News – ALLIANCE OF WOMEN FILM JOURNALISTS

WEEK IN WOMEN: Reba McEntire’s HAPPY’S PLACE returns for Season 3 – Brandy McDonnell reports

October 8, 2026October 10, 2026 Brandy McDonnell Happy's Place, Melissa Peterman, nbc, peacock, Reba McEntire, Rex Linn, the week in women, twiw

Reba McEntire is returning to NBC this fall for the third season of her latest hit sitcom Happy’s Place. The multimedia entertainment mogul and Oklahoma Hall of Famer stars in and serves as an executive producer of the popular series which debuted in October 2024. McEntire plays Bobbie, who inherits her father’s Knoxville, Tennessee, bar, Happy’s Place, upon his death. After running the tavern for many years, Bobbie is less than thrilled when she learns she has a new business partner: Isabella (Belissa Escobedo, Blue Beetle“), the much younger half-sister she didn’t know she had until their daddy died.

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WEEK IN WOMEN: Ngozi Onwurah’s WELCOME II THE TERRORDOME to Blu-ray – Brandy McDonnell reports

September 26, 2026September 26, 2026 Brandy McDonnell blu-ray, criterion collection, Ngozi Onwurah, the week in women, twiw, Welcome II the Terrordome

Nigerian-born British filmmaker Ngozi Onwurah’s trailblazing 1995 sci-fi feature Welcome II the Terrordome has been restored and will be released in on October 6, 2026, on Blu-ray via The Criterion Collection. The first theatrically distributed British feature by a Black woman, the dystopian science fiction film furiously evokes a near future in which Black people are segregated within a slum called the Terrordome. In her prescient sci-fi feature, Onwurah builds a visionary, Afrofuturist cosmology that connects the history of slavery to modern-day systemic racial brutality.

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WEEK IN WOMEN: Zoe Kazan/Florence Pugh land EAST OF EDEN at Netflix – Brandy McDonnell reports

September 18, 2026 Brandy McDonnell east of eden, florence pugh, john steinbeck, limited series, netflix, Zoe Kazan

Zoe Kazan’s seven-episode limited series adaptation of East of Eden hits Netflix on October 1. Kazan’s modern interpretation of John Steinbeck’s 1952 Nobel Prize-winning novel explores the multigenerational saga of the Trask family, focusing new attention on its indelible, enigmatic antihero, Cathy Ames, played in the series by Florence Pugh (We Live in Time, Dune 2, Oppenheimer, Little Women) who also executive produced the series. With Pugh as the lead, it sounds like Zoe Kazan’s limited series adaptation of East of Eden will center Cathy more as a main character rather than in a supporting role.

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WEEK IN WOMEN: TIFF Honors Cruz, Eleazar, Heder and Huppert – Brandy McDonnell reports

September 10, 2026September 13, 2026 Brandy McDonnell Isabelle Huppert, penelope cruz, Rosalind Eleazar, Sian Heder, TIFF 2026, TIFF Tribute Awards

Penélope Cruz, Rosalind Eleazar, Siân Heder and Isabelle Huppert will be honored at the 2026 TIFF Tribute Awards, part of the 51st annual Toronto International Film Festival. TIFF Tribute Awards celebrate a diverse group of film artists, recognizing outstanding contributions to cinema.
the ceremony takes place on Sunday, Sept. 13, at the Fairmont Royal York Hotel Toronto.

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WEEK IN WOMEN: Rebecca Hall is Guest Director at Telluride Film Fest 2026 – Brandy McDonnell reports

September 3, 2026October 12, 2026 Brandy McDonnell a24, Julie Huntsinger, netflix, rebecca hall, telluride film festival, Telluride Film Festival 2026

Acclaimed British-American actress, writer and director Rebecca Hall is serving as guest director for the 2026 Telluride Film Festival in Colorado. Hall is selecting a series of films to present at the 53rd festival, running Sept. 4-7. Festival organizers annually select a top film enthusiast to join in the creation of the festival’s program lineup. The guest director serves as a key collaborator in Telluride Film Festival’s programming decisions, bringing new ideas, unique perspectives and overlooked films to the festival. In keeping with Telluride Film Festival tradition, Hall’s film selections, along with the rest of the festival lineup, will remain a secret until just before opening day.

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WEEK IN WOMEN: Ellen Burstyn receives Golden Lion at Venice Film Fest – Brandy McDonnell reports

August 23, 2026August 23, 2026 Brandy McDonnell Alberto Barbera, Ellen Burstyn, Golden Lion, lifetime achievement, the week in women, twiw, Venice International Film Festival

Oscar-winning actress Ellen Burstyn will be awarded the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement at the 83rd Venice International Film Festival, set to take place September 2-12. The Golden Lion will be awarded to Burstyn in conjunction with the festival’s screening of Maggie Gyllenhaal’s short film Flesh Impact. Dedicated to Marilyn Monroe on the centenary of her birth, the film features yet another extraordinary performance by the actress. “Wow! I not only get to travel to one of my top most favorite cities in the whole world. I get to return home carrying a Golden Lion in my arms! The Lifetime Achievement Award from the Venice Film Festival! I feel so honored— so happy — so filled with gratitude! Wow indeed!” Burstyn said.

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WEEK IN WOMEN: Agnieszka Holland’s FRANZ opens in US Cinemas – Brandy McDonnell reports

August 16, 2026 Brandy McDonnell Agnieszka Holland, biopic, FRANZ, Franz Kafka, the week in women, twiw

Agnieszka Holland’s Franz, a portrait of legendary writer Franz Kafka, who remains celebrated worldwide for his books, short stories, fables and aphorisms, is bowing in theaters on Aug. 21. Billed as Holland’s most ambitious project to date, her biopic of the iconic 20th-century Czech writer had its world premiere last year at the 50th Toronto International Film Festival. It was nominated for a Golden Seashell at the 2025 San Sebastián International Film Festival in Spain, and it became Poland’s official entry to the 98th Academy Awards. For six decades, Holland has remained one of the most compelling filmmakers in global cinema.

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Week In Women: Georgia Oakley’s new take on SENSE AND SENSIBILITY – Brandy McDonnell reports

August 9, 2026August 9, 2026 Brandy McDonnell Diana Reid, focus features, Georgia Oakley, jane austen, twiw, Universal Pictures International (UPI), week in women, Working Title

Writer-director Georgia Oakley’s new screen adaptation of iconic English writer Jane Austen’s first novel will bow in movie theaters in fall, released by Focus Features, Universal Pictures International (UPI) and Working Title in U.S. theaters on Oct. 16. Oakley is following up on her award winning Blue Jean (2022), directing from a script by bestselling author Diana Reid. Filming started last summer in the United Kingdom. Focus has worldwide rights on the movie, and UPI will handle international distribution for the studio. The film was initially scheduled for a September theatrical release in the United States.

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WEEK IN WOMEN: Alicia MacDonald’s FINDING EMILY in U.S. Theatres via Focus Features – Brandy McDonnell reports

August 5, 2026August 5, 2026 Brandy McDonnell Alicia MacDonald, angourie rice, Cannes Lions, Finding Emily, focus features, Minnie Driver, Rachel Hirons, Working Title

British filmmaker Alicia MacDonald’s first feature, Finding Emily, comes to U.S. theaters on Aug. 28 via Focus Features. The award-winning MacDonald already has created an impressive body of work that spans film, television, commercials and short films. She has worked with global leading brands such as McDonald’s, Walkers, Toyota, Jaguar, Google and more. Her airline safety film for TUI – Safety: A Global Film – gained industry recognition at the British Arrows advertising awards and was listed in Campaign’s Top 5 Ads of the Year. Her short films Bad News and Domestic Policy won gold at the Young Director Awards and played in the New Creators’ Showcase at Cannes Lions, respectively.

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WEEK IN WOMEN: Isabella Rossellini gets Excellence Award @ Locarno Film Fest – Brandy McDonnell reports

July 29, 2026August 4, 2026 Brandy McDonnell Giona A. Nazzaro, isabella rossellini, Locarno Film Festival

The Locarno Film Festival will celebrate the iconic Italian-American actress, model, and filmmaker Isabella Rossellini with the Excellence Award at its upcoming 79th edition, set for Aug. 5-15 in Locarno, Switzerland. Rossellini will be honored with the Excellence Award on the opening night of the festival, Aug. 5, in Piazza Grande. Along with a public conversation, Rossellini will present her witty, self-directed web series Green Porno (2008-09), in which she acted out animal mating rituals in costume and with deadpan comic genius. Other films wth classic Rossellini performamces are also on the program.

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