Get in touch to send in cinephile news and discoveries. To keep up with our latest features, sign up for the Weekly Edit newsletter and follow us @mubinotebook on Twitter and Instagram.FESTIVALSMay Days.As many as 200 French film festival workers plan to stage labor actions during Cannes, citing insufficient pay and the exclusion of many festival staff from unemployment benefits when they are not under contract. The movement is being organized under the banner of Sous Les Écrans La Dèche: Collectif Des Précaires Des Festivals De Cinéma.A new report outlines the institutional dysfunction at the Toronto International Film Festival, which recently lost the support of the telecommunications company Bell as its major sponsor. Citing a desire for “greater accessibility,” Slamdance Film Festival will relocate from Park City, Ut, to Los Angeles in 2025.NEWSHarlan County, U.S.A..Now that all thirteen IATSE locals have reached tentative agreements with the AMPTP,...
- 5/1/2024
- MUBI
In the early days of silent film, pioneers like Alice Guy-Blaché and Lois Weber were among the first women to call the shots as directors. They paved the way for the cinema we know and love now. Decades of sexism sidelined others from following in their footsteps, but today, women directors are continuing to defy the odds and make film history, tell incredible stories, and visualize the moments that stick with us long after the credits have rolled.
From documentaries to thrillers, there’s no genre women directors haven’t shaped in a major way. If you’re looking to watch more movies directed by women, Netflix has an entire collection of them just for you. Don’t know where to start? We’ve curated a list of 13 films — and a few extra recommendations for your queue — you can stream right now.
From documentaries to thrillers, there’s no genre women directors haven’t shaped in a major way. If you’re looking to watch more movies directed by women, Netflix has an entire collection of them just for you. Don’t know where to start? We’ve curated a list of 13 films — and a few extra recommendations for your queue — you can stream right now.
- 4/18/2024
- by Monica Castillo
- Tudum - Netflix
Trust no one! "True Detective: Night Country" is just around the corner. The fourth season in HBO's anthology series, created and executive-produced by Nic Pizzolatto, is coming to the small screen in January, and there are plenty of reasons to be excited. I could spend this entire piece focusing only on one: the star casting of Jodie Foster. Foster is an absolute legend, a versatile powder keg of performance power who has taken some wild career swings as of late -- directing episodes of "Black Mirror" and "Tales From the Loop," executive producing and appearing in a documentary about pioneering filmmaker Alice Guy-Blaché, and leading the ensemble of the incisively political 2021 film "The Mauritanian."
In "True Detective," as we know from the previous trailer, Foster will play Detective Liz Danvers, who, alongside partner Evangeline Navarro (Kali Reis), is investigating a particularly gruesome and bizarre crime. Per that trailer: "We've got...
In "True Detective," as we know from the previous trailer, Foster will play Detective Liz Danvers, who, alongside partner Evangeline Navarro (Kali Reis), is investigating a particularly gruesome and bizarre crime. Per that trailer: "We've got...
- 12/4/2023
- by Ryan Coleman
- Slash Film
With French filmmaker Alice Guy-Blaché becoming the pioneer for every female director since her debut in the mid-1890s, hundreds of female directors have made their marks worldwide over the centuries. Since the 1900s, women have become stakeholders in different aspects of filmmaking. While many often disregard Box Office numbers as proof of a film’s quality, it remains a top metric of success. Over the years, female directors have not only directed critically acclaimed films but have Box Office juggernauts to their credit. Besides being solo directors, female directors have co-directed commercially successful films like the Frozen animated films (collectively grossed...
- 11/18/2023
- by Onyinye Izundu
- TVovermind.com
The Video Essay is a joint project of Mubi and Filmadrid International Film Festival. Film analysis and criticism found a completely new and innovative path with the arrival of the video essay. The limits of this discipline are constantly expanding; new essayists are finding innovative ways to study the history of cinema working within images. With this non-competitive section of the festival, both Mubi and Filmadrid will offer the video essay format the platform and visibility it deserves. The seven selected works will premiere online from June 5 through June 11, 2023, on Mubi's online publication Notebook. The selection was made by the Notebook editors and Filmadrid.Where Is Little Trixie? by Carlos BaixauliLittle Trixie is bored. She looks for ways to distract herself, but she gets lost between the gardens of Céline Sciamma and Alice Guy. Small "coincidences" of elements bind together Petite Maman (2021) and Falling Leaves (1912).—Carlos Baixauli...
- 6/6/2023
- MUBI
A comprehensive, personal, and kaleidoscopic look at representation, Elvis Mitchell’s Is That Black Enough For You?!? is a passionate and loving walk through film history framed by Blaxploitation cinema of the 1970s. Written, directed, and narrated by the master conversationalist, curator, film scholar, and cultural critic, this is a densely packed visual essay told through film clips, archival materials, and interviews with Black stars of multiple eras who speak to the influence of this sub-genre on their lives and careers.
Borne from the notion that America was in a freefall spiral circa 1968, a new kind of subversive independent cinema arrived on the scene, forcing Hollywood to compete and adapt. Mitchell notes landmarks of representation along with the way—including Robert Downy Sr.’s Putney Swope, an experimental comedy set in the world of advertising,, and Martin Ritt’s The Great White Hope starring James Earl Jones.
Black Enough is...
Borne from the notion that America was in a freefall spiral circa 1968, a new kind of subversive independent cinema arrived on the scene, forcing Hollywood to compete and adapt. Mitchell notes landmarks of representation along with the way—including Robert Downy Sr.’s Putney Swope, an experimental comedy set in the world of advertising,, and Martin Ritt’s The Great White Hope starring James Earl Jones.
Black Enough is...
- 11/9/2022
- by John Fink
- The Film Stage
VFX educator Pam Hogarth and Pixar’s Pete Docter were among the honorees at this year’s Visual Effects Society Honors Celebration.
The in-person ceremony took place on Oct. 14 at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles, Calif., where Ves members celebrated their colleagues’ achievements and the organization’s 25th anniversary.
Docter, Pixar’s chief creative officer best known for directing “Monsters, Inc.,” “Up,” “Inside Out” and “Soul,” received this year’s Honorary Membership.
“It’s been a dream of mine to join Ves without having to pay,” Docter said jokingly in his acceptance speech. “I had one overriding obsession: to sell insurance. But instead, I got a job in animation … To everyone at Pixar, who would’ve dreamt that someday I would be lucky enough to work alongside hundreds of amazingly talented people using the latest cutting-edge technology — all to avoid dealing with real life.”
Docter also acknowledged Pixar president Jim Morris,...
The in-person ceremony took place on Oct. 14 at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles, Calif., where Ves members celebrated their colleagues’ achievements and the organization’s 25th anniversary.
Docter, Pixar’s chief creative officer best known for directing “Monsters, Inc.,” “Up,” “Inside Out” and “Soul,” received this year’s Honorary Membership.
“It’s been a dream of mine to join Ves without having to pay,” Docter said jokingly in his acceptance speech. “I had one overriding obsession: to sell insurance. But instead, I got a job in animation … To everyone at Pixar, who would’ve dreamt that someday I would be lucky enough to work alongside hundreds of amazingly talented people using the latest cutting-edge technology — all to avoid dealing with real life.”
Docter also acknowledged Pixar president Jim Morris,...
- 10/18/2022
- by Michaela Zee
- Variety Film + TV
Click here to read the full article.
As the Visual Effects Society marks the occasion of its 25th anniversary, the annual Ves Honors ceremony on Friday included celebration along with a call for more diversity and inclusion, as well as a greater effort to achieve a work-life balance amid industry-wide attention on the long work hours kept by many VFX artists under current business models.
Friday evening at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles, honorees included three-time Oscar winner and Pixar chief creative officer Pete Docter and VFX vet and educator Pam Hogarth.
Hogarth received the Ves Founders Award as well as life Ves membership, and sent a message of community while urging more work toward diversity and inclusion. “The reason we are here is for the community,” she said. “We do this because we love the people around us and the Society. We are so lucky to work with smart,...
As the Visual Effects Society marks the occasion of its 25th anniversary, the annual Ves Honors ceremony on Friday included celebration along with a call for more diversity and inclusion, as well as a greater effort to achieve a work-life balance amid industry-wide attention on the long work hours kept by many VFX artists under current business models.
Friday evening at the Skirball Cultural Center in Los Angeles, honorees included three-time Oscar winner and Pixar chief creative officer Pete Docter and VFX vet and educator Pam Hogarth.
Hogarth received the Ves Founders Award as well as life Ves membership, and sent a message of community while urging more work toward diversity and inclusion. “The reason we are here is for the community,” she said. “We do this because we love the people around us and the Society. We are so lucky to work with smart,...
- 10/15/2022
- by Carolyn Giardina
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Broadening a multi-front action initiative, Sitges is pushing women in genre.
WomanInFan, one of the major platforms at this year’s Sitges International Fantastic Film Festival of Catalonia, which runs Oct. 6-16, looks set to provide a full development program for female genre filmmaking.
On this year’s agenda is a contest to obtain financing for a short-teaser, which Sitges Foundation Manager, Mònica Garcia Massagué said will provide “a future filmmaker the opportunity to have a market tool.”
A book of essays titled “WomanInFan” and sub-titled as a “Topography of Fantastic Genre Films Directed by Women,” will be presented withambitions to give a past, present and future take on women in genre cinema.
Sitges will stage a panel with Booker-shortlisted author Mariana Enríquez, Carlota Pereda, director of Austin Fantastic Fest winner “Piggy,” film programmer and writer Heidi Honeycutt, and author-director-producer Kier-La Janisse.
The festival will also offer grants for initiatives...
WomanInFan, one of the major platforms at this year’s Sitges International Fantastic Film Festival of Catalonia, which runs Oct. 6-16, looks set to provide a full development program for female genre filmmaking.
On this year’s agenda is a contest to obtain financing for a short-teaser, which Sitges Foundation Manager, Mònica Garcia Massagué said will provide “a future filmmaker the opportunity to have a market tool.”
A book of essays titled “WomanInFan” and sub-titled as a “Topography of Fantastic Genre Films Directed by Women,” will be presented withambitions to give a past, present and future take on women in genre cinema.
Sitges will stage a panel with Booker-shortlisted author Mariana Enríquez, Carlota Pereda, director of Austin Fantastic Fest winner “Piggy,” film programmer and writer Heidi Honeycutt, and author-director-producer Kier-La Janisse.
The festival will also offer grants for initiatives...
- 10/4/2022
- by Callum McLennan
- Variety Film + TV
The American French Film Festival, formerly known as Colcoa, will kick off Oct. 10 with the North American premiere of docudrama “Notre-Dame on Fire,” from “Quest for Fire” director Jean-Jacques Annaud. The weeklong festival at the DGA Theater Complex in Los Angeles closes with Dominik Moll’s thriller “The Night of the 12th,” about a cold case where the only certainty is the night it occurred. Moll will also be the focus of the festival’s annual “Focus on a Filmmaker.”
“Every year, The American French Film Festival presents the very best of French cinema and television, and this year is no exception. I am personally excited about the opening night selection of Jean-Jacques Annaud’s ‘Notre-Dame on Fire’ as I think it perfectly embodies the Franco-American Cultural Fund’s mission,” said Andrea Berloff, writer and board member of the Franco-American Cultural Fund.
The festival will screen 75 films and TV series and 20 shorts,...
“Every year, The American French Film Festival presents the very best of French cinema and television, and this year is no exception. I am personally excited about the opening night selection of Jean-Jacques Annaud’s ‘Notre-Dame on Fire’ as I think it perfectly embodies the Franco-American Cultural Fund’s mission,” said Andrea Berloff, writer and board member of the Franco-American Cultural Fund.
The festival will screen 75 films and TV series and 20 shorts,...
- 9/20/2022
- by Pat Saperstein
- Variety Film + TV
Jean-Louis Trintignant, Jacques Perrin to be posthumously honoured with special screenings.
The American French Film Festival (formerly Colcoa, will honour producer and CG Cinéma founder Charles Gillibert at its 2022 edition.
Gillibert, the former mk2 executive, who has worked with Olivier Assayas, Xavier Dolan and Abbas Kiarostami, is part of the festival’s Focus On The Producer strand.
He will travel to Los Angeles for the October 10-16 event and present a restored version of Jean Eustache’s 1973 classic The Mother And The Whore. Gillibert produced the 4K restored version, which will receive its Los Angeles premiere at the festival.
The Mother And The Whore...
The American French Film Festival (formerly Colcoa, will honour producer and CG Cinéma founder Charles Gillibert at its 2022 edition.
Gillibert, the former mk2 executive, who has worked with Olivier Assayas, Xavier Dolan and Abbas Kiarostami, is part of the festival’s Focus On The Producer strand.
He will travel to Los Angeles for the October 10-16 event and present a restored version of Jean Eustache’s 1973 classic The Mother And The Whore. Gillibert produced the 4K restored version, which will receive its Los Angeles premiere at the festival.
The Mother And The Whore...
- 9/8/2022
- by Jeremy Kay
- ScreenDaily
The Visual Effects Society today announced the newest inductees into the Ves Hall of Fame, including pioneering animator, producer and director Mary Ellen Bute; the first woman to ever direct a film, Alice Guy-Blaché; American computer scientist Grace Hopper; commercial computer animation visionary Bill Kovacs and Hungarian-American animator, film director and producer George Pal. The Hall of Fame inductees – and other special honorees – will be celebrated at a special event this Fall.
“Our Ves honorees represent a group of exceptional artists, innovators and professionals who have had a profound impact on the field of visual effects,” said Ves Board Chair Lisa Cooke in a statement. “We are proud to recognize those who helped shape our shared legacy and continue to inspire future generations of VFX practitioners.”
As previously announced, educator and industry leader Pam Hogarth was named recipient of the 2022 Ves Founders Awards. The Society designated Jeff Barnes, Patricia “Rose” Duignan,...
“Our Ves honorees represent a group of exceptional artists, innovators and professionals who have had a profound impact on the field of visual effects,” said Ves Board Chair Lisa Cooke in a statement. “We are proud to recognize those who helped shape our shared legacy and continue to inspire future generations of VFX practitioners.”
As previously announced, educator and industry leader Pam Hogarth was named recipient of the 2022 Ves Founders Awards. The Society designated Jeff Barnes, Patricia “Rose” Duignan,...
- 8/23/2022
- by Tom Tapp
- Deadline Film + TV
Less than two years after joining France Televisions, former Canal Plus executive Manuel Alduy has contributed to bolstering the French public broadcaster’s roster of international series with shows such as “Bardot,” a mini-series biopic of Brigitte Bardot, and “L’Insoumise” about Alice Guy, the first female filmmaker ever.
Ahead of France Televisions’ press conference at Series Mania, Alduy said the broadcaster’s first-look initiative with the European Broadcasting Union (Ebu) has yielded several prestige projects, including “Bardot.” The Ebu represents 113 organizations across the 56 countries, including the BBC in the U.K., Ard in Germany, Dr in Denmark, Svt in Sweden, Rai in Italy and the Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation.
“Bardot” charts the life of the French actor and model from 1949, when she first appeared on the cover of a magazine, to the birth of her son in 1960. It’s being produced by Federation Entertainment with France Televisions in France, and...
Ahead of France Televisions’ press conference at Series Mania, Alduy said the broadcaster’s first-look initiative with the European Broadcasting Union (Ebu) has yielded several prestige projects, including “Bardot.” The Ebu represents 113 organizations across the 56 countries, including the BBC in the U.K., Ard in Germany, Dr in Denmark, Svt in Sweden, Rai in Italy and the Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation.
“Bardot” charts the life of the French actor and model from 1949, when she first appeared on the cover of a magazine, to the birth of her son in 1960. It’s being produced by Federation Entertainment with France Televisions in France, and...
- 3/24/2022
- by Elsa Keslassy
- Variety Film + TV
It's often said that the reason why some men fear feminism - and why, more widely, groups with power resist sharing it - is that, having always lived in a hierarchical world, they can't imagine any other model, so they assume that what women want is the kind of power over men that men have (or have historically had) over them. In this classic 1906 short, legendary filmmaker Alice Guy imagines what such a world might look like. It's a clever little piece perceived by some as anti-feminist, yet sharply satirical - and in suggesting that men would not ultimately stand for being treated in this way, it raises the question of why they expect women to do so.
The film presents us with a number of mundane scenarios transformed by the gender role reversal: a private club, a pub, a domestic space, a street through which men are pushing prams,...
The film presents us with a number of mundane scenarios transformed by the gender role reversal: a private club, a pub, a domestic space, a street through which men are pushing prams,...
- 9/29/2020
- by Jennie Kermode
- eyeforfilm.co.uk
“Women Make Film.” The title of Irish film savant Mark Cousins’ sprawling 14-hour follow-up to “The Story of Film” serves both as a statement of fact and, if punctuated slightly differently, a call to action: “Women, Make Film!”
Where the earlier documentary was a monumental survey of the medium, attempting to cram its entire history into a single project, with footage shot through the windshields of cars on nearly every continent. He and editor Timo Langer have assembled montage upon montage of magic moments, the vast majority plucked from films even I was unfamiliar with, amounting to an invaluable film appreciation workshop. It’s ideal for those with open minds and eclectic tastes, such as festival audiences and subscribers of Turner Classic Movies and The Criterion Channel, where the film can be absorbed in bite-size chunks.
“This is a film school of sorts in which all the teachers are women,...
Where the earlier documentary was a monumental survey of the medium, attempting to cram its entire history into a single project, with footage shot through the windshields of cars on nearly every continent. He and editor Timo Langer have assembled montage upon montage of magic moments, the vast majority plucked from films even I was unfamiliar with, amounting to an invaluable film appreciation workshop. It’s ideal for those with open minds and eclectic tastes, such as festival audiences and subscribers of Turner Classic Movies and The Criterion Channel, where the film can be absorbed in bite-size chunks.
“This is a film school of sorts in which all the teachers are women,...
- 9/1/2020
- by Peter Debruge
- Variety Film + TV
Show will capture life of female cinema pioneer who created one of the first Us studios.
UK screenwriter Tim Loane has joined the creative team of French director Jean-Jacques Annaud’s previously announced upcoming series The Girl In The Picture, about pioneering filmmaker and Us studio boss Alice Guy.
Belfast-based writer Loane’s recent credits include German series Das Boot and racy French costume drama series Versailles, on which he was a screenwriter and showrunner.
He will co-write the series with Annaud, adapting the 2015 autobiography Alice Guy by French writer Emmanuelle Gaume.
The show will follow Guy’s trajectory from illegitimate,...
UK screenwriter Tim Loane has joined the creative team of French director Jean-Jacques Annaud’s previously announced upcoming series The Girl In The Picture, about pioneering filmmaker and Us studio boss Alice Guy.
Belfast-based writer Loane’s recent credits include German series Das Boot and racy French costume drama series Versailles, on which he was a screenwriter and showrunner.
He will co-write the series with Annaud, adapting the 2015 autobiography Alice Guy by French writer Emmanuelle Gaume.
The show will follow Guy’s trajectory from illegitimate,...
- 6/29/2020
- by 1100388¦Melanie Goodfellow¦69¦
- ScreenDaily
Wild Bunch TV, 68productions team on new production with agent Jeff Berg.
French director Jean-Jacques Annaud is set to direct an international drama series about pioneer filmmaker Alice Guy, the first woman to direct a fiction film in the late 1890s who then went on to set up one of the first studios in the Us.
Paris-based Wild Bunch TV and 68Productions and talent agent Jeff Berg are partnering on the series, adapted from the 2015 autobiography Alice Guy by French writer Emmanuelle Gaume.
It will be the second foray into TV for Wolf Totem and The Name Of The Rose...
French director Jean-Jacques Annaud is set to direct an international drama series about pioneer filmmaker Alice Guy, the first woman to direct a fiction film in the late 1890s who then went on to set up one of the first studios in the Us.
Paris-based Wild Bunch TV and 68Productions and talent agent Jeff Berg are partnering on the series, adapted from the 2015 autobiography Alice Guy by French writer Emmanuelle Gaume.
It will be the second foray into TV for Wolf Totem and The Name Of The Rose...
- 2/4/2020
- by 1100388¦Melanie Goodfellow¦0¦
- ScreenDaily
Wild Bunch TV, 68productions team on new production with agent Jeff Berg.
French director Jean-Jacques Annaud is set to direct an international drama series about pioneer filmmaker Alice Guy, the first woman to direct a fiction film in the late1890s who then went to set up one of the first studios in the Us.
Paris-based Wild Bunch TV and 68Productions and talent agent Jeff Berg are partnering on the series, adapted from the 2015 autobiography Alice Guy by French writer Emmanuelle Gaume.
It will the second foray into TV for Wolf Totem and The Name Of The Rose director Annaud...
French director Jean-Jacques Annaud is set to direct an international drama series about pioneer filmmaker Alice Guy, the first woman to direct a fiction film in the late1890s who then went to set up one of the first studios in the Us.
Paris-based Wild Bunch TV and 68Productions and talent agent Jeff Berg are partnering on the series, adapted from the 2015 autobiography Alice Guy by French writer Emmanuelle Gaume.
It will the second foray into TV for Wolf Totem and The Name Of The Rose director Annaud...
- 2/4/2020
- by 1100388¦Melanie Goodfellow¦0¦
- ScreenDaily
The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair’s Jean-Jacques Annaud is to direct a TV series about Alice Guy, the world’s first female filmmaker.
Annaud, who directed the Patrick Dempsey miniseries for Epix, has teamed up with Wild Bunch TV, the company behind John Turturro’s The Name of the Rose, 68productions and former ICM Chairman Jeff Berg to develop the series.
Based on Emmanuelle Gaume’s book Alice Guy, the series will feature an international cast, and will tell the story of Guy, who between 1896 and 1906 was thought to be the only female director in the world. Guy was an illegitimate, mixed race child, rejected by an abusive and violent father who kidnaps her from her mother, and raised between Chile, Switzerland and France. At the dawn of the 20th century, in a world controlled by men and amid the hustle and bustle of the emerging art form that is cinema,...
Annaud, who directed the Patrick Dempsey miniseries for Epix, has teamed up with Wild Bunch TV, the company behind John Turturro’s The Name of the Rose, 68productions and former ICM Chairman Jeff Berg to develop the series.
Based on Emmanuelle Gaume’s book Alice Guy, the series will feature an international cast, and will tell the story of Guy, who between 1896 and 1906 was thought to be the only female director in the world. Guy was an illegitimate, mixed race child, rejected by an abusive and violent father who kidnaps her from her mother, and raised between Chile, Switzerland and France. At the dawn of the 20th century, in a world controlled by men and amid the hustle and bustle of the emerging art form that is cinema,...
- 2/4/2020
- by Peter White
- Deadline Film + TV
With a seemingly endless amount of streaming options–not only the titles at our disposal, but services themselves–each week we highlight the noteworthy titles that have recently hit platforms. Check out this week’s selections below and an archive of past round-ups here.
Apollo 11 (Todd Douglas Miller)
On July 16, 1969, Neil Armstrong, Michael Collins, and Buzz Aldrin embarked on a historic lunar odyssey, successfully landing on the moon and then returning to Earth. Free of talking heads, reenactments, and newly-recorded narration, the new documentary Apollo 11 takes viewers on this nine-day journey, constructed from astounding, never-before-seen 65mm Panavision, 35mm, and 16mm footage, as well as audio culled from over 18,000 hours of tapes. A perhaps initially unintended result when Nasa handed over this remarkably pristine footage to director Todd Douglas Miller, his documentary is also a fascinating time capsule of this specific era. – Jordan R. (full review)
Where to Stream: Hulu...
Apollo 11 (Todd Douglas Miller)
On July 16, 1969, Neil Armstrong, Michael Collins, and Buzz Aldrin embarked on a historic lunar odyssey, successfully landing on the moon and then returning to Earth. Free of talking heads, reenactments, and newly-recorded narration, the new documentary Apollo 11 takes viewers on this nine-day journey, constructed from astounding, never-before-seen 65mm Panavision, 35mm, and 16mm footage, as well as audio culled from over 18,000 hours of tapes. A perhaps initially unintended result when Nasa handed over this remarkably pristine footage to director Todd Douglas Miller, his documentary is also a fascinating time capsule of this specific era. – Jordan R. (full review)
Where to Stream: Hulu...
- 7/26/2019
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
How does someone like Alice Guy-Blaché become forgotten in time? Director Pamela B. Green answers this question while doing her damnedest to rectify the error in the arresting documentary Be Natural: The Untold Story of Alice Guy-Blaché. Narrated by Jodie Foster and featuring interview snippets from a slew of impressive female filmmakers, many learn about Alice Guy for the first time (!) while others express a limited knowledge of her accomplishments.
Born in 1873, young Alice Guy split her young life between Chile and France, eventually becoming a typist to support her family after her father’s death. She would find a solid gig at Gaumont in the 1890s as a secretary, working directly with those who were experimenting with motion pictures. Green highlights that Guy was there at the “surprise” screening at which the Lumière Brothers presented La Sortie de l’Usine Lumière à Lyon (Workers Leaving the Lumière Factory) in 1895. Inspired by all of this,...
Born in 1873, young Alice Guy split her young life between Chile and France, eventually becoming a typist to support her family after her father’s death. She would find a solid gig at Gaumont in the 1890s as a secretary, working directly with those who were experimenting with motion pictures. Green highlights that Guy was there at the “surprise” screening at which the Lumière Brothers presented La Sortie de l’Usine Lumière à Lyon (Workers Leaving the Lumière Factory) in 1895. Inspired by all of this,...
- 4/22/2019
- by Dan Mecca
- The Film Stage
There’s an alarming degree of disingenuousness, or perhaps merely naiveté, permeating “Be Natural: The Untold Story of Alice Guy-Blaché.” To begin with, there’s that title, “The Untold Story,” which ignores a number of earlier documentaries not to mention the significant amount of scholarship on pioneering filmmaker Alice Guy-Blaché. Also omitted is any mention of the 2009 Gaumont and Kino DVD box sets that made 66 of her films available. These are what can be called inconvenient truths, for Pamela B. Green, director of “Be Natural,” is on a mission to discover why — supposedly — no one has ever heard of Alice Guy-Blaché.
As Green tells it, the reason is pure and simple: Because she was a woman, Guy-Blaché was written out of the history books. That’s not entirely wrong. Alice Guy, as she was then known, was present at the very start of the film industry and played a crucial...
As Green tells it, the reason is pure and simple: Because she was a woman, Guy-Blaché was written out of the history books. That’s not entirely wrong. Alice Guy, as she was then known, was present at the very start of the film industry and played a crucial...
- 5/31/2018
- by Jay Weissberg
- Variety Film + TV
Orson Welles will be featured at next month’s Cannes Film Festival. It still won’t be via his previously unfinished The Other Side Of The Wind, which recently got caught in the scrum between the festival and Netflix. Rather, Welles will be represented in The Eyes Of Orson Welles, a new documentary from Mark Cousins that’s part of the Cannes Classics selection.
The festival today unveiled its full roster for the Classics sidebar which includes tributes and documentaries about film and filmmakers, and restorations presented by producers, distributors, foundations, cinemathèques and rights holders. Among the attendees this year are Martin Scorsese, Jane Fonda, Christopher Nolan and John Travolta.
The Eyes Of Orson Welles is a journey through the filmmaker’s visual process. Thanks to Welles’ daughter Beatrice, Cousins (The Story Of Film) was granted access to never-before-seen drawings, paintings and early works that form a sketchbook from his life.
The festival today unveiled its full roster for the Classics sidebar which includes tributes and documentaries about film and filmmakers, and restorations presented by producers, distributors, foundations, cinemathèques and rights holders. Among the attendees this year are Martin Scorsese, Jane Fonda, Christopher Nolan and John Travolta.
The Eyes Of Orson Welles is a journey through the filmmaker’s visual process. Thanks to Welles’ daughter Beatrice, Cousins (The Story Of Film) was granted access to never-before-seen drawings, paintings and early works that form a sketchbook from his life.
- 4/23/2018
- by Nancy Tartaglione
- Deadline Film + TV
Also includes Jane Fonda, Alice Guy-Blaché doc, 2001: A Space Odyssey screening.
The line-up for Cannes Classics section of the 2018 Cannes Film Festival (May 8-19) includes documentaries about Orson Welles, Ingmar Bergman and Jane Fonda.
Mark Cousins will present his video essay The Eyes of Orson Welles, which examines the pictorial world of the Citizen Kane director.
Margarethe von Trotta’s Searching For Ingmar Bergman is one of three films to celebrate the centenary of the Swedish master at Cannes, alongside Jane Magnusson’s Bergman – A Year in a Life and a screening of The Seventh Seal.
Jane Fonda will...
The line-up for Cannes Classics section of the 2018 Cannes Film Festival (May 8-19) includes documentaries about Orson Welles, Ingmar Bergman and Jane Fonda.
Mark Cousins will present his video essay The Eyes of Orson Welles, which examines the pictorial world of the Citizen Kane director.
Margarethe von Trotta’s Searching For Ingmar Bergman is one of three films to celebrate the centenary of the Swedish master at Cannes, alongside Jane Magnusson’s Bergman – A Year in a Life and a screening of The Seventh Seal.
Jane Fonda will...
- 4/23/2018
- by Orlando Parfitt
- ScreenDaily
Due to the childish spat between Cannes and Netflix, it means we won’t be seeing the most monumental release of 2018, Orson Welles’ posthumous film The Other Side of the Wind, premiere at the French film festival. However, even if the streaming giant won’t be bringing the film (nor Morgan Neville’s Welles documentary on its making), Cannes will hold the premiere of another Welles-related project.
Announced today as part of the Cannes Classics lineup, Mark Cousins’ The Eyes of Orson Welles, which explores the drawings, paintings, and early works of the Citizen Kane director, will premiere during the festival. Also amongst the lineup is two Ingmar Bergman documentaries tied to his centenary, as well as the previously-announced 70mm unrestored version of 2001: A Space Odyssey.
Check out the full lineup below, which also includes new restorations of films by Jacques Rivette, Djibril Diop Mambety, Agnès Varda, Vittorio De Sica,...
Announced today as part of the Cannes Classics lineup, Mark Cousins’ The Eyes of Orson Welles, which explores the drawings, paintings, and early works of the Citizen Kane director, will premiere during the festival. Also amongst the lineup is two Ingmar Bergman documentaries tied to his centenary, as well as the previously-announced 70mm unrestored version of 2001: A Space Odyssey.
Check out the full lineup below, which also includes new restorations of films by Jacques Rivette, Djibril Diop Mambety, Agnès Varda, Vittorio De Sica,...
- 4/23/2018
- by Jordan Raup
- The Film Stage
Revelations about Harvey Weinstein’s history of sexual assault jolted the film industry around the world. Yet even as victims continue to speak out, much of the community has been stunned into another silence.
Generations of former Weinstein employees, including those who toiled on his staff during the seminal Miramax days, refuse to speak publicly for fear that the association could make them complicit. Others who collaborated with Weinstein — an expansive Venn diagram of publicists, sales agents, programmers, and their institutions — remain wary of saying anything that could somehow drag them further into his orbit.
The Cannes Film Festival, where Weinstein was the steward for Palme d’Or winners “sex, lies and videotape” and “Pulp Fiction,” is no exception. Taking precedence over any other conversation, the world’s most revered gathering of international cineastes prefer to fixate on the art form. Cannes didn’t create Weinstein, but it was the...
Generations of former Weinstein employees, including those who toiled on his staff during the seminal Miramax days, refuse to speak publicly for fear that the association could make them complicit. Others who collaborated with Weinstein — an expansive Venn diagram of publicists, sales agents, programmers, and their institutions — remain wary of saying anything that could somehow drag them further into his orbit.
The Cannes Film Festival, where Weinstein was the steward for Palme d’Or winners “sex, lies and videotape” and “Pulp Fiction,” is no exception. Taking precedence over any other conversation, the world’s most revered gathering of international cineastes prefer to fixate on the art form. Cannes didn’t create Weinstein, but it was the...
- 10/23/2017
- by Eric Kohn
- Indiewire
Out of all of Poe’s works, few have had as big of an impact on me as “The Pit and the Pendulum.” Like many youngsters with an interest in the macabre, it was the first to immediately grab my attention, its title conjuring images of a massive, swinging blade cutting a poor sap wide open. Of course, there’s more to the poem than that—it’s focused less on the titular blade and more on the paranoia it creates, as well as painting a portrait of the horrors of the Spanish Inquisition. It also has, quite infamously, one of the most frustrating deus ex machinas of all time, where the French army stops the swinging pendulum mere seconds before it can bisect our bound protagonist, much to the disappointment of English students the world over. While it’s hardly Poe’s best work, it’s certainly among his most iconic,...
- 8/4/2017
- by Perry Ruhland
- DailyDead
Comedy actress Alice Howell on the cover of film historian Anthony Slide's latest book: Pioneering funky-haired performer 'could have been Chaplin' – or at the very least another Louise Fazenda. Rediscovering comedy actress Alice Howell: Female performer in movie field dominated by men Early comedy actress Alice Howell is an obscure entity even for silent film aficionados. With luck, only a handful of them will be able to name one of her more than 100 movies, mostly shorts – among them Sin on the Sabbath, A Busted Honeymoon, How Stars Are Made – released between 1914 and 1920. Yet Alice Howell holds (what should be) an important – or at the very least an interesting – place in film history. After all, she was one of the American cinema's relatively few pioneering “funny actresses,” along with the likes of the better-known Flora Finch, Louise Fazenda, and, a top star in her day, Mabel Normand.[1] Also of note,...
- 4/20/2017
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
Editor’s Note: This article is presented in partnership with FilmStruck. Developed and managed by Turner Classic Movies (TCM) in collaboration with the Criterion Collection. FilmStruck features the largest streaming library of contemporary and classic arthouse, indie, foreign and cult films as well as extensive bonus content, filmmaker interviews and rare footage. Learn more here. Agnes Varda
At age 88, the indomitable and highly influential Varda shows zero sign of slowing down when it comes to churning out art told through continually experimental means (she’s also remained committed to supporting her work in person, recently popping up at both the French Institute Alliance Française for a career-spanning chat and this year’s Rendezvous With French Cinema series with a brand new exhibit; we should all be so lucky to be as vital and involved when we’re half Varda’s age). Varda’s contributions to cinema and feminism have been...
At age 88, the indomitable and highly influential Varda shows zero sign of slowing down when it comes to churning out art told through continually experimental means (she’s also remained committed to supporting her work in person, recently popping up at both the French Institute Alliance Française for a career-spanning chat and this year’s Rendezvous With French Cinema series with a brand new exhibit; we should all be so lucky to be as vital and involved when we’re half Varda’s age). Varda’s contributions to cinema and feminism have been...
- 4/18/2017
- by Kate Erbland
- Indiewire
If you ask most people familiar with the history of film to name some of the early trailblazers, you’re bound to hear Georges Méliès and the Lumière Brothers quite a few times. As for Alice Guy-Blaché? Well, even if she is mentioned, her name will reoccur far less than her male contemporaries, despite the fact that she is just as influential, if not more so.
Read More: 18 Films Made by Women, Starring Women, That We Absolutely Love
An informative new video essay from Catherine Stratton has been released via Fandor to celebrate Women’s History Month, and it walks viewers through the history of Alice Guy-Blaché’s essential contributions to film. Her 1896 film “The Cabbage Fairy” is largely credited as one of the first narrative features ever made, produced and shot at a time when filmmakers like the Lumière Brothers were simply capturing scenes of every day life.
Between 1896 and 1920, Guy-Blaché wrote,...
Read More: 18 Films Made by Women, Starring Women, That We Absolutely Love
An informative new video essay from Catherine Stratton has been released via Fandor to celebrate Women’s History Month, and it walks viewers through the history of Alice Guy-Blaché’s essential contributions to film. Her 1896 film “The Cabbage Fairy” is largely credited as one of the first narrative features ever made, produced and shot at a time when filmmakers like the Lumière Brothers were simply capturing scenes of every day life.
Between 1896 and 1920, Guy-Blaché wrote,...
- 3/10/2017
- by Zack Sharf
- Indiewire
Here are a bunch of little bites to satisfy your hunger for movie culture: Women's Tribute of the Day: In honor of International Women's Day, here's Darth Blender with a supercut of extraordinary women movie characters: Filmmaker in Focus: For Fandor Keyframe in honor of International Womens Day, Catherine Stratton spotlights early filmmaker Alice Guy-Blache: Diy Fan Build of the Day: Learn how to make a little Baby Groot puppet that sits on your shoulder, which would be a great accessory for your Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 cosplay (via io9): Cosplay of the Day: Speaking of babies and cosplay, here's our favorite baby cosplayer dressed as Moana just in time for the home video...
Read More...
Read More...
- 3/9/2017
- by Christopher Campbell
- Movies.com
Georges Méliès’ Le Manoir Du Diable signified the dawn of the horror film. A lost film, Esmeralda (1905), the first adaptation of Victor Hugo's The Hunchback of Notre-Dame, is the offical second installment in the genre. It was created by founding French director Alice Guy-Blaché at the dawn of the 20th Century, who would aid in revolutionizing the art as Gaumont's leading director, and one of the first experimenters with color and special effects in the medium. Her work was succeeded by another adaptation of Hugo's novel in 1911, with an ambitious version by Albert Capellani, another lost film. Though such powerful filmmakers were behind the first explorations into the horror genre on screen (followed by J. Searle Dawley's Frankenstein), it would not be until the early 1920s that horror would even...
[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...
[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...
- 1/27/2017
- Screen Anarchy
Last week Kino Lorber launched a new Kickstarter aimed to fund their latest project “Pioneers: First Women Filmmakers,” a collection of important American films directed by women, including Alice Guy Blaché, Lois Weber, Nell Shipman, Dorothy Davenport, and many more, between 1910 and 1929.
The ambitious project will be presented in association with the Library of Congress and be the largest commercially-released video collection of films by female helmers. It will include HD restorations of both the most important films of the era, as well as lesser-known works, including short films, fragments and isolated chapters of incomplete serials.
“By showcasing the ambitious, inventive films from the golden age of women directors, we can get a sense of what was lost by the marginalization of women to ‘support roles’ within the film industry,” reads the Kickstarter page.
Read More: ‘The Eyeslicer,’ A New Variety Series By and For Indie Filmmakers, Launches Kickstarter Campaign...
The ambitious project will be presented in association with the Library of Congress and be the largest commercially-released video collection of films by female helmers. It will include HD restorations of both the most important films of the era, as well as lesser-known works, including short films, fragments and isolated chapters of incomplete serials.
“By showcasing the ambitious, inventive films from the golden age of women directors, we can get a sense of what was lost by the marginalization of women to ‘support roles’ within the film industry,” reads the Kickstarter page.
Read More: ‘The Eyeslicer,’ A New Variety Series By and For Indie Filmmakers, Launches Kickstarter Campaign...
- 10/25/2016
- by Liz Calvario
- Indiewire
New York’s Anthology Film Archives has announced the lineup for its ambitious Woman With a Movie Camera: Female Film Directors Before 1950,” which runs September 15 — 28. Among the spotlighted filmmakers are Gene Gauntier, Lois Weber and Alice Guy-Blaché, though many more will be featured during the two-week series as well. Full lineup below.
“The Girl Spy Before Vicksburg” (Sidney Olcott & Gene Gauntier)
“Further Adventures of the Girl Spy” (Sidney Olcott)
“The Colleen Bawn” (Sidney Olcott & Gene Gauntier)
“Broadway Love” (Ida May Park)
“The Adventures of Prince Achmed” (Lotte Reiniger)
Read More: The Rock Named World’s Highest-Paid Actor, Earning Nearly $20 Million More Than Highest-Paid Actress, Jennifer Lawrence
“The Rosary” and “Suspense” (Lois Weber & Phillips Smalley)
“Shoes” (Lois Weber)
“The Holy Night” (Elvira Notari)
“Humankind” (Elvira Giallanella)
“The Drunken Mattress” (Alice Guy-Blaché)
“The Strike” (Alice Guy-Blaché)
“The New Love and the Old” (Alice Guy-Blaché)
“The Roads That Lead Home” (Alice Guy-Blaché)
“The...
“The Girl Spy Before Vicksburg” (Sidney Olcott & Gene Gauntier)
“Further Adventures of the Girl Spy” (Sidney Olcott)
“The Colleen Bawn” (Sidney Olcott & Gene Gauntier)
“Broadway Love” (Ida May Park)
“The Adventures of Prince Achmed” (Lotte Reiniger)
Read More: The Rock Named World’s Highest-Paid Actor, Earning Nearly $20 Million More Than Highest-Paid Actress, Jennifer Lawrence
“The Rosary” and “Suspense” (Lois Weber & Phillips Smalley)
“Shoes” (Lois Weber)
“The Holy Night” (Elvira Notari)
“Humankind” (Elvira Giallanella)
“The Drunken Mattress” (Alice Guy-Blaché)
“The Strike” (Alice Guy-Blaché)
“The New Love and the Old” (Alice Guy-Blaché)
“The Roads That Lead Home” (Alice Guy-Blaché)
“The...
- 8/25/2016
- by Michael Nordine
- Indiewire
Looking for a visionary and poetic film with something relevant to say about the ongoing personal tech revolution? Brilliant vintage film clips, many from experimental films, show how our desire for 'connectivity' reached critical mass. With brilliant editing, evocative music and a stirring narration read by Tilda Swinton. And it even has a sense of humor... Dreams Rewired DVD Icarus Films Home Video 2015 / B&W (and a little color) / 1:78 enhanced widescreen (variable, actually) / 85 min. / Street Date March 22, 2016 / available through Icarus Films / 29.98 Narrated by Tilda Swinton Animation Hanna Nordholt, Fritz Steingrobe Film Editor Oliver Neumann Original Music Siegfried Friedrich Written by Manu Luksch, Martin Reinhart, Thomas Tode, Muku Patel Produced by Alexander Dumreicher-Ivanceanu, Bady Minck Directed by Manu Luksch, Martin Reinhart, Thomas Tode
Reviewed by Glenn Erickson
In writing about science fiction I've seen the technological advances of the 20th century organized into fantasies about militarism, the invasion of privacy,...
Reviewed by Glenn Erickson
In writing about science fiction I've seen the technological advances of the 20th century organized into fantasies about militarism, the invasion of privacy,...
- 3/26/2016
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
While the film industry still struggles with gender inequality today, the history of early and silent cinema is filled with female producers, directors and writers
When it comes to tackling gender equality, Hollywood always seems to drag its feet. With depressing frequency, stories and statistics emerge that make Hollywood seem an inhospitable place for women, from stars such as Jennifer Lawrence speaking out about the pay gap, to the numbers that tell us women directed only 6% of Hollywood films in 2013 and 2014. Strange, then, that the film industry wasn’t always this way. In fact, there were more women working in Hollywood in its first two decades than there are now, or have been at any time since. If Hollywood is ever to achieve gender parity in its studios and boardrooms, it should look back to its beginnings.
Women were in the movie game from the very start. The first woman...
When it comes to tackling gender equality, Hollywood always seems to drag its feet. With depressing frequency, stories and statistics emerge that make Hollywood seem an inhospitable place for women, from stars such as Jennifer Lawrence speaking out about the pay gap, to the numbers that tell us women directed only 6% of Hollywood films in 2013 and 2014. Strange, then, that the film industry wasn’t always this way. In fact, there were more women working in Hollywood in its first two decades than there are now, or have been at any time since. If Hollywood is ever to achieve gender parity in its studios and boardrooms, it should look back to its beginnings.
Women were in the movie game from the very start. The first woman...
- 3/7/2016
- by Pamela Hutchinson
- The Guardian - Film News
Danièle Delorme: 'Gigi' 1949 actress and pioneering female film producer. Danièle Delorme: 'Gigi' 1949 actress was pioneering woman producer, politically minded 'femme engagée' Danièle Delorme, who died on Oct. 17, '15, at the age of 89 in Paris, is best remembered as the first actress to incarnate Colette's teenage courtesan-to-be Gigi and for playing Jean Rochefort's about-to-be-cuckolded wife in the international box office hit Pardon Mon Affaire. Yet few are aware that Delorme was featured in nearly 60 films – three of which, including Gigi, directed by France's sole major woman filmmaker of the '40s and '50s – in addition to more than 20 stage plays and a dozen television productions in a show business career spanning seven decades. Even fewer realize that Delorme was also a pioneering woman film producer, working in that capacity for more than half a century. Or that she was what in French is called a femme engagée...
- 12/5/2015
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
Since any New York City cinephile has a nearly suffocating wealth of theatrical options, we figured it’d be best to compile some of the more worthwhile repertory showings into one handy list. Displayed below are a few of the city’s most reliable theaters and links to screenings of their weekend offerings — films you’re not likely to see in a theater again anytime soon, and many of which are, also, on 35mm. If you have a chance to attend any of these, we’re of the mind that it’s time extremely well-spent.
Film Society of Lincoln Center
Want to see great movies for free? This Friday, Lincoln Center brings Film Foundation-restored titles to you at no cost. Ford‘s Drums Along the Mohawk, Scorsese‘s The King of Comedy, John M. Stahl‘s Leave Her to Heaven, Fosse‘s All That Jazz, Donen‘s Two for the Road,...
Film Society of Lincoln Center
Want to see great movies for free? This Friday, Lincoln Center brings Film Foundation-restored titles to you at no cost. Ford‘s Drums Along the Mohawk, Scorsese‘s The King of Comedy, John M. Stahl‘s Leave Her to Heaven, Fosse‘s All That Jazz, Donen‘s Two for the Road,...
- 9/25/2015
- by Nick Newman
- The Film Stage
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
Honorary Award: Gloria Swanson, Rita Hayworth among dozens of women bypassed by the Academy (photo: Honorary Award non-winner Gloria Swanson in 'Sunset Blvd.') (See previous post: "Honorary Oscars: Doris Day, Danielle Darrieux Snubbed.") Part three of this four-part article about the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences' Honorary Award bypassing women basically consists of a long, long — and for the most part quite prestigious — list of deceased women who, some way or other, left their mark on the film world. Some of the names found below are still well known; others were huge in their day, but are now all but forgotten. Yet, just because most people (and the media) suffer from long-term — and even medium-term — memory loss, that doesn't mean these women were any less deserving of an Honorary Oscar. So, among the distinguished female film professionals in Hollywood and elsewhere who have passed away without...
- 9/4/2014
- by Andre Soares
- Alt Film Guide
The best movie culture writing from around the internet-o-sphere. There will be a quiz later. Just leave a tab open for us, will ya? “10 lesbian filmmakers you should know about” — Monika Bartyzel at The Week uses her latest Girls On Film entry to spotlight the talents of a specific subsection, finding some gems and a variety of genres. “Turn-of-the-century powerhouse Alice Guy-Blaché isn’t the only top female talent who has been written out of film history. Dorothy Arzner was the only female filmmaker to consistently work in Hollywood through the 1930s and 1940s. She worked her way up from script typist and made her debut at Paramount with the 1927 film Fashions for Women. She was a woman in a field universally dominated by men and the first female member of the Directors Guild of America. She was also an out woman who lived openly with her partner, Marion Morgan, until...
- 6/23/2014
- by Scott Beggs
- FilmSchoolRejects.com
March is Women’s History Month in the U.S., and while we’ve already honored the occasion with a feature on women’s personal films, it’s about time for a list of great documentaries offering stories of significant women and events. Sadly, it’s not as easy to find a lot of worthy films as it was for our Black History Month equivalent in February. There aren’t as many exceptional docs on the women’s movement as there are on the African American Civil Rights movement. The crop is sure to grow, however, not just on efforts to present the history of feminism but also to showcase important women in history, such as Alice Guy-Blache, an early filmmaking pioneer whose life is the subject of an upcoming doc from executive producer Robert Redford. Another expected to be out this year is on computer language heroine Grace Hopper. And...
- 3/25/2014
- by Nonfics.com
- FilmSchoolRejects.com
Oscar-winning producer Geralyn Dreyfous and her partner Dan Cogan will help finance “Be Natural,” a documentary about pioneer female filmmaker Alice Guy-Blache. Dreyfous and Cogan have had their hands on several of the top documentaries over the past few years, including “The Square” and “The Crash Reel” — two of this year’s Oscar hopefuls — as well as recent favorites “The Invisible War, “How to Survive a Plague” and “Born Into Brothels.” They seek stories with a socially conscious slant, and “Be Natural” fits right into that mission. The film traces the career of Guy-Blache, her role in the development of cinema.
- 12/12/2013
- by Lucas Shaw
- The Wrap
Women are invisible even when they do groundbreaking, historic work. From Monika Bartyzel’s Girls on Film column at The Week:
The same year that Georges Méliès was inspired by the Lumière brothers, Alice Guy-Blaché fell for the form. She was the secretary of famed inventor Léon Gaumont, and was able to gain access to a camera to shoot one of the first narrative films, La Fée aux Choux (The Cabbage Fairy). She crafted numerous films and spent 10 years as the Head of Production at Gaumont Film Company before men like D.W. Griffith even flirted with the format, and created her own studio, Solax, soon after. Over her career, she helmed over 1,000 films, and was one of the first to use cutting-edge techniques like split screen, double exposure, and film linked with sound decades before the release of the “first talkie,” The Jazz Singer. Unfortunately, like many women, she was...
The same year that Georges Méliès was inspired by the Lumière brothers, Alice Guy-Blaché fell for the form. She was the secretary of famed inventor Léon Gaumont, and was able to gain access to a camera to shoot one of the first narrative films, La Fée aux Choux (The Cabbage Fairy). She crafted numerous films and spent 10 years as the Head of Production at Gaumont Film Company before men like D.W. Griffith even flirted with the format, and created her own studio, Solax, soon after. Over her career, she helmed over 1,000 films, and was one of the first to use cutting-edge techniques like split screen, double exposure, and film linked with sound decades before the release of the “first talkie,” The Jazz Singer. Unfortunately, like many women, she was...
- 9/4/2013
- by MaryAnn Johanson
- www.flickfilosopher.com
Update: The Kickstarter campaign for documentary "Be Natural," on pioneering French female director Alice Guy-Blache, has reached its goal of $200,000. Co-directors Pamela Green and Jarik Van Sluijs have already interviewed a handful of big names for the project, including Robert Redford, Catherine Hardwicke, Julie Taymor, Ava DuVernay and Ben Kingsley. Earlier: More news from the world of Kickstarter. A documentary feature on pioneering French female director Alice Guy-Blache, who helmed one of the first narrative films ever made (1896's "La fee aux choux"), is seeking $200K in additional funding. The doc, titled "Be Natural" by Pamela Green and Jarik Van Sluijs, has some big names appearing as talking heads, including Robert Redford (also acting as executive producer), Julie Delpy, Ben Kingsley and Diablo Cody, with Jodie Foster narrating. The film's Kickstarter page describes its needed funding for, among other things, "2D and 3D CGI recreations of locations, technologies,...
- 8/27/2013
- by Beth Hanna
- Thompson on Hollywood
It's time to choose August's Project of the Month. The project that receives the most votes for Project of the Month will receive a consultation from our Project of the Month partner, Tribeca Film Institute! Voting will be open until Friday August 30 at 5 Pm Eastern. "Syl Johnson: Any Way the Wind Blows" In this documentary we invite you into the world of a man who might be the best soul singer you’ve never heard of. But you have heard his music already, even though you might not realize it. Syl Johnson had effectively left his music career behind him by the early 90s when he learned that many hip-hop artists were sampling his songs. Now—at nearly 80—Syl’s back on stage, Grammy-nominated, and not shy about getting his credit where it’s due. Our film follows Syl’s life from 2009 through today, incorporating interviews, animation and archival material...
- 8/26/2013
- by Indiewire
- Indiewire
Alice Guy-Blaché isn’t a name that many members of Hollywood recognize, and that is exactly what co-directors Pamela Green and Jarik van Sluijs are trying to change.
Green and van Sluijs, along with executive producer Robert Redford, recently reached their Kickstarter goal of $200,000 to make a documentary, titled Be Natural, about Guy-Blaché, the 23 year old who became the first female director in 1896.
As the film’s Kickstarter page explains: “Alice Guy was the first female film director. She would become the first female movie studio owner, and one of the most prominent filmmakers in the industry, making her one...
Green and van Sluijs, along with executive producer Robert Redford, recently reached their Kickstarter goal of $200,000 to make a documentary, titled Be Natural, about Guy-Blaché, the 23 year old who became the first female director in 1896.
As the film’s Kickstarter page explains: “Alice Guy was the first female film director. She would become the first female movie studio owner, and one of the most prominent filmmakers in the industry, making her one...
- 8/26/2013
- by Samantha Highfill
- EW - Inside Movies
Alice Guy-Blaché isn’t a name that many members of Hollywood recognize, and that is exactly what co-directors Pamela Green and Jarik van Sluijs are trying to change.
Green and van Sluijs, along with executive producer Robert Redford, recently reached their Kickstarter goal of $200,000 to make a documentary, titled Be Natural, about Guy-Blaché, the 23 year old who became the first female director in 1895.
As the film’s Kickstarter page explains: “Alice Guy was the first female film director. She would become the first female movie studio owner, and one of the most prominent filmmakers in the industry, making her one...
Green and van Sluijs, along with executive producer Robert Redford, recently reached their Kickstarter goal of $200,000 to make a documentary, titled Be Natural, about Guy-Blaché, the 23 year old who became the first female director in 1895.
As the film’s Kickstarter page explains: “Alice Guy was the first female film director. She would become the first female movie studio owner, and one of the most prominent filmmakers in the industry, making her one...
- 8/26/2013
- by Samantha Highfill
- EW - Inside Movies
The Kickstarter campaign for "Be Natural," a film about pioneer female filmmaker Alice Guy-Blache, has reached its goal of $200,000. Guy-Blache made her first movie at the end of the 19th century, predating iconic early movies like Edwin S. Porter's "The Great Train Robbery" and D.W. Griffith's "Birth of Nation." Filmmakers Pamela Green and Jarik van Sluijs have begun work on a movie that traces the career of Guy-Blache, her role in the development of cinema and her importance for young women who aspire to direct. They turned to Kickstarter to raise money...
- 8/26/2013
- by Lucas Shaw
- The Wrap
You've probably never heard of Alice Guy-Blaché, but you aren't the only one.
The Frenchwoman was one of the first people in the world to make narrative films, and accomplished a great deal at a time when women weren't even allowed to vote.
After filmmakers Pamela Green and Jarik van Sluijs learned about this incredible woman, they felt her story deserved to be told. They are currently producing a documentary called "Be Natural" about Alice Guy-Blaché's work and legacy.
During her career Guy-Blaché made over 1,000 films, including the oldest surviving film with an all-African-American cast, and started a movie production studio in New Jersey, .
Check out the video above or head over to their Kickstarter page to see more of what Green and van Sluijs hope to accomplish.
[h/t Upworthy]...
The Frenchwoman was one of the first people in the world to make narrative films, and accomplished a great deal at a time when women weren't even allowed to vote.
After filmmakers Pamela Green and Jarik van Sluijs learned about this incredible woman, they felt her story deserved to be told. They are currently producing a documentary called "Be Natural" about Alice Guy-Blaché's work and legacy.
During her career Guy-Blaché made over 1,000 films, including the oldest surviving film with an all-African-American cast, and started a movie production studio in New Jersey, .
Check out the video above or head over to their Kickstarter page to see more of what Green and van Sluijs hope to accomplish.
[h/t Upworthy]...
- 8/26/2013
- by Nina Bahadur
- Huffington Post
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