Currently Browsing: Brigid K. Presecky
Thanks to the early release of Disney’s Frozen II (available to stream on Disney+), parents can help ease the minds of their little ones with these films. While the “princess” theme on the surface may appear to be frivolous, evoking images of pretty dresses and damsels in distress, these three films, Jennifer Lee’s Frozen II, […]
In celebration of Women’s History Month, the all-female team of film critics at FF2 Media were assigned to write about their favorite female artists. Mine is Mandy Moore. ****************************** Thanks to the fortitude and dedication of Scripted Programming Co-Presidents Lisa Katz and Tracey Pakosta, NBC Entertainment’s Female Forward Initiative continues to provide female directors with […]
The 2020 Sundance Film Festival inches closer to gender parity with 48 percent of the competition films directed by women.
Netflix has released the trailer for director Lana Wilson’s highly anticipated Taylor Swift documentary Miss Americana (available to stream on January 31, 2020). ***Updated as of 1/22/20*** Of the 65 directors in Sundance’s four competition categories, 46 percent are women. The lineup of the festival – which will run from January 23-February 3- was announced this week, […]
The strive for equal recognition in the film industry continues in the two years following the #MeToo and #TimesUp movements. With the overwhelming lack of nominations for female writers and directors at the 77th Annual Golden Globe Awards, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association gives a bleak preview for the upcoming awards season cycle. Although the […]
The number of top-grossing films directed by women reached record levels in 2019, making the percentage of female film directors (in the last 13 years) … 4.8 percent. According to a January 2020 report from the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative, 10.6 percent of film directors in 2019 were women – a six percent increase from […]
The term “best” is all relative. What might be right for you may not be right for some (it’s right there in the Diff’rent Strokes theme song, guys). But even in the post #MeToo era, when the conversation about equality is becoming increasingly important, women are continuously being shut out of awards season – most […]
J.J. Abrams seems to have a heart bigger than his film budgets. From his earliest creations in television, with Keri Russell-led Felicity and groundbreaking phenomenon Lost, Abrams seems to understand the importance of human connection. But if you thought Felicity was about Team Ben or Team Noel or if Lost was about a polar bear, […]
Although female filmmakers were shut out of this year’s Golden Globe nominations and subsequently underrepresented in the Screen Actors Guild nominations, the Chicago Film Critics Association announced their more gender-balanced categories for the 2019 Awards Nominations. While ignored by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, Greta Gerwig leads the pack of female nominees on the CFCA […]
Director and screenwriter Greta Gerwig is already generating Oscar buzz for her new take on Louisa May Alcott’s timeless novel, Little Women, starring Saoirse Ronan as feisty writer Jo March along with a stellar supporting cast: Florence Pugh, Timothee Chalamet, Laura Dern, Meryl Streep, Emma Watson and Eliza Scanlen. Although the film opens on Christmas […]
Out of a record-breaking 93 countries that have submitted entries to be considered for best international film nominations at the Academy Awards, 27 films are directed by women (or 29 percent total). Previously known as the “Best Foreign Language Film” that the Academy dubbed outdated, the “Best International Film” submissions were announced Monday, including first-time […]
Women filmmakers were celebrated at IndieWire Female Filmmakers Dinner at Toronto International Film Festival on Sunday, September 8 at The Purman (presented by Canada Goose). This year, TIFF (which runs through September 15) is presenting more than 330 films: 36 percent are directed, co-directed, and/or created by women; a slight increase from last year’s representation […]
The 57th Annual New York Film Festival will feature 29 films on their main slate – six from female directors, making up 20 percent of the lineup. Running from September 27 through October 13 at Film at Lincoln Center, the festival’s lineup includes films from directors Kelly Reichardt, Agnes Varda, Celine Sciamma, Mati Diop, Justine […]
The 76th Venice Film Festival, which runs from August 28 through September 7, has doubled the amount of women directors from last year’s slate – with a total of two out of 21 films directed by women. Saudi Arabian director Haifaa Al-Mansour’s The Perfect Candidate and Australian director Shannon Murphy’s Babyteeth are the only two […]
In a new interview with Entertainment Weekly, Can You Ever Forgive Me? director Marielle Heller previews her upcoming Fred Rogers biopic (although she insists it isn’t) A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood. With Tom Hanks portraying another American hero (see: Captain Phillips, Saving Mr. Banks, Sully) and Matthew Rhys as the hard-hearted reporter who profiles […]
Peabody award-winning director Judith Helfand’s documentary Cooked: Survival by Zip Code is now screening for a two week-run at the Gene Siskel Film Center of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago through July 25. Detailing the city’s deadliest summer heat wave in 1995, Cooked delves into the politics of the disaster – the […]
Warner Bros. has tapped BBC Studios Americas president Ann Sarnoff as its new CEO, the first time a woman has held the post in the studio’s 100-year history. She’s set to join the studio later this summer. Read more at Variety. FF2 Media’s Pamela Powell interviewed Director Claire McCarthy on what Daisy Ridley brought to […]
Celebrate all your favorite romantic comedies this weekend (tickets and badges are still available) at the inaugural Rom Com Fest, running from June 20-23 in Los Angeles. The lineup of films include anniversaries for beloved favorites from female filmmakers like Karen McCullah & Kirsten Smith’s 10 Things I Hate About You and Abby Kohn & […]
Get ready to celebrate all your favorite romantic comedies at the inaugural Rom Com Fest, running from June 20-23 in Los Angeles. The lineup of films include anniversaries for beloved favorites from female filmmakers like Karen McCullah & Kirsten Smith’s 10 Things I Hate About You and Abby Kohn & Marc Silverstein’s Never Been Kissed. […]
Get ready to celebrate all your favorite romantic comedies at the inaugural Rom Com Fest, running from June 20-23 in Los Angeles. The lineup of films include anniversaries for beloved favorites from female filmmakers like Karen McCullah & Kirsten Smith’s 10 Things I Hate About You and Abby Kohn & Marc Silverstein’s Never Been Kissed. […]
While fiction has often portrayed sisterhood as a tumultuous relationship, Nia DaCosta’s new film Little Woods manages to portray the familial bond without stereotypical tropes of competition, resentment or envy. Tessa Thompson and Lily James star in the poignant story of two half-sisters, struggling together through life’s challenges of poverty, grief and single parenthood. Like […]
Director Roxann Dawson’s Breakthrough recreates the miraculous true story of a Missouri boy’s traumatic accident and the unfailing faith of his devoted mother. With This Is Us star Chrissy Metz leading a strong cast, the film is a tactful reimagining of what could have easily been turned into Christian-skewed camp. (BKP: 4/5) Review by Vice […]
The Gene Siskel Film Center will present the 22nd Annual Chicago European Union Film Festival from March 8 through April 4, with 22 films directed by women (more than one-third of the films screened). The festival will present 60 premieres from 28 European Union nations, making it the largest EU cinema showcase in North America. […]
Although the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) has faced backlash of their mostly-male, mostly-white nominees, generating hashtag campaigns like #OscarsSoWhite and #OscarsSoBlue, FF2 Media continues championing #MakeOscarGold: merit-based award nominations.
The Directors Guild of America announced nominees for its annual awards, to be held February 2. Five directors (five men and zero women) are nominated.
Penny Marshall was a pioneer for women filmmakers. The actress, director and producer died December 17, leaving behind a lifetime of memorable work.
Despite the supposed advances for women in the entertainment industry fueled by the #MeToo movement of 2017, the first round of awards cycle nominations show little progress for acknowledging female directors.
While you’re getting your Thanksgiving pants ready for the holiday season, be sure to check out these films (written and directed by women) streaming on Netflix this November.
International SWAN Day. What is it? International Support Women Artists Now Day, a holiday celebrating the vast work of female writers, directors and creatives around the world. Held on the last Saturday of March, women (and men) gather to support the work of their favorite female artist – past or present – in any event of their choosing.
Now serving as Managing Editor, I have witnessed the company’s growth – as well as my own – over the last 10 years. It is a privilege to edit and oversee the daily contributions from our diverse writers. I am proud to be a part of the journey from a small team in Chicago to worldwide representation.
