Sepideh Farsi’s ‘Put Your Soul on Your Hand and Walk’ to be released in theaters via Kino Lorber
The documentary offers an intimate, first-hand perspective on life under siege in Gaza, captured through video calls between the director and 25-year-old Palestinian photojournalist and poet Fatma Hassona, who was killed by a targeted Israeli airstrike in April.
Read MoreAva DuVernay to be inducted into the American Academy of Arts & Sciences
Established in 1780, the American Academy of Arts & Sciences is one of the country’s oldest learned societies and independent research centers, bringing together luminaries from academia, the arts, industry, policy, research and science to confront challenges facing the United States and the world.
Read MoreLizzie Borden’s iconic 1983 movie ‘Born in Flames’ is getting a Blu-ray release via The Criterion Collection
Named one of “The 50 Most Important Independent Films” by Filmmaker Magazine, “Born in Flames” has been shown at countless festivals and theaters around the world. It has been taught and written about extensively since its 1983 premiere at the Berlin Film Festival.
Read MoreDame Kristin Scott Thomas’ directorial debut ‘My Mother’s Wedding’ opening in theaters this summer
Dame Kristin Scott Thomas co-stars in the film alongside two-time Oscar nominee Scarlett Johansson (“Jurassic World: Rebirth,” “Lost in Translation”), two-time BAFTA nominee Sienna Miller (“American Sniper,” “Layer Cake”), Emily Beecham (“Little Joe,” “Hail, Caesar!”) and BAFTA nominee Freida Pinto (“Slumdog Millionaire,” “Knight of Cups”).
Read MoreIranian writer-director Marva Nabili’s landmark film ‘The Sealed Soil’ gets new 4K restoration
Regarded as the earliest surviving feature film directed by an Iranian woman, Nabili’s “The Sealed Soil” focuses on Roo-Bekheir (Flora Shabavis), a young woman living in a poor village in pre-revolutionary Iran. Roo-Bekheir refuses to agree to a forced marriage, a rejection her family interprets as demonic possession.
Read MoreFemale-driven literary mystery ‘Miss Austen’ coming soon to Masterpiece on PBS
The four-part drama, directed by BAFTA-winning filmmaker Aisling Walsh (“Maudie, “Elizabeth Is Missing”), filmed in the UK and is produced by Stella Merz (“Gentleman Jack,” “Renegade Nell”).
Read MoreSeason 2 of Soo Hugh’s acclaimed series ‘Pachinko’ coming soon to Apple TV+
The first season received 11 international awards including a Peabody Award, an American Film Institute Award, a Critics Choice Award and a Gotham Independent Film Award.
Read MoreAngela Patton and Natalie Rae’s award-winning documentary ‘Daughters’ coming to Netflix in August
The film follows four young girls – Aubrey, Santana, Raziah, and Ja’Ana – as they prepare for a special daddy-daughter dance with their incarcerated fathers, as part of a unique fatherhood program in a Washington, D.C., jail.
Read MoreNisha Ganatra directing ‘Freaky Friday’ sequel reuniting Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan
Production on the sequel Walt Disney Studio’s hit 2003 comedy recently began in Los Angeles. The film, which is reuniting stars Jamie Lee Curtis and Lindsay Lohan, will be released in theaters nationwide in 2025.
Read More‘Fancy Dance’ filmmaker Erica Tremblay to receive inaugural Jaya Award at Athena Film Festival
“Fancy Dance” stars Indigenous performer Lily Gladstone, a trailblazing Golden Globe winner and Oscar nominee for her lead role in Martin Scorsese’s “Killers of the Flower Moon.”
Read MoreNew Proof of Concept Accelerator Program now accepting applications
Proof of Concept is designed to challenge the three most significant barriers women, transgender and nonbinary directors face as they navigate the industry: funding, mentorship and exposure.
Read MoreDee Rees’ Oscar-nominated 2017 drama ‘Mudbound’ getting Criterion Collection release
Set in the Mississippi Delta of the 1940s, “Mudbound” follows two farming families — one of white landholders, one of Black tenant farmers — who are bound by the unforgiving soil as they struggle to survive amid the upheavals of World War II and the venomous hatred of the Jim Crow South.
Read MoreWriter-director Julia Verdin’s human trafficking drama ‘Maya’ due in theaters in January
The award-winning filmmaker is also the founder of Artists for Change, nonprofit organization with a mission to create high-impact film, television and multimedia projects to inspire individuals, organizations and communities to bring about positive social change.
Read MoreLagueria Davis’ ‘Black Barbie: A Documentary’ finds a home with Netflix and Shondaland
“Black Barbie” celebrates the momentous impact three Black women at Mattel had on the evolution of the Barbie brand as we know it. Through these charismatic insiders’ stories, the documentary tells the story of how the first Black Barbie came to be in 1980, examining the importance of representation and how dolls can be crucial to the formation of identity and imagination.
Read MoreBeyoncé brings ‘Renaissance’ concert film to movie theaters
Running 2 1/2 hours, “Renaissance: A Film By Beyoncé” follows the journey of Queen Bey’s blockbuster “Renaissance World Tour” from its inception to its opening in Stockholm, Sweden, to its finale in Kansas City, Missouri.
Read MoreGreta Gerwig’s ‘Barbie’ sets opening-weekend records, sitting pretty going into second weekend
The blockbuster based on Mattel’s iconic doll opened with a dazzling $162 million at the North American box office over the July 21-23 weekend, giving Gerwig the record for the largest opening weekend for a female director.
Read MoreFilm Independent chooses six fellows for second Amplifier Fellowship
Over the course of the nine-month program, the Amplifier Fellows receive creative support to propel a selected project forward both creatively and strategically as well as customized mentorship pairings including with a Netflix executive as an industry advisor and a board member from Film Independent.
Read MoreAmazon Studios and IllumiNative join forces for episodic directors program
The IllumiNative Episodic Directors Program will provide resources and opportunities for emerging and mid-career Indigenous directors to work with a director across prep and shooting of episodic content, gaining valuable on-set experience and furthering their paths to success in the industry, according to a news release.
Read MoreProducers Guild honors Chinonye Chukwu’s ‘Till’ with Stanley Kramer Award
The Producers Guild of America has named Chinonye Chukwu’s fact-based drama Till as its 2023 Stanley Kramer Award honoree. The Stanley Kramer Award lauds a production, producer, or other individuals whose achievement or contribution illuminates and raises public awareness of important social issues, the PGA revealed on Facebook. Producers Keith Beauchamp, Barbara Broccoli, Whoopi Goldberg, Thomas Levine, Michael Reilly and Frederick Zollo will share the honor at the ceremony at the 34th Annual Producers Guild Awards, scheduled for Feb. 25 at The Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, California.
Read MoreSojourner Truth Festival of the Arts to showcase Black women filmmakers in Chicago in 2023
Situating new film work by Black women within a broader Black feminist arts ecosystem, the 1976 festival was simultaneously a celebration of the emerging world of Black women’s filmmaking as well as a radical call for the kinds of sociopolitical and institutional changes necessary for a Black women’s film culture to thrive.
Read MoreNew York Women in Film & Television presents film festival awards and scholarships
The 2022 awards were bestowed on up-and-coming filmmakers and aspiring filmmakers as part of the organization’s ongoing commitment to nurturing the next generation of women in media.
Read MoreAfghanistan documentary ‘In Her Hands,’ produced Hillary Rodham Clinton and Chelsea Clinton, headed to Netflix
Filmed across two turbulent years, the documentary “In Her Hands” tells the story of Zarifa Ghafari, who at age 26 became one of Afghanistan’s first female mayors and the youngest to ever hold the position. The film documents her fight for survival against the backdrop of her country’s accelerated unraveling.
Read MoreChinonye Chukwu’s movie ‘Till’ to premiere at New York Film Festival’s opening weekend
“Till” stars Danielle Deadwyler as Mamie Till Mobley, Jalyn Hall as Emmett Till, Frankie Faison as John Carthan, Haley Bennett as Carolyn Bryant, Sean Patrick Thomas as Gene Mobley, John Douglas Thompson as Moses Wright and Oscar winner Whoopi Goldberg as Alma Carthan.
Read MoreMichelle Yeoh to receive Toronto International Film Festival’s inaugural Share Her Journey Groundbreaker Award
The TIFF Share Her Journey Groundbreaker Award recognizes a woman who is a leader in the film industry and has made a positive impact for women throughout their career. The inaugural award is inspired by TIFF’s Share Her Journey initiative, which was created to address gender parity in the film industry, among other aims.
Read MoreFinal season of Ava DuVernay’s ‘Queen Sugar’ to again showcase women directors
With nearly three dozen filmmakers making their directorial debut on “Queen Sugar,” the series marks a shift in industry hiring standards for women and people of color behind the camera.
Read MoreWelcome to The Week In Women, an AWFJ Network Blog authored by Brandy McDonnell
An Alliance of Women Film Journalists blog.