Ruth Carter has been breaking barriers and building her reputation in the film industry for over 30 years. She is the first woman of color to be nominated for an Academy Award in best achievement in costume design, for Malcolm X, and has also been thus recognized for Amistad, She has worked with some of …
It is true the Academy Awards are not the ultimate arbiter of quality and longevity of a film. You need but look to the history of winners and losers to confirm that. However, the Best Foreign Language Films is one category where the Oscars gets closer. Nearly all nominees are multiple award winners with buzz that has carried …
In celebration of this wonderful honor, this first post by Cinema Siren in 2018 will be the Best Films of 2017, but ONLY include films directed by women. It’s thrilling to say most of these would already be on my top ten, and that is definitely a sign of the times. There are several films that were …
Sometimes it just takes seeing people actively making a difference, approaching what they do with a balance of realism and tenaciously optimism, to remind us we really can change the world, even if it’s in some small way. The women of the documentary short Heroin(e) are saving lives and helping people change their circumstances every day. Watching them is …
If I were making a movie with two women playing mother and daughter, Oscar nominated Saoirse Ronan of Atonement, and Brooklyn, and Emmy and Tony Award winner Laurie Metcalf of Toy Story, Roseanne, the Steppenwolf Theater and at least 14 Broadway and off-Broadway plays, would be on my dream list. Apparently Greta Gerwig agrees. Before the beloved Indie actress, writer …
A letter was sent today by 217 women and non-gender conforming folk to over a dozen studios demanding change and an end to sexual harassment and sexism in the animation industry. Included on the list of recipients are executives at Disney, Sony Pictures Animation, Cartoon Network, DreamWorks Animation, and Warner Bros. Signatures are from people …
Loving Vincent is the first fully oil painted feature film. The brainchild of two filmmakers who have worked in animation, special effects, and live action, the film breaks new ground, while being visually stunning and driving a story about the last few weeks in the life an artist who died penniless but is now one of …
Such timeliness! Such hotness! Such consent! Yes, the story of the man and women behind the making of Wonder Woman, Professor Marston and the Wonder Women, written and directed by Angela Robinson, is being released this weekend. Wow, is it a fun, fascinating look at folks in the 1940s getting their freak on! Well, not really. It’s true that …
Trophy, an exploration of the economics and conservational impact of big game hunting, recently released in theaters, is not easy viewing. This is especially true for those predisposed to having a strong opinion on the subject. Co-directors Shaul Schwarz and Christina Clusiau aim, however, to get a conversation going with conservationists and animal lovers around …
Coming to an art house near you this weekend is the documentary Birthright: A War Story. It is directed by award-winning journalist and filmmaker Civia Tamarkin, and co-written and produced by award-winning filmmaker Luchina Fisher. Why do we need another documentary on what seems to be about the pro-life verses pro-choice argument? Tamarkin, when I spoke to her, …
