Lily Gladstone – ALLIANCE OF WOMEN FILM JOURNALISTS

THE WEDDING BANQUET – Review by Lynn Venhaus

April 15, 2025April 21, 2025 Lynn Venhaus andrew ahn, ang lee, Bowen Yang, Han-Gi Chan, James Schamus, joan chen, Kelly Marie Tran, lgbtq, Lily Gladstone, The Wedding Banquet, Youn Yuh-jung

A modern re-imagining of Ang Lee’s first 1993 breakthrough film, The Wedding Banquet is a funny, charming queer family romantic comedy about personal growth, making a home, and your chosen family becoming your real family. Hoping to stay in the country, a gay man Min (Han-Gi Chan) proposes a green card marriage to a female friend Angela (Kelly Marie Tran), hoping to stay in the country, and in exchange, will pay for her partner’s IVF treatment. However, things soon get complicated when his grandmother surprises them with a visit. She wants an extravagant Korean wedding banquet.

Movie of the Week

MOVIE OF THE WEEK February 7, 2025: JAZZY

February 2, 2025February 2, 2025 Jennifer Merin betsy bozdech, Cate Marquis, Jasmine Bearkiller Shangreaux, Jazzy, jennifer merin, leslie combemale, Lily Gladstone, liz whittemore, loren king, Morrisa Maltz, nell minow, Oglala Lakota, Pam Grady, sandie angulo chen, Spearfish South Dakota, Syriah Fool Head Means, Vertical Entertainment

As it follows Jasmine “Jazzy” Bearkiller Shangreaux (playing herself), a young Oglala Lakota girl growing up in rural Spearfish, South Dakota, the film — a follow-up to Morrisa Maltz’ The Unknown Country — puts a fresh spin on familiar topics like friendship ups and downs, first crushes, and family dynamics. Filmed over a span of six years as its main characters navigate the transition from childhood to adolescence, Jazzy is made up of beautifully everyday moments in the lives of Jazzy and Syriah (Syriah Fool Head Means), Jazzy’s best friend in both the movie and in real life. The girls ride to school together on the bus, giggle about class gossip, play with favorite stuffed animals, talk about how they wish they could stay kids forever, and generally stay glued to each other’s side. Until Syriah’s family ends up moving away.

Reviews

JAZZY – Review by Nadine Whitney

January 18, 2025January 19, 2025 Nadine Whitney Andrew Hajeck, Jasmine (Jazzy) Bearkiller Shangreaux, Jazzy, Lily Gladstone, Morrisa Maltz, Olgala Lakota, Syriah Fool Head Means, Vanara Taing

Writer, visual artist, and director Morrisa Maltz first met Jasmine (Jazzy) Bearkiller Shangreaux when she was five years old. Jazzy, was shot over several years, spinning off from Maltz’s, The Unknown Country, and is a fictional narrative of best friends growing up together. Jazzy and Syriah (Syriah Fool Head Means) are young Olgala Lakota girls navigating the space between childhood and young adulthood. Their world is impacted by adults; parents, relatives, and schoolteachers. Maltz and cinematographer Andrew Hajeck cleave to the perspective of the two girls. Their discussions on the school bus, their private and shared realms, their faces, and their shifting sense of who they are.

Reviews

FANCY DANCE – Review by Leslie Combemale

June 20, 2024June 27, 2024 Leslie Combemale Carolina Costa, Erica Tremblay, Fancy Dance, Isabel Deroy-Olson, Lily Gladstone, Miciana Alise, Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Samantha Crain

Erica Tremblay’s Fancy Dance has everything a movie needs to win awards: a plot with high stakes, strong performances by Lily Gladstone and ensemble, good character development and interaction, deeper cultural significance, and solid entertainment value. Fancy Dance also features BIPOC female creatives both in front and behind the camera, including the use of music by Choctaw composer Samantha Crain, and cinematography by Latinx filmmaker Carolina Costa.

Interviews

Erica Tremblay on FANCY DANCE – Leslie Combemale interviews

June 20, 2024June 23, 2024 Leslie Combemale Apple TV+, Carolina Costa, Erica Tremblay, Fancy Dance, Isabel Deroy-Olson, Lily Gladstone, Miciana Alise, Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Samantha Crain

When Fancy Dance premiered at Sundance in 2023, it was nominated for the Grand Jury Prize and lauded by critics. The film went on to great acclaim on the festival circuit, including a special mention at Outfest and a win for Best Narrative Feature at the New York’s LGBT film festival, NewFest. The film’s co-writer, director and producer Erica Tremblay had been working on the screenplay with writing partner Miciana Alise for years. They’ve crafted, re-crafted, and tightened the story as they processed it through several writer’s labs, including one at Sundance. The attention to detail and story shows. It has garnered at 97% on Rotten Tomatoes, and its release is much anticipated. AWFJ lead contributor Leslie Combemale discussed the project with Tremblay in this exclusive interview:

Festivals

Cannes Film Festival 2024: Yes, Women Cannes – Nikki Fowler reports

May 30, 2024May 29, 2024 Nikki Fowler Adriana Paz, Agathe Riedinger, Anasuya Sengupta, andrea arnold, Camille Cottin, Cannes Film Festival 2024, cate blanchett, Coralie Fargeat, demi moore, Elizabeth Chisela, emma stone, greta gerwig, justine triet, Karla Sofía Gascón, Kelly Rowland, Lily Gladstone, margaret qualley, meryl streep, Omarra Shetty, palme d'or, Payal Kapadia, Rungano Nyoni, Selena Gomez, Trine Dyrholm, victoria carmen sonne, Wei Liang, You Qiao Yin, zoe saldana

This year, the Cannes Film Festival spotlighted a rich diversity within its Official Selection Jury, including prominent women like Oscar nominee Lily Gladstone (Killers of the Flower Moon) and the Jury President, Oscar-winning director Greta Gerwig (Barbie). The festival celebrated the achievements of many female filmmakers and actresses, who not only appeared on screens in the South of France but also took home prestigious awards. The festival was a powerful celebration of women’s contributions to cinema, setting a high standard for future events.

SPOTLIGHT

SPOTLIGHT April 2024: LILY GLADSTONE, Actor and Activist

March 31, 2024March 31, 2024 Rachel West Academy Awards, best actress, Indiginous advocate, Lily Gladstone, Nez Perce, Pigeon Blackfeet, spotlight, The Killers of the Flower Moon

There is no denying 2023 was Lily Gladstone’s (she/they) breakout year. After acting for a decade in bit parts and as part of ensemble films, Gladstone’s name is the one on everyone’s lips thanks to their portrayal of Mollie Burkhart in The Killers of the Flower Moon. In a film dominated by men and lauded male talent like Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert De Niro, Jesse Plemons, Brendan Fraser, and director Martin Scorsese, it’s Gladstone’s performance that’s rightfully being singled out. Collecting numerous awards for their performance including the SAG Award, Golden Globe, and dozens of critics’ circle awards including Best Actress and Best Breakthrough Performance from AWFJ, Gladstone’s award run was capped off with an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress. Though she’s not adding “Oscar winner” to her impressive credentials just yet, their star is definitely on the rise as a formidable on-screen talent.

News

WEEK IN WOMEN: FANCY DANCE Filmmaker Erica Tremblay to receive inaugural Jaya Award – Brandy McDonnell reports

February 27, 2024February 27, 2024 Brandy McDonnell Athena Film Festival, Erica Tremblay, Fancy Dance, Indigenous filmmaker, Jaya Award, Lily Gladstone, Miciana Alise, the week in women, twiw

Erica Tremblay, an Indigenous writer, producer and director from the Seneca-Cayuga Nation, is set to be honored with the inaugural Jaya Award at the 14th annual Athena Film Festival for her critically acclaimed narrative feature directorial debut, Fancy Dance. The 2024 Athena Film Festival is set for Feb. 29 to March 3 at Barnard College in New York City. The festival was founded in 2011 to champion and promote diverse, nuanced, complex and underrepresented stories of women’s leadership on screen.

News

WEEK IN WOMEN: Lily Gladstone to be Honorary Chair at Independent Spirit Awards – Brandy McDonnell reports

February 21, 2024February 22, 2024 Brandy McDonnell film independent, Film Independent Spirit Awards, Josh Welsh, Lily Gladstone, the week in women, twiw

Film Independent, the nonprofit arts organization dedicated to fostering independence and inclusivity in visual storytelling, recently announced that Lily Gladstone is serving as the honorary chair of its 2024 Film Independent Spirit Awards. The honorary chair position is given each year to an individual who exemplifies outstanding artistic achievement and embodies Film Independent’s mission. Gladstone, who is NiMíiPuu, or Nez Perce, and Siksikaitsitapi, or Blackfeet, recently made cinema history with her best actress Academy Awards nomination for Killers of the Flower Moon. In addition to serving in the honorary chair role, Gladstone is nominated for a Spirit Award as a writer on the film The Unknown Country.

EDA Awards News

AWFJ EDA Awards 2023 — and the winners are… – Jennifer Merin reports

January 3, 2024 Jennifer Merin American Fiction, Barbie, celine song, EDA Awards 2023, greta gerwig, justine triet, Killers of the Flower Moon, Lily Gladstone, The Zone of Interest

In 2023, The Zone of Interest picked up awards for both Best Film and Best International Film, Barbie captured four awards, including Best Director for Greta Gerwig, who also shared Best Original Screenplay Award with Noah Baumbach, Best Supporting Actor for Ryan Gosling and Best Ensemble Cast/Casting Director (tie). Among other awards Killers of the Flower Moon won awards for Best Actress (Lily Gladstone), Best Cinematography (Rodrigo Prieto), Best Editor (Thelma Schoonmaker) and Best Women’s Breakthrough Performance (Lily Gladstone). American Fiction also won multiple awards.

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