Women and Hollywood

Melissa Silverstein is the founder and editor of Women and Hollywood, one of the most respected sites for issues related to women and film as well as other areas of pop culture. Women and Hollywood educates, advocates, and agitates for gender parity across the entertainment industry.

She is also the co-founder and Artistic Director of The Athena Film Festival. The 4th annual festival will take place from February 6-9, 2014 at Barnard College in NYC.

Melissa recently published the first book from Women and Hollywood, In Her Voice: Women Directors Talk Directing, which is a compilation of over 40 interviews that have appeared on the site.

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Blog Roll

Amy Pascal Asks Hollywood to Eliminate Gay Stereotypes from Films

News

Amy Pascal is truly a force. She championed Kathryn Bigelow and Zero Dark Thirty all the way. And at the LA Gay and Lesbian Center gala last week, Pascal asked the industry to take a long, hard look at how LGBT characters are depicted in film. Deadline provided an excerpt from her speech.

By Kerensa Cadenas
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March 26, 2013 1:30 PM
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1 Comment

News

In the last week the screws have really been tightening in this bizarre world of Oscar campaigning, and Kathryn Bigelow and her film Zero Dark Thirty are the recipients of what is referred to a "whispering campaign." To me there is nothing quiet about it. It is loud and clear and smells like shit.

By Melissa Silverstein
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December 21, 2012 6:47 PM
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22 Comments

Blogs

Yesterday, the news broke that Michael Lynton who is now co-chairman of Sony Pictures Entertainment along with Amy Pascal will be promoted to running all of Sony's entertainment operations in the US. These new changes are being made as Howard Stringer retires and hands over the reigns of the company to Kazuo Hirai who will focus more on the electronics side of the business. Nicole Seligman who is now the general counsel will also add responsibilities to her role.

By Melissa Silverstein
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March 22, 2012 10:38 AM
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1 Comment

The World's Most Powerful Women According to Forbes

Forbes loves its lists. Its most recent list is the world's most powerful women and it is of course dominated by female politicians with Angela Merkel topping the list. But there are many Hollywood and media players who made the list, and Lady Gaga is the top Hollywood entry on the list at Number 11.

By Melissa Silverstein
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August 25, 2011 1:39 AM
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2 Comments

Book Excerpt- The Tattooed Girl: The Enigma of Stieg Larsson

I have a piece in the upcoming anthology The Tattooed Girl: The Enigma of Stieg Larsson and the Secrets Behind the Most Compelling Thrillers of Our Time by Dan Burstein, Arne de Keijzer, John-Henri Holmberg

By Melissa Silverstein
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May 2, 2011 2:30 AM
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2 Comments

The Misogyny Machine That Rules Hollywood Comedies

Some days I wake up thinking that things can't be really as bad as I think they are, then, I see a story like Tad Friend's piece in this week's New Yorker on Anna Faris and the state of Hollywood comedies for women and I think, wow, it's even worse that I thought it was.

By Melissa Silverstein
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April 5, 2011 3:32 AM
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11 Comments