Women and Hollywood

Kasi Lemmons Directing Black Nativity Starring Jennifer Hudson

News

Kasi Lemmons, director of Eve’s Bayou, has begun principal photography on Black Nativity. Shooting began this week in New York City, on the film which is based on Langston Hughes’ 1961 play Black Nativity. Lemmons has adapted the play into a musical starring Jennifer Hudson, Angela Bassett, Forest Whitaker and Jacob Latimore.

By Kerensa Cadenas
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January 31, 2013 12:30 PM
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Cross Post: Uppity Women: How Maya and Kathryn Bigelow Continue to Threaten the Status Quo

Features

“A woman is like a tea bag; you never know how strong it is until it’s in hot water.” -- Eleanor Roosevelt

By Sasha Stone
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January 31, 2013 11:00 AM
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Rise of the Underdog: Kimberly Peirce and the Connection Between Carrie and Boys Don't Cry

News

This month’s issue of The Advocate features an incredible interview, with Kimberly Peirce, talking at length about her upcoming remake of Carrie and its surprising linkage to Peirce’s first movie Boys Don’t Cry.

By Kerensa Cadenas
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January 31, 2013 10:00 AM
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The Sun Sets on 30 Rock

Features

As we wrote last week two female written sitcoms were shut down last week, Ben and Kate and Don't Trust the B in Apartment 23. We also said goodbye to Private Practice which did not get much attention since Shonda Rhimes still has two shows on the air. But that show was important because it was one place that consistently dealt with realistic medical situations women face like abortion.

By Melissa Silverstein
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January 30, 2013 2:00 PM
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Cross Post: A Common Problem I See In Plays By Women Playwrights. It's Not What You Think.

Features

My theatre company is in heavy season planning mode, so I’ve recently read dozens of new plays. I’m always reading new plays, but this time of year, I’m reading a lot of plays, all day long. We’re making an effort to find more plays by women playwrights. We get between 300-400 unsolicited submissions each year, as well as submissions from agents and theatre professionals (playwrights, other ADs or LMs). 75% of those plays are by men, without fail. Unsurprisingly, 75% of the plays we’ve done over our 17 seasons have been by men. So we’re making an extra effort to find women playwrights and ask them to submit.

By Melissa Hillman
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January 30, 2013 12:30 PM
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4 Comments

2013 Women-Created TV Pilots

News

It’s prime pilot season for the networks. After all the news that’s been coming out in the last six months or so about women-created shows, we wanted to see how that’s holding up with official announcements. Thanks to The Hollywood Reporter’s amazing and extensive guide of all the pilots announced thus far, we have a rough idea. So far, The CW leads with 6 women-created shows on their roster. NBC has 4 and Fox, CBS and ABC are tied for last place with only 3 women-created shows. We will continue to update as more shows are announced.

By Kerensa Cadenas
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January 30, 2013 11:00 AM
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Countdown to 2014: Amy Poehler is Writing a Book

News

Get your phone alerts ready, Amy Poehler is writing a book that will drop in 2014. This should also be known as your new favorite book of all time. Poehler signed with It Books, an imprint of Harper Collins and will be writing an “illustrated, nonlinear diary full of humor and honesty and brimming with true stories, fictional anecdotes and life lessons.”

By Kerensa Cadenas
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January 30, 2013 10:00 AM
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Sundance Interview: Lana Wilson and Martha Shane – Directors of After Tiller

Interviews

One of the highlights of Sundance was seeing the documentary After Tiller directed by Martha Shana and Lana Wilson. Here's our conversation right after they won a $5,000 grant from Women in Film.

By Melissa Silverstein
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January 29, 2013 2:00 PM
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For the First Time Women are the Majority on Berlin Film Festival Competition Jury

News

The 2013 Berlin International Film Festival announced this year’s competition jury. In a first for the festival, women are the majority of the voting body—comprising 4 of the 7 jury members.

By Kerensa Cadenas
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January 29, 2013 12:30 PM
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Cross Post: Reel Girl's Gallery of Girls Gone Missing From Children's Movies in 2013

Features

In 2012, I waited until the last possible minute. It wasn’t until December that I posted Reel Girl’s Gallery of Girls Gone Missing from Children’s Movies in 2012. Even though in the age of the internet, the facts were impossible to miss, I kept hoping that, somehow, I’d overlooked something.

By Margot Magowan
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January 29, 2013 11:00 AM
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