four recipients will receive $25,000 grant from Stella Artois.
Women In Film, Los Angeles has announced the recipients of the 32nd annual Film Finishing Fund.
16 grantees were chosen from 370 feature-length narrative films, documentaries and shorts, submitted from 22 countries.
The Film Finishing Fund provides cash grants and in-kind production services to complete films that are by, for or about women. The works-in-progress are viewed by a special jury of women in the industry who select the winning films.
Wif executive director Kirsten Schaffer said: “One of the ways we achieve gender parity, is by ensuring that female filmmakers have the resources they need to produce excellent work. Women In Film is enormously proud that for 31 years we have enabled talented filmmakers to complete their films and bring their remarkable stories to the world.”
Stella Artois, with whom Women In Film, La began a partnership in 2017, has expanded their support of female filmmakers by investing in the Finishing Fund for the...
Women In Film, Los Angeles has announced the recipients of the 32nd annual Film Finishing Fund.
16 grantees were chosen from 370 feature-length narrative films, documentaries and shorts, submitted from 22 countries.
The Film Finishing Fund provides cash grants and in-kind production services to complete films that are by, for or about women. The works-in-progress are viewed by a special jury of women in the industry who select the winning films.
Wif executive director Kirsten Schaffer said: “One of the ways we achieve gender parity, is by ensuring that female filmmakers have the resources they need to produce excellent work. Women In Film is enormously proud that for 31 years we have enabled talented filmmakers to complete their films and bring their remarkable stories to the world.”
Stella Artois, with whom Women In Film, La began a partnership in 2017, has expanded their support of female filmmakers by investing in the Finishing Fund for the...
- 1/8/2018
- by Elbert Wyche
- ScreenDaily
For the broadcast networks this fall, women need not apply. With a few notable exceptions — Kyra Sedgwick (ABC’s “Ten Days in the Valley”), Edie Falco (NBC’s “Law & Order: True Crime – The Menendez Murders”), and Anne Heche (NBC’s “The Brave”) — female leads are few and far between.
Networks announced fewer new shows this year, practicing a little restraint rather than buying too many that wind up as late-season castoffs. However, women-led shows were hit hardest: Of approximately 36 new series, just 11 have a first-billed female. Last year there were 41 new shows, of which 20 had a female lead.
Blame might go to a handful of trends on this year’s schedules: More military-themed dramas led by tough guys, a rise in male-dominated sci-fi and comic book shows, and a TV trend that IndieWire has dubbed “Dude-Life Crisis.”
This year, (mostly white) middle-aged guys at a crossroads are a phenomenon. Jason Ritter...
Networks announced fewer new shows this year, practicing a little restraint rather than buying too many that wind up as late-season castoffs. However, women-led shows were hit hardest: Of approximately 36 new series, just 11 have a first-billed female. Last year there were 41 new shows, of which 20 had a female lead.
Blame might go to a handful of trends on this year’s schedules: More military-themed dramas led by tough guys, a rise in male-dominated sci-fi and comic book shows, and a TV trend that IndieWire has dubbed “Dude-Life Crisis.”
This year, (mostly white) middle-aged guys at a crossroads are a phenomenon. Jason Ritter...
- 5/19/2017
- by Michael Schneider
- Indiewire
Women in Film, La and The Black List have officially announced their eight finalists and instructors who will be part of their inaugural television lab for female writers. The Episodic Lab will run for eight weeks beginning in August and will “emphasize both craft and professional development, in order to equip participants with the knowledge on how to build and sustain their careers, through programs on script development, workshopping sessions and Master Classes with established writers and industry executives.”
“The participants and instructors for this inaugural Wif/Black List Episodic Lab exemplify an incredible wealth and range of talent,” said Wif Executive Director Kirsten Schaffer. “This group of instructors, on top of their extraordinary qualifications, are passionately dedicated to helping women writers succeed in television and to raising the number of women working in writers rooms and running shows.”
Read More: Women in Film and The Black List Team Up...
“The participants and instructors for this inaugural Wif/Black List Episodic Lab exemplify an incredible wealth and range of talent,” said Wif Executive Director Kirsten Schaffer. “This group of instructors, on top of their extraordinary qualifications, are passionately dedicated to helping women writers succeed in television and to raising the number of women working in writers rooms and running shows.”
Read More: Women in Film and The Black List Team Up...
- 7/20/2016
- by Liz Calvario
- Indiewire
The Sundance Institute and Women In Film Los Angeles have hired Alison Emilio for the newly-appointed position of Director for their joint initiative, the Systemic Change Project.
The Systemic Change Project, which was launched in October of 2015 by Wif La and Sundance Institute, grew out of an unprecedented two-day meeting with top industry decision-makers and talent who came together to discuss and develop plans for concrete action and change within the industry. The project’s “established goal is to build a coalition of industry leaders to take tangible steps that will bring about measurable progress in achieving gender equity, with an initial emphasis on female directors in film and television.”
Read More: You Want To See More Women In Film? This Is How To Do It — Girl Talk
The project initially evolved out of a study begun in 2012 by Sundance Institute and Wif La, who partnered to conduct research to...
The Systemic Change Project, which was launched in October of 2015 by Wif La and Sundance Institute, grew out of an unprecedented two-day meeting with top industry decision-makers and talent who came together to discuss and develop plans for concrete action and change within the industry. The project’s “established goal is to build a coalition of industry leaders to take tangible steps that will bring about measurable progress in achieving gender equity, with an initial emphasis on female directors in film and television.”
Read More: You Want To See More Women In Film? This Is How To Do It — Girl Talk
The project initially evolved out of a study begun in 2012 by Sundance Institute and Wif La, who partnered to conduct research to...
- 7/11/2016
- by Kate Erbland
- Indiewire
Women in Film Los Angeles and the Black List are teaming up to form a television lab for female writers. The two organizations are inviting eight non-professional female writers to participate in the Lab. Writers will partake in script development, workshopping sessions, and Master Classes with established writers and television executives. Agencies and networks will read their final pilot scripts at the end of the eight-week session set to begin in August in L.A. “The dearth of roles for women both in front of and behind the camera has been widely chronicled,” Kirsten Schaffer, executive director of Women in Film, said in a statement. “As high-quality television programming grows more popular and prominent daily, so too does the need for women to have an inclusive voice, to be equally represented in the creative process.” The screenplay submission period is open until May 15. The short list of writers will be notified in June,...
- 4/1/2016
- backstage.com
Over the weekend at the 2016 Sundance Film Festival, Women In Film, Los Angeles (Wif), the leading non-profit organization dedicated to women in the global entertainment industry, awarded four $32,000 cash grants to female filmmakers at the 10th Annual Women In Film Sundance Filmmakers Panel. The discussion, entitled "What the Future Holds," was presented by Skywalker Sound, Max Mara, HBO, Luna®, Entertainment Partners, Kodak and Technicolor. A jury of Wif educators, filmmakers and artists determined the winners. "Women In Film is thrilled to recognize the inspiring work of these exceptional filmmakers and to provide resources for their next projects," said Women In Film Executive Director Kirsten Schaffer. "We are also honored to host a talented panel of filmmakers for a robust conversation about the current state of the union for female directors." "We are thrilled to return to the Sundance Film Festival for our 10th...
- 1/25/2016
- by Zack Sharf
- Indiewire
Outfest has named Christopher Racster as its new executive director, the organization announced Thursday. He will oversee creative and fiscal management, as well as fundraising, program development and staff management. Racster succeeded Kirsten Schaffer as interim executive director when Schaffer left Outfest in the spring. Racster assumes his official position as executive director effective immediately. A trusted voice in the Lgbtq community for almost 20 years, Racster has made an international impact as an advocate, fundraiser and filmmaker, employing media to help shape public perception and acceptance of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community. Also Read: Outfest to Honor Tom Hanks,...
- 10/15/2015
- by Joe Otterson
- The Wrap
Outfest, the La nonprofit devoted to sharing on-screen Lgbt stories, has announced that Christopher Racster has been named executive director. Read More: Outfest Legacy Awards to Honor Tom Hanks and 'The Kids Are Alright' Director Lisa Cholodenko Racster succeeded Kirsten Schaffer as interim executive director after her departure in the spring, and he has now officially been named the best candidate for the job. "After an extensive search that yielded many highly qualified candidates, it became clear that our best prospect had been in front of us all along," said Outfest Board of Directors co-presidents Ari Karpel and Laura Ivey. Though Outfest's Film Festival concluded earlier this year, the organization will honor Tom Hanks and Lisa Cholodenko at the organization's legacy awards on November 5. Read More: Outfest 2015: Surveying 6 of the Festival's Most Anticipated Titles ...
- 10/15/2015
- by Aubrey Page
- Indiewire
Photo by John Nowak/TCM
Turner Classic Movies (TCM) today announced Trailblazing Women, a multi-year initiative created to raise awareness about the historical contributions of women working behind the camera. The programming event, hosted by actress, producer and director Illeana Douglas, premieres October 1 and airs every Tuesday and Thursday throughout the entire month, and will shine a spotlight on cinema’s greatest female filmmakers and women who challenged gender stereotypes while carving out successful careers in an industry where men hold the bulk of the power.
The Trailblazing Women initiative marks a multi-year partnership between TCM and Women In Film (Wif), Los Angeles that will showcase the current gender gap in the film industry as statistics prove a lack of parity in positions behind the camera such as:
Men outnumbered women 23-to-1 as directors of the 1,300 top-grossing films since 2002
A 5–to-1 ratio of men working on films to women
15 percent...
Turner Classic Movies (TCM) today announced Trailblazing Women, a multi-year initiative created to raise awareness about the historical contributions of women working behind the camera. The programming event, hosted by actress, producer and director Illeana Douglas, premieres October 1 and airs every Tuesday and Thursday throughout the entire month, and will shine a spotlight on cinema’s greatest female filmmakers and women who challenged gender stereotypes while carving out successful careers in an industry where men hold the bulk of the power.
The Trailblazing Women initiative marks a multi-year partnership between TCM and Women In Film (Wif), Los Angeles that will showcase the current gender gap in the film industry as statistics prove a lack of parity in positions behind the camera such as:
Men outnumbered women 23-to-1 as directors of the 1,300 top-grossing films since 2002
A 5–to-1 ratio of men working on films to women
15 percent...
- 9/3/2015
- by Michelle McCue
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Women In Film, Los Angeles and ArcLight Cinemas have partnered to launch a new curated, monthly screening series to concentrate on women filmmakers. The program begins this month with inaugural feature "6 Years," starring Taissa Farmiga and Ben Rosenfield, on Tuesday, August 25 followed by a Q&A with the film’s writer/director Hannah Fidell and the film’s two stars at ArcLight Hollywood. “One of the best ways to support female filmmakers is to go see their films,” said Kirsten Schaffer. “We are excited to present this series with ArcLight Cinemas, so that we can highlight the work of experienced filmmakers, and also introduce new talent to Los Angeles audiences.” Curated jointly by Wif and ArcLight Cinemas, the program aligns with Women In Film’s mission of promoting creative female media makers, in this instance via a unique venue in which to view their work and engage in discussion. ArcLight...
- 8/21/2015
- by Ruben Guevara
- Thompson on Hollywood
What a treat I gave myself. I went to the Billy Wilder Theater to see Director Dorothy Arzner’s films “The Wild Party” (1929, Paramount) and “Anybody’s Woman” (1930, Paramount) as restored by UCLA Film & Television Archive with funding provided by the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, in cooperation with Universal Studios and Paramount Pictures.
And as good as these two films were (fantastic!), the audience was just as good. I saw our old friend Alan Howard with his friends David Ansen and Mary Corey, my best friend during our oh-so-long-ago freshman year at Brandeis. A perfect segue into the film “The Wild Party” Clara Bow’s first sound feature. I had never seen Clara Bow before, nor had I seen a Dorothy Arzner film. And I had only seen Mary Corey once since we both left Brandeis after our freshman year and went our separate ways.
It somehow never occurred to me that Dorothy Arzner would have a particular point of view as a woman; but she certainly did. Lesbian herself, she made women’s films about women and men who were always slightly slighted by her, but with a loving touch. These were the opening films to the Dorothy Arzner Retrospective held in the Billy Wilder Theater of the Armand Hammer Museum. Alison Anders will present August 30th’s film “The Red Kimon” and “Old Ironsides” . The series runs until September 18. Do yourself a favor and catch at least one of these historic films by a historic director…an anomaly perhaps still yet to be surpassed.
"The Wild Party" (1929)
In “The Wild Party” Clara Bow plays Stella is an inveterate partier at an all-girl college. She is tough – when drunken men molest her and her friends and even kidnap her to rape her – she fights. When a favorite classmate is implicated in a scandal, Stella heroically defends her friend's reputation at the expense of her own. Rich with pre-Code delights (including furtive, "innocent" bed-hopping with college professors), one may easily detect the film's insistence on the supremacy of female friendships.
Clara Bow, the “It” Girl, in my mind was a live Betty Boop; what the “it” meant in her nickname was not clear though I knew it had something to do with sexy. Actually, her breakthrough film was entitled “It”. She is a wonderful comedian and her expressive eyes and face rule the screen; she was America’s first sex symbol. She won a photo beauty contest which launched her movie career that would eventually number 58 films, from 1922 to 1933.
Paramount Famous Lasky Corp. Producer: E. Lloyd Sheldon. Director: Dorothy Arzner. Screenwriter: E. Lloyd Sheldon. Based on a story by Warner Fabian. Cinematographer: Victor Milner. Editor: Otto Lovering. With: Clara Bow, Fredric March, Marceline Day, Shirley O’Hara, Adrienne Doré. 35mm, b/w, 77 min.
Restored by UCLA Film & Television Archive with funding provided by the Myra Reinhard Family Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, and Jodie Foster, in cooperation with Universal Studios.
"Anybody's Woman" (1930)
“Anybody’s Woman” holds lots of surprises including the title itself. The cheesy out-of-work chorine Pansy Gray (Ruth Chatterton) accepts an irresponsible marriage proposal from Neil Dunlap (Clive Brook), an intoxicated but elegant upper crust attorney, and winds up in high society, to the horror of her newfound "family." Reforming her dissolute husband and striving to be an honest social success, Pansy is compromised by the flirtations of several men, including Neil's most important client, for which she is denounced as a seductress.
As David described Clive Brook as stiff and Mary defended his acting because the role called for such a stiff actor, Kevin Thomas was introduced to David and joined our little group; the talk veered into other directions and so did I. But I want to say that Paul Lukas, the Hungarian born actor held a very special place in this film; elegant but vulgar, open and mysterious, he was able to play the thin line of a slightly compromised but sincere character. He went on to win the Oscar for Best Actor for “Watch on the Rhine” in 1948.
Ruth Chatterton herself began as a chorus girl at age 14 so her role must have felt very natural to her. She became a Broadway star with "Daddy Long Legs" in 1914 and appeared in various shows before moving to Hollywood in 1925. As her film career faded in the late 1930s, she returned to the stage in revivals, and radio and TV performances, including "Hamlet." In the 1950s, she began a successful writing career. She was nominted twice for an Academy Award for Best Actress. She had no children.
Paramount Publix Corp. Director: Dorothy Arzner. Screenwriter: Zoë Akins, Doris Anderson. Cinematographer: Charles Lang. Editor: Jane Loring. With: Ruth Chatterton, Clive Brook, Paul Lukas. 35mm, b/w, 80 min.
Read about this film series in the Los Angeles Times and Wall Street Journal.
The UCLA Film Archive is pleased to commemorate the indispensable career of director Dorothy Arzner (1897-1979) as part of a year-long commemoration of our own 50th Anniversary. This retrospective features six Archive restorations of Arzner's work, which have helped to spur scholarship into and retrospectives of the director's remarkable achievements. The UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television is also proud to claim Arzner as a former professor. A remarkable and nearly unique figure in American film history, Arzner forged a career characterized by an individual worldview, and a strong, recognizable voice. She was also, not incidentally, the sole female director in the studio era to sustain a directing career, working in that capacity for nearly two decades and helming 20 features—conspicuously, still a record in Hollywood. Distinguished as a storyteller with penetrating insight into women's perspectives and experiences, Arzner herself emphatically made the point that only a woman could offer such authority and authenticity. At a time when the marginalization of women directors in the American film establishment is still actively debated, we celebrate Dorothy Arzner, and the Archive's long association with her legacy.
Special thanks to: Peggy Alexander, Curator—Performing Arts Special Collections, UCLA Library; Gayle Nachlis, Kirsten Schaffer—Women in Film, Los Angeles.
And as good as these two films were (fantastic!), the audience was just as good. I saw our old friend Alan Howard with his friends David Ansen and Mary Corey, my best friend during our oh-so-long-ago freshman year at Brandeis. A perfect segue into the film “The Wild Party” Clara Bow’s first sound feature. I had never seen Clara Bow before, nor had I seen a Dorothy Arzner film. And I had only seen Mary Corey once since we both left Brandeis after our freshman year and went our separate ways.
It somehow never occurred to me that Dorothy Arzner would have a particular point of view as a woman; but she certainly did. Lesbian herself, she made women’s films about women and men who were always slightly slighted by her, but with a loving touch. These were the opening films to the Dorothy Arzner Retrospective held in the Billy Wilder Theater of the Armand Hammer Museum. Alison Anders will present August 30th’s film “The Red Kimon” and “Old Ironsides” . The series runs until September 18. Do yourself a favor and catch at least one of these historic films by a historic director…an anomaly perhaps still yet to be surpassed.
"The Wild Party" (1929)
In “The Wild Party” Clara Bow plays Stella is an inveterate partier at an all-girl college. She is tough – when drunken men molest her and her friends and even kidnap her to rape her – she fights. When a favorite classmate is implicated in a scandal, Stella heroically defends her friend's reputation at the expense of her own. Rich with pre-Code delights (including furtive, "innocent" bed-hopping with college professors), one may easily detect the film's insistence on the supremacy of female friendships.
Clara Bow, the “It” Girl, in my mind was a live Betty Boop; what the “it” meant in her nickname was not clear though I knew it had something to do with sexy. Actually, her breakthrough film was entitled “It”. She is a wonderful comedian and her expressive eyes and face rule the screen; she was America’s first sex symbol. She won a photo beauty contest which launched her movie career that would eventually number 58 films, from 1922 to 1933.
Paramount Famous Lasky Corp. Producer: E. Lloyd Sheldon. Director: Dorothy Arzner. Screenwriter: E. Lloyd Sheldon. Based on a story by Warner Fabian. Cinematographer: Victor Milner. Editor: Otto Lovering. With: Clara Bow, Fredric March, Marceline Day, Shirley O’Hara, Adrienne Doré. 35mm, b/w, 77 min.
Restored by UCLA Film & Television Archive with funding provided by the Myra Reinhard Family Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, and Jodie Foster, in cooperation with Universal Studios.
"Anybody's Woman" (1930)
“Anybody’s Woman” holds lots of surprises including the title itself. The cheesy out-of-work chorine Pansy Gray (Ruth Chatterton) accepts an irresponsible marriage proposal from Neil Dunlap (Clive Brook), an intoxicated but elegant upper crust attorney, and winds up in high society, to the horror of her newfound "family." Reforming her dissolute husband and striving to be an honest social success, Pansy is compromised by the flirtations of several men, including Neil's most important client, for which she is denounced as a seductress.
As David described Clive Brook as stiff and Mary defended his acting because the role called for such a stiff actor, Kevin Thomas was introduced to David and joined our little group; the talk veered into other directions and so did I. But I want to say that Paul Lukas, the Hungarian born actor held a very special place in this film; elegant but vulgar, open and mysterious, he was able to play the thin line of a slightly compromised but sincere character. He went on to win the Oscar for Best Actor for “Watch on the Rhine” in 1948.
Ruth Chatterton herself began as a chorus girl at age 14 so her role must have felt very natural to her. She became a Broadway star with "Daddy Long Legs" in 1914 and appeared in various shows before moving to Hollywood in 1925. As her film career faded in the late 1930s, she returned to the stage in revivals, and radio and TV performances, including "Hamlet." In the 1950s, she began a successful writing career. She was nominted twice for an Academy Award for Best Actress. She had no children.
Paramount Publix Corp. Director: Dorothy Arzner. Screenwriter: Zoë Akins, Doris Anderson. Cinematographer: Charles Lang. Editor: Jane Loring. With: Ruth Chatterton, Clive Brook, Paul Lukas. 35mm, b/w, 80 min.
Read about this film series in the Los Angeles Times and Wall Street Journal.
The UCLA Film Archive is pleased to commemorate the indispensable career of director Dorothy Arzner (1897-1979) as part of a year-long commemoration of our own 50th Anniversary. This retrospective features six Archive restorations of Arzner's work, which have helped to spur scholarship into and retrospectives of the director's remarkable achievements. The UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television is also proud to claim Arzner as a former professor. A remarkable and nearly unique figure in American film history, Arzner forged a career characterized by an individual worldview, and a strong, recognizable voice. She was also, not incidentally, the sole female director in the studio era to sustain a directing career, working in that capacity for nearly two decades and helming 20 features—conspicuously, still a record in Hollywood. Distinguished as a storyteller with penetrating insight into women's perspectives and experiences, Arzner herself emphatically made the point that only a woman could offer such authority and authenticity. At a time when the marginalization of women directors in the American film establishment is still actively debated, we celebrate Dorothy Arzner, and the Archive's long association with her legacy.
Special thanks to: Peggy Alexander, Curator—Performing Arts Special Collections, UCLA Library; Gayle Nachlis, Kirsten Schaffer—Women in Film, Los Angeles.
- 8/3/2015
- by Sydney Levine
- Sydney's Buzz
Outfest, the nation’s largest Lgbt film festival, announced its 2015 gala screenings Thursday. The Festival will open with “Tig,” a documentary about comedian Tig Notaro, who turned her cancer diagnosis into a stand-up comedy set. Co-starring Sarah Silverman, Zach Galifianakis and Louis C.K, it will screen at the Orpheum Theatre in Los Angeles on July 9. The Film Festival will close on July 19 with a screening of “The New Girlfriend,” a melodrama by Francois Ozon. Also Read: Outfest's Kirsten Schaffer Joins Women in Film as Executive Director Other gala screenings include Sebastian Silva‘s Berlin Teddy Award winner “Nasty Baby,...
- 5/7/2015
- by Beatrice Verhoeven
- The Wrap
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