New Director Announced for Twilight Sequel -- Shocker -- It's a Guy

In order to begin pre-production on New Moon the Twilight sequel like this week, Summit has engaged Chris Weitz, the good friend of one its top executives to take on the New Moon directing gig. It's no matter that Weitz was box office poison less than a year ago with the release of The Golden Compass which tanked here in the US (but made a little over $300 million overseas.)

So again, Hollywood gives us an example of a man failing upwards.

I have nothing against Weitz, I liked About a Boy and The Golden Compass but we all know he got the gig because his buddy is the head of production at Summit and they had to close the deal fast. Oh and of course they don't have to worry about him being "irrational" and "difficult" because only women directors are difficult and irrational. What a joke.

They got Stephenie Meyer to put a statement of support for Weitz on her website, but to me it read like a love letter to Hardwicke. Weitz also sent a letter out to fans asking for their support. Guess this could be a moment where the fans could push back and say no, if this matters at all to them. It seems that it matters more to the people who follow film than the people who follow the Twilight series.

“Like you, I’m sad that Catherine is not continuing on with us for New Moon. I’m going to miss her, not just as a brilliant director, but also as a friend. She has such a distinct, authentic voice that did amazing things for Twilight. I’m looking forward to every movie she does in the future. And she didn’t leave us empty handed. We still get the benefits of her amazing casting and the beautiful visual world she created. This foundation puts us in a good place for New Moon.”

To me, this is just bad news for women directors. Here was a real opportunity to show that a woman could helm a lucrative franchise (which just went over the $150 million mark here) and it's gone.

Twilight Author Stephanie Meyer Speaks on Hardwicke’s Departure and New Moon Director Chris Weitz (/Film)
Chris Weitz to direct 'Twilight' sequel (Variety)

The New Adventures of Old Christine, Hysterical and Politically Relevant

I hope you've been watching The New Adventures of Old Christine on Wednesday nights on CBS. The show is incredibly funny and is on the cutting edge of political humor, especially dealing with gay rights. Last week's episode was so over the top funny and politically relevant with the passage of Prop 8. The episode co-starred Megan Mullally as a representative of the "Bloom" company which tried to shut down Christine's gym because she is in a gay marriage to Wanda Sykes. The ensuing hilarity was over the top funny.

So props go to Kari Lizer the creator and showrunner and to Julia Louis Dreyfus and Wanda Sykes and the rest of the awesome cast for being so funny, so smart and so relevant.




'The New Adventures of Old Christine': The new 'Will & Grace'? (EW)

Women Over 55 Are Invisible on British TV

So said broadcaster and writer Dame Joan Bakewell. She has been given a job by the British government to advocate for older people on TV and spoke out after the settlement of a lawsuit by Selina Scott who at 57 was passed over for covering the maternity leave for Five News host Natasha Kaplinsky. Clearly, there was age discrimination since they gave her a settlement of 250,000 pounds.

"[Older women] tell me they feel invisible and they literally are invisible on television.

"We need to do something about that because television represents such a picture of who we are as a community."

Women over 55 'invisible on TV' (BBC)
Thinking man's Dame: Joan Bakewell honoured by Queen for services to broadcasting Daily Mail

First Women to Chair Arts Council in England

I can't believe we are still in an era of firsts for women, but we are. According to the Guardian, Dame Liz Forgan will be named the first female chair of the Arts Council of Britain, one of the most powerful jobs in the arts.

"Forgan, an already influential figure, began as a journalist and was the Guardian's women's editor in the late 1970s before she went into broadcasting management. She became director of programmes at Channel 4 before joining the BBC in charge of radio, helping to set up Radio 5. She recently stepped down as chair of the National Heritage Memorial Fund. In 2003 she was named chairwoman of the Scott Trust, the sole shareholder of the Guardian."

Dame Liz Forgan will be first woman to chair Arts Council (The Guardian)

Review: Doubt

Sister Aloysius Beauvier likes order, clarity and keeping things just the way they are because that is how she controls the students and her fellow nuns at the St. Nicholas school in the Bronx. Problem is the world is changing around her in ways she has no control over. It's 1964 and the culture as well as the church are shedding the 50s much to Sister Aloysius' dismay. The parish priest (played by Phillip Seymour Hoffman) is trying to make the church friendlier and more nurturing and that brings him in direct conflict with Sister Aloysius (played by Meryl Streep.)

Their conflict is emblematic of the changing culture not only in the church but, between men and women. Women in the church at that time (at least in the movie) wore habits that were restricting in many ways including not giving them the ability to see all that was happening around them -- literally and figuratively. They could only see straight ahead and with no peripheral vision you miss many of the nuances of life. Father Flynn wants to be loved by his flock because he is already respected as a priest. Sister Aloysius has no need to be loved, she wants to be respected, and demands that respect through discipline and order.

When young Sister James (played by Amy Adams) observes an overly friendly and potentially inappropriate relationship between Father Flynn and the school's first black student, Sister Aloysius immediately moves forward to confront the priest. His explanation is sketchy, yet there is no evidence. She only has the "certainty of my convictions."

But nothing is certain and that more than anything is what stands out in the film.

The question of the potential abuse of the boy sometimes gets lost in the power struggle between good and evil between right and wrong between the past and the future in the wordy battles of Hoffman and Streep. But the question, did Father Flynn abuse Donald is never answered leaving that up to the viewer which is a bold and necessary decision.

Viola Davis gives a breathtaking performance as the mother of the potentially abused boy. Class and race issues are thrown into the conflict as Davis' Mrs. Miller implores Streep's sister Aloyisus to help her son get through the school year so that he can have a future. She unhesitatingly chooses Father Flynn and what he might be doing to her son over the persistent beatings he receives from his father. In that one scene, Mrs. Miller leaves Sister Aloyisus shaken to her core.

The thing about Doubt as a film is that because it is so focused on the words you really need to concentrate to get everything. It is the type of movie that I enjoyed better on my second viewing because I was able to fill in some of the pieces that I missed the first time out. Streep is great as always as Sister Aloyisus, but I was disappointed with Phillip Seymour Hoffman. Amy Adams again proves that she can hold her own, but her part, though pivotal, is small. It will leave you thinking, talking and questioning which is what I loved about it.

Check out the trailer:

What the Hell is a Co-Director Anyway?

Slumdog Millionaire is the feel good movie of the season. It's generating a lot of good reviews, great word of mouth, award nominations and award wins. Critic and blogger and all around expert on things women and film, Jan Lisa Huttner has raised a question about the directing credits on Slumdog Millionaire that is worthy of further conversation.

If you look at imdb (the film data bible), Danny Boyle is the director and right below his name it lists Loveleen Tanden as co-director (India- where the whole film was shot). So the question that Jan is rightly posing is, if you are a co-director should you also be nominated when the director is? And, what is a co-director and how does that credit come about?

If you look back to last year's Academy Awards nominations the Coen Brothers are both given a directed by credit (and won) for No Country for Old Men. And in 2006 Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris are also both given directed by credits for Little Miss Sunshine. Both of those teams have worked together as teams for years. That's just how they do their work.

Jan pointed me to the film City of God which was directed by Fernando Meirelles and also has a co-director Katia Lund listed. The film did very well in the 2002-2003 cycle winning numerous awards at film festivals and in getting nominations from the major awards organizations. While Meirelles alone won numerous awards for his directing, there are two instances -- the AFI audience award and the Washington DC Area Film Critics association -- which gave the award to both Meirelles and Lund.

The point is that awards and nominations matter A LOT. Think of the the career that Meirelles has had since his nomination. He has directed The Constant Gardener and Blindness which won the top award at the Cannes Film Festival. Talent aside, think he would have gotten those gigs had he not been nominated for a foreign film like City of God? No way. What would it have meant to Katia Lund's career had she been acknowledged in some way as the co-director of City of God? We'll never know.

But, since I don't know how credits are negotiated and it looks like festivals and critics kudos all have different rules its hard to 100% say that Loveleen Tanden is not getting her due because she is a woman. Tanden is very supportive of the film and has been on the press tour with Boyle and others. And, Huttner spoke with Boyle about the issue and he was very complimentary of her work.

Since women have such a hard time breaking into the directing ranks at the top level -- only three women have ever been nominated for an Oscar for directing -- this is a really interesting conversation to be having this year when women's films have been so successful at the box office.

Yesterday, Slumdog scored Golden Globe directing nomination. Jan Lisa Huttner is requesting that people send a letter to the HFPA asking them to add Tandan's name as co-director to the nomination. Get the letter here. I'd love to understand what the hell is a co-director and if women get put into the co-director position more easily than men.

Meryl Streep Makes Golden Globe History

With her nominations for Doubt and Mamma Mia!, Streep becomes the most nominated actor with 23 nominations. She has six wins (which ties her with Jack Nicholson).

'Mamma Mia!' — No 'Doubt' Meryl Streep makes Golden Globe history (LA Times)
photo: Sylvain Gaboury/PR Photos

Women & Hollywood on ABC News.com

ABC News ran a story on the canning of Catherine Hardwicke which quoted me. Check it out:

"She's done exactly what Hollywood said we have to do as women -- delivered a successful box office movie," Melissa Silverstein, who runs the blog Women & Hollywood, told ABCNews.com. "It does not add up."

Silverstein wrote a blog about Hardwicke's departure under the headline: "What Does a $70 Million Opening Weekend Get Catherine Hardwicke? Fired."

But some industry watchers question whether Hardwicke was treated fairly. After one blog quoted a Summit insider as saying Hardwicke was "difficult" and at times "irrational," Silverstein shot back, "Why don't you just call her 'bitch?'"

"It's a boy's town," Silverstein said. "Directing is the ultimate job. You are the king, you tell people what to do and you're in charge. And there's a very small list of men who are on it. Here's a woman who made it on the list. She worked her butt off, achieved a big box office success and has been summarily kicked off the list."

Read the full piece: Why Was 'Twilight' Director Axed From Sequel?
Also check up this EW update piece about the situation. It just gets stranger.

The Life of a Female Theatre Director

Directing on Broadway is still a boys club just like it is in Hollywood. If you are doing a new play you need to have one of the guys in the club like Michael Mayer, Scott Ellis, Doug Hughes, or Joe Montello to direct your play. What I hear from a friend who is a playwright is that most theatres won't consider a woman to direct. Anna D. Shapiro broke into the club with her Tony win for August Osage County but she is happy at Steppenwolf in Chicago and don't think she will be working in NY regularly.



One female director who has gotten close to Broadway -- with Theresa Rebeck's play The Scene at Second Stage -- is Rebecca Taichman, a Yale educated director who works a lot outside of NY, especially in DC where she is spending two years as associate artistic director at the Wholly Mammouth Theatre. Her credits there include Sarah Ruhl's Pulitzer Prize winning play The Clean House before it made it to Lincoln Center (with a male director.)

The Washington Post just did a profile on her in conjunction with her new production of The Taming of the Shrew. There's no denying that she's busy but

Although she has been keeping a healthy presence in Washington, the freelance directing life is taking Taichman around the globe. "Twelfth Night" moves to New Jersey's McCarter Theatre after its run here (Taichman is working on a new musical there), then she heads to San Francisco for Edward Albee "At Home at the Zoo" (previously known as "Peter and Jerry"). After that it's off to East Africa under the auspices of the Sundance Institute; Taichman is collaborating with a Rwandan artist she met during a Sundance residency last summer.

Long-range, she rules out nothing, proclaiming an interest in everything from new plays to classical tragedies to Broadway larks. Especially Broadway larks.

Here's a woman with a ton of credits yet Broadway still eludes her. Is this common? Check out this three year old piece from the NY Times on the lack of women directors on Broadway:

OF the 39 plays and musicals that opened on Broadway this year, 3 were directed by women (a husband-and-wife team directed a fourth, the short-lived "Blonde in the Thunderbird"). Of the 34 new shows in 2004, women directed 2. These are not particularly encouraging figures for those looking for the new female directorial voices. Many women can be found directing shows off Broadway and running regional theaters, but the best-known and biggest-budget venue has not been all that welcoming.

photo: Dominic Braccoli/Washington Post

Remember This Name: Zoe Kazan

Zoe Kazan is a young woman with a unique pedigree. Her grandfather was Elia Kazan, the director. Her dad is the screenwriter, Nicholas Kazan and her mom is screenwriter/director Robin Swicord.

That's a lot to live up to. But she has. Seriously.

She made her Broadway debut last year in Come Back, Little Sheba and she blew me away as Masha in current Broadway production of The Seagull that stars Peter Saarsgard and Kristin Scott Thomas. She's also in the upcoming Revolutionary Road. But to top it off she has clearly inherited the writing talent of her parents. Her first play, Absalom has been accepted into the prestigious Humana Festival of New American Plays.

All this and she just turned 25.

The Girlywood Invasion

Nightline did a short piece on the successful female centric movies that came out this year asking if these films will finally get Hollywood focused on any other audience besides the 18-24 year old boys.

Readers of this blog won't learn anything new. The piece was fine (but too short and didn't get into any of the deeper issues as to why so few movies about women are made.) It laid out the successes all the way back to Titanic and The Princess Diaries. But I hate the title. The Girlywood Invasion. We are not invading anything. We just want some movies about women. Condescending.

Watch the piece through the link below (it's less than 4 minutes)
The Girlywood Invasion

Hat tip to Beverly Wettenstein for the heads up

Hollywood Feminist of the Day: Oprah Winfrey

Less than a week after being named the most powerful woman in Hollywood, Oprah uses her power to talk about the issue that has plagued her all of her life -- her weight. In a world obsessed with thinness (especially in Hollywood) Oprah shows you can be powerful and not thin. As a person who is involved in that daily struggle, her honesty about "falling off the wagon" makes me love her even more.

Oprah: I Weigh 200 Pounds (AP via CBS)

Review: Wendy and Lucy

Kelly Reichardt wants to make small, intimate films about people and their lives who most of the world ignores. That's not exactly the formula for a hit movie. But Reichardt could care less and I find that impressive. Wendy and Lucy is not going to break any box office records, but it's going to break some hearts, especially dog lovers like me. Michelle Williams stars as Wendy, a young woman (we really don't know her age) driving herself and her dog to Alaska in her beat up car in search of a job at a cannery. That's not exactly the pursuit of the "American dream." But Wendy is a symbol of how people just trying to do the right thing still fall through the cracks. She doesn't have a lot of options and the best one she sees is to drive thousands of miles for a potential job that will probably be physically taxing and difficult.

This film has become even more relevant in our economic meltdown. It's like the news that you can't avoid on TV and newspapers has come to life. And it's not pretty. Wendy's only companion is Lucy, her dog. People will do anything for their dogs (I know that for a fact) and when Wendy shoplifts some dog food she gets arrested. After spending several hours in jail and having to pay a fine with some of the little money she has left, she returns to the store to find her dog gone. Of course, nobody has seen anything. To top it off, her car is dead and being off the grid she has no cell phone and no support system. Her dog is all she has keeping her together. The rest of the movie is a search for Lucy with absolutely no resources, except for an borrowed cell phone from a security guard who takes pity on her. Her vulnerability continues to grow and becomes more palpable. You feel scared for her especially when she winds up sleeping in the woods and gets robbed. She is all alone in the woods in the middle of the night with someone rooting around through her stuff. Scary.

It's really amazing how far Michelle Williams has come from her days on Dawson's Creek. She's got some serious talent. She is onscreen for practically every second and sucks you into her plight. The film was made on a minuscule budget in 15 days. But it works and it makes you think. This is a movie that I am excited to see again. What's also exciting is the talent and vision of director Kelly Reichardt who is a clear auteur (a word I don't use lightly.) She's unafraid and actually embraces silence which is quite bold compared with other movies in this day and age.

Wendy and Lucy opens in NY today, LA on Friday, and will roll out across the country over the next couple of months. Here's info on where it will be playing.

The Women & Hollywood film club will be seeing the film together in NY this Saturday at 4:30. Here are details.

Check out the trailer:

Other info:
Kelly Reichardt, director of WENDY AND LUCY, Interview (Spout)
An Actress Moves On, Or Tries To (Newsweek)

Blaming Nicole Kidman

I take offense to two harsh pieces about Nicole Kidman's box office prowess (or lack thereof) in the LA Times and The Guardian. The titles are even inflammatory- The Guardian: Nicole Kidman is queen of the flops; LA Times: Nicole Kidman: Movie star or box-office loser? Let's be honest, Australia has some good things in it, but it is not a good movie. It just doesn't work. That is Baz Lurhmann's fault, not Kidman's. While her performance was way too stiff in the beginning, she, and her character relaxed and I wound up enjoyed her and Hugh Jackman. But the story was dreadful, and again that is not her fault.

Has anyone taken the time to write about Hugh Jackman's box office issues? He's made a bunch of duds (Deception, The Fountain) but is a star (and the Sexiest Man according to People Magazine) because of the X-Men franchise. Get a guy a franchise and and he's a star. Women have a harder time being franchise players. For example Halle Berry. No one is going to make a movie about her X-Men character, but they sure did make a movie about Wolverine.

It's strange that there are a bunch of articles written about Nicole Kidman as a box office star when we don't get articles like that for women like Emma Thompson, Kate Winslet and until recently Meryl Streep. They are just fantastic actresses.

Kidman really has never been a box office star on her own (and I would venture to say that she could care less about it) but she for some reason has been painted with this brush. Is it because she was married to Tom Cruise or that she was in a Batman movie? The films she took that are supposed to be commercial have sucked (Bewitched, The Stepford Wives). Her non-commercial ones are better. However, I couldn't get through Fur, (as I couldn't get through Jackman's The Fountain) but liked Birth and Margot at the Wedding a lot. Her most recent "flop" before Australia, The Golden Compass made $70 million in the US but over $300 million overseas which is a big deal since the story was about a girl. (God forbid she should get any credit for that, she only gets blamed for the flops.)

But most importantly, Kidman is just emblematic of the obsession with opening weekend dollars and how women still can't rate compared to the guys. Instead of blaming the actresses why don't we figure out a way for them to be successful?

From Patrick Goldstein at the LA Times: What's really depressing is that when you ask marketing execs to name the actresses that do earn their keep, you're usually met with silence. There are always caveats: Meryl Streep in the right role, as with "Mamma Mia!" Angelina Jolie, who can put some extra oomph in a genre film like "Wanted." Reese Witherspoon or Sandra Bullock in the right kind of comedy. In today's Hollywood, it's a lot easier to build a career as a respected actress than as a box-office icon. Whether you're Nicole Kidman or anyone else, it's a man's, man's, man's world.

No wonder she talks about quitting acting. She can't do anything right. I for one will keep pulling for her simply because her performance as Virginia Woolf in The Hours was breathtaking and I am hopeful she has a couple of more of those inside her.

photo: Insodefoto/PR Photos

More Love for Tina and Rachel

I know we don't have a woman president (I am I'm kind of over that) but aside from Barack and Michelle Obama, the other most interesting stories this fall have been about women especially Tina Fey, Rachel Maddow and Katie Couric (btw love the new hair Katie).

Tina and Rachel have been everywhere. The latest love for these two women is in Vanity Fair and Newsweek. A common through line in both pieces is how they are outsiders which I found so interesting and endearing and probably why I like them so much. Most of the comments about the Fey Vanity Fair piece has been about how she got her scar and weight loss (Yeah Weight Watchers!- you should sign her up as a spokesperson!) but here are some other interesting tidbits that intrigued me.

Fey’s friend Kay Cannon, a 30 Rock writer, says that Tina has remained self-deprecating even as she has glammed up. “She’ll always see herself as that other, the thing she came from.”

Fey’s acerbity comes from her mother (the Greek side), who has what Richmond calls “drag-queen humor—that bitter, extremely caustic kind of stab-you-in-the-heart humor.” Mrs. Fey played a weekly poker game with her friends. “I loved hanging out with the ladies, because they were very funny, and a little bit mean, and had lots of Entenmann’s products,” Fey says.

Her friend Damian Holbrook, a TV Guide writer who attended a nearby high school and whose first name she took for the gay character in Mean Girls, says she was like the Janis character in that movie, the sweet girl in an oversize Shaker sweater who didn’t run with the cool crowd or strut around to get guys, yet had the wit to burn the mean girls if she wanted to.

She didn’t have great athletic ability but played tennis, and, citing Kay Cannon, says that team sports breed “a different kind of woman,” with a “game-on, let’s-do-it work ethic”; she hopes her daughter will grow up to play sports.

And Maddow in Newsweek

All the ensuing hype and excitement about Maddow's rapid rise, and her quirks—the smart, self-described "butch dyke" who somehow broke into the cable-news boys' club—has masked the true reason for her success. It's not despite her differences from other talking heads, but because of them.

Maddow seems to have genuinely charmed younger viewers, a Twitter-savvy, podcasting generation that has hankered for someone more like them and delights in her use of "duh," her obvious intelligence and authenticity, and her ability to be both idealistic and skeptical about politics. She eschews vanity and insists she won't stop dressing "like a 13-year-old boy" when she can.

Maddow's partner, artist Susan Mikula, believes the "unlikely" label is just code for lesbian: "She goes from Stanford to Oxford to activism to radio, then TV? What's so unusual about that? Is it because she is a gay lady?"

The reason she and Mikula stay happily unmarried, says Mikula, is because "we both have a real fondness for the outsider part of our gay culture."

What Tina Wants (Vanity Fair)
When Left is Right (Newsweek)

Female Actresses Still Make Less Money Than the Guys

No shocker here. Women earn less than men and everyone earns less than Will Smith. The Hollywood Reporter unveiled it's annual salary report in conjunction with the power list.

Here are the top money making women:

• Angelina Jolie- gets $15 million per picture and is also getting backend gross points.
• Julia Roberts- she's back and earning $15 million for Duplicity.
• Reese Witherspoon- $14 million for Four Christmases
• Cameron Diaz- Was making $15 million, she made $10 million for What Happens in Vegas
• Katherine Heigl- one of the only women who is a TV and movie star. She made $6 million and 6% of the backend for the upcoming The Ugly Truth and makes $225,000 per episode for having sex with a ghost on Grey's Anatomy.
• Kate Hudson- I still can't believe that people are still giving this woman jobs. She made $7 million for the upcoming Bride Wars (saw a preview yesterday and it is so offensive).
• Anne Hathaway- Made $5 million for Bride Wars (please tell me how she made less than Kate Hudson?) and now could get $8 million of the great reviews and possible Oscar nomination for Rachel Getting Married.
• Jennifer Aniston- Made $8 million for the family comedy Marley & Me.
  

Here's the list from last year
1. Reese Witherspoon -- $15 million-$20 million
2. Angelina Jolie -- $15 million-$20 million
3. Cameron Diaz -- $15+ million
4. Nicole Kidman -- $10 million-$15 million
5. Renee Zellweger -- $10 million-$15 million
6. Sandra Bullock -- $10 million-$15 million
7. Julia Roberts -- $10 million-$15 million
8. Drew Barrymore -- $10 million-$12 million
9. Jodie Foster -- $10 million-$12 million
10. Halle Berry -- $10 million

What Does a $70 Million Opening Weekend Get Catherine Hardwicke? Fired.

The press release was sent out yesterday afternoon. Catherine Hardwicke, will not be directing the sequel to Twilight which Summit wants to have in the theatres by the end of next year or at the latest in early 2010. The release said that Hardwicke passed on the project due to "timing issues" because she wanted more prep time to work on the script which scribe Melissa Rosenberg turned in on opening weekend. Summit wants to film sooner rather than later.

Nikki Finke is reporting that Hardwicke was actually fired because she was "difficult" and "irrational." Geez, they just should have called her a bitch and been done with it.

Who knows what the real story is, probably somewhere in the middle, but this rubs me the wrong way. First, the film is opening all over the world and Hardwicke is currently in Europe promoting the film. Awkward.

Second, I can't help but think that a guy director who has brought in over $140 million on a budget of under $40 million would be treated differently. Hardwicke did everything she was supposed to do, that every director dreams of doing, directing a big box office success. (The film will probably turn out to be in the top 10 domestic grossers of the year.)

Everyone keeps saying the power job is the director and that having more women directors show box office prowess will open up the directing ranks. Guess not. Just goes to show that the gender issues are just much deeper than anyone is willing to discuss.

No Hardwicke for 'Twilight' sequel (Variety)

Seen and Heard at the Power Breakfast 2008

(Amy) Pascal, when asked what she'd like to change in the industry:
"I wish all of us would be a little braver. I wish all of us would make the movies that made us get in the business. I don't think I always do that. And that’s what I'd like to do."

Amen, Amy. you have the power, now do it.

Sexist Image of the Day: Variety's Best Director Contenders

Variety has a feature in today's paper that focuses on the best director candidates. The top tier a re called "THE GENERALS" - ie: battle tested vets. Of course, not a single one of the vets is a woman. The next tier down "IN THE MIX" still does not name a single woman. How can they name Lance Hammer and Steve McQueen and not name Courtney Hunt and Kelly Reichardt?

Shame of Variety for using war like and male centric images to describe directors. Do you need to perpetuate the stereotype even more? No wonder no women made it to the list.

Shameful. Send editor in chief Peter Bart an email at peter.bart@variety.com (not 100% sure that is his email but give it a shot) and let him know that this is unacceptable. It's also hysterical to me that they put this on the cover of their home page the same day that rival Hollywood Reporter names the top 100 Women in Power in Hollywood.

Power 100 List

It's that time of the year again when Hollywood takes a moment and celebrates the women in its ranks at the Hollywood Reporter annual Power Women Breakfast in conjunction with Lifetime Networks.

I'm waiting for the day when we don't need these kind of events anymore, but we are sooo far away from that. Congrats to all and try to think about helping and supporting other women in your ranks who don't have the kind of power you do.

Here's the list:
1. Oprah Winfrey
Chairman, Harpo Inc.

2. Anne Sweeney
Co-chairman, Disney Media Networks
President, Disney-ABC Television Group

3. Amy Pascal
Co-chairman, Sony Pictures

4. Nancy Tellem
President, CBS Paramount Network Television Entertainment Group

5. Stacey Snider
Co-chairman and CEO, DreamWorks

6. Bonnie Hammer
President, NBC Universal Cable Entertainment and Universal Cable Prods.

7. Judy McGrath
Chairman and CEO, MTV Networks

8. Mary Parent
Chairman, MGM Worldwide Motion Picture Group

9. Dana Walden
Chairman, 20th Century Fox Television

10. Nina Tassler
President, CBS Entertainment

11. Donna Langley
President of production, Universal Pictures

12. Nikki Rocco
President of distribution, Universal Pictures

13. Sue Kroll
President of worldwide marketing, Warner Bros. Pictures

14. Dawn Ostroff
President of entertainment, the CW

15. Katherine Pope
President, Universal Media Studios

16. Sue Naegle
President, HBO Entertainment

17. Lauren Zalaznick
President, NBC Universal Women and Lifestyle Entertainment Networks

18. Kathleen Kennedy
Producer/partner, the Kennedy/Marshall Co.

19. Laura Ziskin
President, Laura Ziskin Prods.

20. Veronika Kwan-Rubinek
President of international distribution, Warner Bros. Pictures

21. Andrea Wong
President and CEO, Lifetime Networks

22. Sheila Nevins
President, HBO Documentary Films

23. Shari Redstone
President, National Amusements
Vice chairman of the board of directors, Viacom and CBS Corp.
Co-chairman and co-president, MovieTickets.com

24. Angelina Jolie
Actress

25. Elizabeth Gabler
President, Fox 2000 Pictures

26. Ann Daly
COO, DreamWorks Animation

27. Elisabeth Murdoch
Chairman and CEO, Shine

28. Nancy Utley
COO, Fox Searchlight

29. Emma Watts
Co-president of production, 20th Century Fox

30. Valerie Van Galder
Co-president of worldwide theatrical marketing, Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group

31. Pamela Levine
Co-president of domestic theatrical marketing, 20th Century Fox

32. Terry Wood
President of creative affairs and development, CBS Television Distribution

33. Hilary Estey McLoughlin
President, Telepictures Prods.

34. Janice Marinelli
President, Disney-ABC Domestic Television

35. Belinda Menendez
President, NBC Universal International Television Distribution

36. Tyra Banks
President, Bankable Prods.

37. Marion Edwards
President of international television, 20th Century Fox Television Distribution

38. Jessica Reif Cohen
Managing director and media and entertainment analyst, Merrill Lynch

39. Cyma Zarghami
President, Nickelodeon and MTVN Kids & Family Group

40. Linda Bell
Blue Executive producer, "Entertainment Tonight" and "The Insider"

41. Abbe Raven
President and CEO, A&E Television Networks

42. Michele Ganeless
President, Comedy Central

43. Mary McLaren
COO, 20th Century Fox International Theatrical and Home Entertainment

44. Teri Weinberg
Executive vp, NBC Entertainment

45. Eileen O'Neill
President and GM, TLC

46. Debra Lee
Chairman and CEO, BET Networks

47. Cecile Frot-Coutaz
CEO, FremantleMedia North America

48. Amy Baer
President and CEO, CBS Films

49. Paula Kerger
President and CEO, PBS

50. Lynn Calpeter
Executive vp and CFO, NBC Universal

51. Tina Fey
Executive producer/writer/star, "30 Rock" (NBC)

52. Maren Christensen
Executive vp and general counsel, Universal Studios

53. Tracey Jacobs
Board member, partner and co-head of talent department, UTA

54. Kelley Avery
President, Paramount Worldwide Home Entertainment

55. Diane Nelson
President, Warner Premiere

56. Shonda Rhimes
President, Shondaland
Creator/executive producer, "Grey's Anatomy" and "Private Practice" (ABC)

57. Nancy Josephson
Partner, Endeavor

58. Claudia Lewis
President of production, Fox Searchlight

59. Beth Swofford
Motion picture literary agent, CAA

60. Jo Ann Ross
President of network sales, CBS Television Network

61. Hylda Queally
Motion picture talent agent, CAA

62. Toni Howard
Head of motion picture talent, ICM

63. Megan Colligan
Co-president of domestic marketing, Paramount Pictures

64. Nancy Dubuc
Executive vp and general manager, History

65. Rachael Ray
TV host/author/magazine founder

66. Lauren Corrao
President of original programming and development, Comedy Central

67. Sharon Sheinwold
Partner, Endeavor

68. Vanessa Morrison
President, Fox Animation

69. Karen Kehela Sherwood
Co-chair, Imagine Films

70. Blair Kohan
Partner and motion picture talent and literary agent, UTA

71. Cynthia Pett-Dante
Owner and managing partner, Brillstein Entertainment Partners

72. Keri Putnam
President of production, Miramax Films

73. Debbie Liebling
President of production, Fox Atomic

74. Leah Weil
Senior executive vp and general counsel, Sony Pictures Entertainment

75. Jane Rosenthal
Producer/ partner, Tribeca Prods.
Co-founder of the Tribeca Film Festival

76. Deborah Schindler
President of international motion picture production group, Sony Pictures Entertainment

77. Rebecca Prentice
Executive vp and general counsel, Paramount Pictures

78. Bernardine Brandis
Executive vp business and legal affairs, Walt Disney Studios

79. Randi Michel
Senior vp, head of talent (East Coast), WMA

80. Michelle Bohan
Partner, Endeavor

81. Roberta Reardon
President, AFTRA

82. Melanie Cook
Partner, Ziffren Brittenham Branca Fischer Gilbert-Lurie Stiffelman Cook Johnson Lande & Wolf

83. Jeanne Newman
Partner, Hansen Jacobson Teller Hoberman Newman Warren & Richman

84. Bridget Baker
President of TV networks distribution, NBC Universal

85. Deborah Barak
Executive vp business affairs, CBS Paramount Network Television Entertainment Group

86. Jana Winograde
Executive vp business affairs, ABC Entertainment, ABC Daytime and SoapNet

87. Beth Roberts
Executive vp business affairs, digital and new business development, NBC Universal Entertainment

88. Maria Crenna
Executive vp, CBS Paramount Network Television

89. Jennifer Nicholson-Salke
Executive vp creative affairs, 20th Century Fox Television

90. Lisa Gregorian
Executive vp worldwide marketing, Warner Bros. Television Group

91. JoAnn Alfano
Executive vp entertainment, Lifetime Networks

92. Marla Provencio
Executive vp marketing, ABC Entertainment

93. Jennifer Rudolph Walsh
Executive vp, co-head of worldwide literary department, WMA

94. Risa Gertner
Co-head of motion picture literary department, CAA

95. Sarah Greenberg
Co-president of theatrical marketing, Lionsgate Entertainment

96. Anne Globe
Worldwide head of marketing and consumer products, DreamWorks Animation

97. Leslie Siebert
Senior managing partner, The Gersh Agency

98. Nicole Clemens
Head of motion picture literary department, ICM

99. Jean Prewitt
President and CEO, Independent Film & Television Alliance

100. Miley Cyrus
Star, "Hannah Montana" (Disney Channel)

Power 100 List (Hollywood Reporter)
photo: Chris Hatcher / PR Photos

Why Wasn't Meryl Streep on the Newsstand Cover of Entertainment Weekly?

I find this very strange (as have several of the readers of the blog.)

When I got my favorite magazine (EW) in the mail this week I was so excited to see Meryl Streep on the cover declaring her the "Queen of Hollywood." We all know that she was always the queen in terms of content but now, at 59, she's a bona fide box office star. Check out my piece from earlier this week.

So now it had come to light that the Streep cover was only sent to subscribers and that Twilight was put on the cover for newsstands. I know that Twilight is a huge hit and I am thrilled, but it had been on the cover only weeks before. Why did it need to be on the cover again?

And isn't it just ironic that the whole story about Streep was how she has become commercially viable and then it turns out that she's not commercial enough for newsstands.

Some body please explain this to me (or as Rachel Maddow would say- somebody talk me down.)

Here are the different covers (from last week- this week features Jennifer Aniston who is not known for her box office prowess):

Equality Watch: Women Artists Get Paid Less

I guess this isn't such an important story because I only read about it in one place (good job LA Times), but it is important and should be discussed further. It's hard to make ends meet as an artist, but its harder as a female artist according to the NEA.

The NEA has released a more in-depth look at some of the data in its report “Artists in the Workforce, 1990-2005.” This "addendum" specifically looks at the gender pay gap for artists. Occupations included in the study: announcers, architects, musicians, producers, directors, artists, dancers, choreographers, designers, writers, visual artists, entertainers, performers and photographers.

Said the chairman of the NEA Dana Gioia: "Committed and entrepreneurial, women artists are making enormous progress, but still lag behind their male colleagues economically, especially in fields such as photography, design, and architecture.”

Other interesting findings:

• Women artists earn $0.75 for every dollar made by men artists. That 2 cents less than the overall gender pay gap which is 77 cents for every male dollar.
  

• Pay disparity increases with age.
  

• Pay gaps vary by occupation. Men and women had closer earnings parity in lower-paying performing arts occupations (such as musicians and dancers), where women earned an average of $0.92 for every dollar earned by men. The gap tended to be larger in non-performing art occupations (such as designers and art directors), where women earned 72 percent of what men earn.

• Pay gaps vary by state. The pay disparity was smaller in ten states, such as New York and Arizona, where women made 80 percent or more of what men made. Women made less than 75 percent of what men made in 27 states, including Virginia, Michigan, and North Dakota.

• Women make up just under half of all artists nationwide (46 percent), yet they are underrepresented in many artist professions. In 2003-2005, nearly 8 out of 10 announcers and architects were men.

• Women artists are as likely to be married as female workers in general, but they are less likely to have children.
  

• Female artists cluster in low-population states. Women made up more than 55 percent of the artist labor force in Iowa, Alaska, New Hampshire and Mississippi in 2003-2005. They represent well below half of all artists in New York (45.8 percent) and in California (42.6 percent).

Women Artists: 1990 - 2005 (December 2008 update)
A gender pay gap for L.A. artists (NYC too) (LA Times)

Holiday Diversion: The Spirited Woman Holiday Guide

Everyone who reads this site (whether you are a man or woman) is spirited in some way. This holiday season I have linked up with Nancy Mills and her site The Spirited Woman (and other women's blogs) to help publicize their Holiday Guide. It's a really cool and non-traditional and very feminist.

As Nancy says: "It is a guide to help you think out of the gift-giving box. Give back. Create change. Take a leap. Make a difference. Inspire others by the fact that you are inspired. And oh yes, have fun along the way. This is not your typical shop-til-you-drop guide. No way. No how."

Check out the guide (you do have to download a pdf) and get some interesting ideas for the holiday season. Hope you enjoy.

The Sundance List

One of the most important days in the indie film world was yesterday, the unveiling of the Sundance Film Fest's competition lists.

For the US dramatic competition 16 films were accepted out of 1,026 submissions. That's about a 1.6% chance of getting picked. Yowsa.

Here are the women directed and women centric films. (Please let me know if I miss anything or get anything wrong)

US Dramatic Competition
Amreeka (Director-screenwriter: Cherien Dabis)
When a divorced Palestinian woman and her teenage son move to rural Illinois, they find their new lives replete with challenges. Cast: Nisreen Faour, Melkar Muallem, Hiam Abbass, Yussuf Abu-Warda, Alia Shawkat.

Brief Interviews With Hideous Men (Director-screenwriter: John Krasinski)
When her boyfriend leaves with little explanation, a doctoral candidate in anthropology tries to remedy her heartache by interviewing men about their behavior. Cast: Julianne Nicholson, John Krasinski, Timothy Hutton, Dominic Cooper, Christopher Meloni, Bobby Cannavale.

Cold Souls (Director-screenwriter: Sophie Barthes)
In the midst of an existential crisis, a famous American actor explores soul extraction as a relief from the burdens of daily life. Cast: Paul Giamatti, Dina Korzun, David Strathairn, Emily Watson, Lauren Ambrose, Oksana Lada.

The Greatest (Director-screenwriter: Shana Feste)
After the tragic loss of their teenage son, a family is again thrown into turmoil by the arrival of a young woman. Cast: Pierce Brosnan, Susan Sarandon, Carey Mulligan, Johnny Simmons, Aaron Johnson, Zoe Kravitz.

Humpday (Director-screenwriter: Lynn Shelton)
A farcical comedy about straight male bonding gone a little too far. Cast: Mark Duplass, Joshua Leonard, Alycia Delmore, Lynn Shelton, Trina Willard.

Paper Heart (Director: Nicolas Jasenovec)
Even though performer Charlyne Yi doesn't believe in love, she bravely embarks on a quest to discover its true nature -- a journey that takes on surprising urgency when she meets an unlikely fellow traveler, actor Michael Cera. Cast: Charlyne Yi, Michael Cera, Nicolas Jasenovec, Jake Johnson.

Push (Based on the Novel by Sapphire) (Director-screenwriter: Lee Daniels)
Based on the acclaimed best-selling novel by Sapphire, the film is the redemptive story of Precious Jones, a girl in Harlem struggling to overcome tremendous obstacles and discover her own voice. Cast: Gabourey "Gabby" Sidibe, Paula Patton, Mo'Nique Imes, Lenny Kravitz.

Toe to Toe (Director-screenwriter: Emily Abt)
The story of an interracial friendship put to the test by the intense pressures of a competitive Washington prep school. Cast: Sonequa Martin, Louisa Krause, Silvestre Rasuk, Anwan Glover, Gaius Charles.

U.S. DOCUMENTARY COMPETITION (16 films were selected from 879 submissions.)

Boy Interrupted (Director: Dana Perry)
An intimate look at the life, mental illness and death of a young man told from the point of view of the filmmaker: his mother.

The General (El General) (Director: Natalia Almada)
As the great-granddaughter of Mexican President Plutarco Elias Calles, one of Mexico's most controversial revolutionary figures, filmmaker Natalia Almada paints an intimate portrait of Mexico.

The Reckoning: The Battle for the International Criminal Court (Director: Pamela Yates)
A battle of monumental proportions unfolds as International Criminal Court Prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo faces down warlords, genocidal dictators and world superpowers in bringing perpetrators of crimes against humanity to justice.

The September Issue (Director: R.J. Cutler)
With unprecedented access, R.J. Cutler and his crew shot for nine months as they captured Vogue editor in chief Anna Wintour and her team preparing the 2007 Vogue September issue, widely accepted as the "fashion bible" for the year's trends.

Shouting Fire: Stories From the Edge of Free Speech (Director: Liz Garbus)
An exploration of the history and current state of free speech in America narrated by the filmmaker's father, First Amendment attorney Martin Garbus.

We Live in Public (Director: Ondi Timoner)
The story of the Internet's revolutionary impact on human interaction as told through the eyes of maverick Web pioneer Josh Harris and his transgressive art project that shocked New York.

William Kunstler: Disturbing the Universe (Directors: Sarah Kunstler, Emily Kunstler)
With clients including Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X and the Chicago 10, civil-rights attorney William Kunstler was one of the most famous lawyers of the 20th century. Filmmakers Emily and Sarah Kunstler explore their father's life, from movement hero to "the most hated lawyer in America."

WORLD CINEMA DRAMATIC COMPETITION (16 films were selected from 1,012 submissions.)
Before Tomorrow (Le Jour Avant Lendemain) / Canada (Directors: Madeline Piujuq, Marie-Helene Cousineau)
A wise old woman fights to survive impossible circumstances with her young grandson in the Canadian Arctic. Cast: Peter-Henry Arnatsiaq, Paul-Dylan Ivalu, Madeline Piujuq Ivalu, Mary Qulitalik, Tumasie Sivuarapik. U.S. premiere

Dada's Dance / China (Director: Zhang Yuan; screenwriter: Li Xiaofeng)
Dada is a flirtatious young woman who lives with her mother in a small town. Having to fend off the constant advances of her mother's boyfriend, who tells her she is adopted, she undertakes a journey in search of her birth mother. Cast: Li Xinyun, Li Xiaofeng, Gai Ge, Chen Jun. World premiere

An Education / U.K. (Director: Lone Scherfig; screenwriter: Nick Hornby)
In the early 1960s, a sharp 16-year-old with sights set on Oxford meets a handsome older man whose sophistication enraptures and sidetracks her and her parents. Cast: Peter Sarsgaard, Carey Mulligan, Alfred Molina, Emma Thompson. World premiere

A French Gigolo (Cliente) / France (Director-screenwriter: Josiane Balasko)
An attractive, successful fiftysomething woman regularly treats herself to the sexual services of young men selected on Internet sites. When one particular escort becomes a habit, the relationship gets a bit more complicated. Cast: Nathalie Baye, Eric Caravaca, Isabelle Carre, Josiane Balasko. World premiere

Heart of Time (Corazon del Tiempo) / Mexico (Director-screenwriter: Alberto Cortes)
In La Esperanza de San Pedro, Chiapas, in the midst of the Zapatista struggle, a young woman makes serious waves when she falls in love with a revolutionary fighter from the mountains. Cast: Rocio Barrios. North American premiere

Louise-Michel / France (Directors: Benoit Delepine, Gustave Kervern)
When a French factory is abruptly closed by its corrupt management, a group of disgruntled female workers pool their paltry compensation money and hire a hit man to knock off the corrupt executive behind the closure. Cast: Yolande Moreau, Bouli Lanners. North American premiere

The Maid (La Nana) / Chile (Director-screenwriter: Sebastian Silva)
When her mistress brings on another servant to help with the chores, a bitter and introverted maid wreaks havoc on the household. Cast: Catalina Saavedra, Claudia Celedon, Mariana Loyola, Alejandro Goic, Andrea Garcia-Huidobro. North American premiere

WORLD CINEMA DOCUMENTARY COMPETITION (16 films were selected from 744 submissions.)
Afghan Star / Afghanistan and U.K. (Director: Havana Marking)
After 30 years of war and Taliban rule, "Pop Idol" has come to television in Afghanistan -- and millions are watching and voting for their favorite singer. This film follows the dramatic stories of four contestants as they risk their lives to sing. North American premiere

The Glass House / U.S. (Director: Hamid Rahmanian)
Follows four teenage girls striving to overcome drug addiction, abandonment and abuse by attending a rehabilitation center in Tehran, Iran. North American premiere

Kimjongilia / France and U.S. (Director: N.C. Heikin)
Defectors from North Korea finally speak out about the terrifying reality of their lives and escapes. World premiere

The Queen and I (Drottningen och jag) / Sweden (Director: Nahid Persson Sarvestani)
Swedish filmmaker Sarvestani, an Iranian exile who helped overthrow the Shah's regime in 1979, confronts her own assumptions and complex truths about Iran when she enters the life of the Shah's widow. World premiere

Quest for Honor / Kurdistan and U.S. (Director: Mary Ann Bruni)
A former teacher and tireless activist works with local lawmen, Kurdish government agencies and her colleagues to investigate and eradicate honor killings in the tribal regions of Kurdistan. World premiere

Rough Aunties / U.K. (Director: Kim Longinotto)
Fearless, feisty and unwavering, the "Rough Aunties" protect and care for the abused, neglected and forgotten children of Durban, South Africa. North American premiere

211:Anna / Italy (Directors: Paolo Serbandini, Giovanna Massimetti)
The story of Anna Politkovskaya, a Russian journalist and human-rights activist who risked her life to report the truth about the Chechen conflict and President Vladimir Putin. World premiere

Meryl Streep is the Queen of Hollywood

Meryl Streep is having a good year. In fact, she's had a couple of good years. Looking back on her career she's had some really big peaks: 1979-1985 with films like Kramer vs. Kramer; The French Lieutenant's Woman; Silkwood; Sophie's Choice; and Out of Africa. A big valley in the late 80's and early 90s with She-Devil, Death Becomes Her, and Postcards from the Edge. But mostly she's been steady, consistent, fantastic actress whose films got nominated for awards but didn't make a lot of money.

Until now.

Now she's a box office star. It started with The Devil Wears Prada and has been cemented with Mamma Mia!

EW's Christine Spines has this week's cover story on Streep and her resurgence. One thing I love about Streep is that she has never been afraid to talk about how Hollywood treats women. She never suffered (at least as far as I can tell) a backlash for her honesty and outspokenness. Everyone who writes a script for a woman over 40 wants her first. She's on the top of every list. I also love that Streep is a feminist and supports women's organizations like Equality Now.

Here are some great quotes from the piece:

But given that Hollywood treats actresses over 40 as if they've passed their sell-by date, Streep's transformation into a bankable movie star at age 59 is astounding.

Studios are now carving out space in their summer schedules, between the Pirates and the Pixars, for a Streep film. ''A Meryl Streep slot,'' says Sony Pictures chairman Amy Pascal. ''Who ever thought you'd say that?''

Nobody. The common assumption is that women will go see movies starring men, but men won't buy a ticket to see a movie about a woman. Streep has changed the game. Of the 50 highest-grossing films of all time worldwide, only one is female-driven: Mamma Mia! ''She's the hottest actress in America,'' says Nora Ephron, who wrote and directed Streep's August '09 film, Julie and Julia, in which the actress plays chef Julia Child.

There's a poetic justice to the fact that Streep's career has also eclipsed those of her male contemporaries — Pacino, De Niro, Dustin Hoffman, and even Nicholson — almost none of whom can match her box office clout. She's clearly loving her new power. ''It's all completely improbable and sort of great,'' she giggles. An unrepentant feminist, Streep seems to take particular joy in beating the guys on their own turf. ''Well, they have their own fun,'' she allows.

Her crusade, at this point, is to show Hollywood how much money can be made from female-driven movies.

I've never paid attention to that stuff, but this was just bringing it in. It's so gratifying because it's the audience that nobody really gives a s--- about.''

I wish I could report that since Streep is doing so well things are filtering down for other women, but it doesn't look so good. Think about Diane Keaton. She was on top of the world with Something's Gotta Give, and now she's had two stinkers in a row and one that went straight to video which I recently wrote about. In general, the scripts looked terrible. That seems to be a consistent problem with films by and about women. I know there are good scripts out there. Let's get some of them into the pipeline.

Meryl Streep: Box Office Queen (EW)

A Great Day for Frozen River and Courtney Hunt

Oscar season is well underway and yesterday brought us the Independent Spirit Award nominations and the Gotham Awards. Courtney Hunt's Frozen River won best feature and Melissa Leo won the breakthrough actress award.

The film was also nominated for several Independent Spirit awards nominations including best feature, best director, best actress, best supporting actress, as well as for the prodcuer of the year award. Rachel Getting Married also got a lot of love for the film as well as Anne Hathaway, Rosemarie DeWitt and Debra Winger.

Wendy and Lucy directed by Kelly Reichardt about a young woman on the economic margins and her love for her dog, opens next week got nominations for best film and best actress for Michelle Williams.

In the WTF category for me is the nomination of Summer Bishil in Towelhead. It was definitely challenging for a 20-year-old to play a 13-year-old, but best actress? I don't see it.

Here are some of the other womencentric nominations.

Best Feature
“Rachel Getting Married” (Neda Armian, Jonathan Demme, Marc Platt)
“Wendy and Lucy” (Larry Fessenden, Neil Kopp, Anish Savjani)
“Frozen River” (Chip Hourihan, Heather Rae)

Best Director
Courtney Hunt, “Frozen River”

Best Screenplay
Anna Boden & Ryan Fleck, “Sugar”

Best First Screenplay
Courtney Hunt, “Frozen River”
Jenny Lumet, “Rachel Getting Married”

Best Female Lead
Summer Bishil, “Towelhead”
Anne Hathaway, “Rachel Getting Married”
Melissa Leo, “Frozen River”
Tarra Riggs, “Ballast”
Michelle Williams, “Wendy and Lucy”

Best Supporting Female
Penelope Cruz, “Vicky Cristina Barcelona”
Rosemarie DeWitt, “Rachel Getting Married”
Rosie Perez, “The Take”
Misty Upham, “Frozen River”
Debra Winger, “Rachel Getting Married”

Best Cinematography
Maryse Alberti, “The Wrestler”

Best Documentary
“The Order of Myths” (Margaret Brown)
“The Betrayal” (Ellen Kuras & Thavisouk Phrasavath)

Robert Altman Award
Charlie Kaufman (Director), Jeanne McCarthy (Casting Director), Hope Davis, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Catherine Keener, Samantha Morton, Tom Noonan, Emily Watson, Diane Weist, Michelle Williams, “Synecdoche, New York”

Piaget Producers Award
Heather Rae, “Frozen River”

Acura Someone to Watch Award
Lynn Shelton, “My Effortless Brilliance”
Nina Paley, “Sita Sings the Blues”

Lacoste Truer Than Fiction Award
Margaret Brown, “The Order of Myths”

Full list of nominations

Hollywood Feminist of the Day: Nicole Kidman

I have always been impressed with Nicole Kidman's choice of roles. She takes on parts that are challenging and the characters are not always likable (i.e. Birth, Margot at the Wedding). Some of the films work, some don't, but she is always interesting to watch.

But, I am even more impressed with her work for UNIFEM to end violence against women. She seems to really believe in the work. Last week during the press tour for Australia she showed up at the UN to deliver a petition with over 5 million signatures calling on governments around the world to make violence against women a priority.

Here's why she decided to do this work:

"The reason I chose the subject of women is because I was raised by a mother who was very passionate about having her daughters educated and wanted her daughters to have equal opportunities, and I'm a product of that.

"So now I'm out there hoping to pass on to the next generation and work in a greater capacity than just as an actress," Kidman said.

Cool Nicole Kidman turns heat on violence epidemic (Herald Sun)
Photo: Janet Mayer/PR Photos

Kathy Bates is One Busy Actress

I was watching last week's Fringe yesterday and there were a bunch of commercials for the upcoming sci-fi film The Day the Earth Stood Still starring Keanu Reeves and Jennifer Connelly. I noticed that Kathy Bates was in a lot of the scenes looking very official and political. Turns out that she plays the Secretary of Defense in the film. Cool.

It got me to thinking that I have seen Kathy a lot on screen this year. She's in Revolutionary Road out this month, and was one of the leads in Tyler Perry's The Family That Preys and appeared earlier this year in Bonneville. And she already has two films finished for 2009, Cheri with Michelle Pfeiffer and Personal Effects.

Since I devote a lot of time to complaining, I thought it would be great to note that one of our best and most versatile actresses is working a lot.

While I Was Away: Twilight Kicked Ass

Last week while I was away it looks like Twilight blew away everyone's box office expectations. Summit (the studio) said they would be happy with $20 million, were hoping for $30 million, and would have been thrilled beyond belief for $40 million. But they all underestimated the anticipation and the opening weekend gross was $70 million.

That number is a serious blockbuster number. What makes it all the more interesting is that 75% of the opening weekend tickets were bought by women, so that means unequivocally that women can open movies. All the boy action films NEED women to attend to make their huge numbers, but it seems that on occasion, (especially with good marketing and a built in highly anticipated audience) women can make some serious box office news without the guys. And the audience was not only the under 25 girls. 45% of the tickets bought on opening weekend were by women over 25. Paul Dergarabedian who tracks box office trends said: "The box-office clout of the female audience is just astounding, and it's been an underserved audience for way too long. ... They have no trouble finding money for the things they're passionate about."

(I can't comment on the content because I was in a place with no movie theatres (GASP) and have not yet seen it. I know that many people are commenting on whether it is anti-feminist but I am only half way through the book so I will reserve my comments for later.)

Catherine Hardwicke became the woman with the highest opening weekend gross. (In case you were wondering who held the title until now- that would be Mimi Leder who helmed Deep Impact which grossed $41 million.) All of Hollywood should be beating on her door since she was able to make this film on a limited $39 million budget. Both stars Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson are signed on for the sequel which was greenlit on opening weekend (duh!) but Hardwicke has yet to secure her deal (she wants a bigger budget for the next film and I would guess a bigger paycheck for herself.)

Here's what Hardwicke had to say about how maybe her success could influence others, especially girls.

"I hope not just women but all minorities get enthused and encouraged by it. I look at the (Directors Guild of America) calendar, at the pictures of everyone that had different movies each month, and it's usually 22-29 different directors, and almost every month there's one female and maybe one minority," she said. "We've been having a lot of events, talking to a lot of fans, and so many kids of course are madly in love with Robert but tons of kids of every kind (and) girls are coming up to me and saying `I want to direct now, I'm writing a screenplay now, you're my inspiration.' I think it's great that people are getting excited." (AP)

But Hollywood moves so slowly and it looks like we might lose the momentum of 2008 (Sex and the City, Mamma Mia, Baby Mama, Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2, Hannah Montana). Early 2009 looks like a vast wasteland for women's films. There will be the roll out of Last Chance Harvey in January and a Renee Zellweger romance with Harry Connick Jr., but aside from the Sarah Jessica Parker political piece Spinning Into Butter and the touching Amy Adams/Emily Blunt Sunshine Cleaning the early part of the year looks dismal. The first big highlight of 2009 will be the Meryl Streep/Amy Adams starrer Julie and Julia directed by Nora Ephron in May.

So here we go again. Instead of putting out movies for women with regularity we will continue to have to settle for bursts and then back to a trickle. We need more women's movies in the pipeline so that when we have successess we can build on them instead of having to continue to prove our box office clout every year.

`Twilight' is the new breed of chick flick (AP)

World AIDS Day: Watch All of Us on Showtime Tonight

Here are my comments and interview with director Emily Abt:

While the HIV/AIDS epidemic does not make the headlines regularly anymore, a new, riveting, documentary by Emily Abt takes the time to dig in deeper to how this epidemic has morphed into a killer of African American women. African American women are now 68% of new diagnoses, yet only make up 6% of the population. This is a crisis. Abt takes us to the Bronx and introduces us to an idealistic young doctor, Mehret Mandefro who has dedicated her career to raising attention to this issue, while at the same time provides compassionate care to women who could easily have fallen through the cracks in an overburdened health care system. The women who share their stories in All of Us are so incredibly brave and impressive and have spoken out so that what happened to them doesn't happen to girls and young women.

Read full interview