Women in Film
Hi!
Hazel Hayes
1930: Frances Marion becomes the first woman to win an Academy Award for 'Best Adapted Screenplay'.
1949: Arlene Francis becomes the first woman to host a television game show.
1960: Joanne Woodward earns the first Hollywood Walk of Fame Star.
1984: Barbra Streisand becomes the first woman to win a Golden Globe for 'Best Director'.
1998: Julie Taymor becomes the first woman to win a Tony Award for 'Best Director of a Musical'.
2011: Jennifer Yuh Nelson becomes the first woman to soley direct an animated feature from a major Hollywood studio.
2015: Uzo Aduba becomes the first actress to win both a drama and comedy Emmy Award for the same role.
2015: Viola Davis becomes the first African-American woman to win an Emmy Award for 'Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series'.
2017: Patty Jenkins becomes the first woman to direct a studio superhero comic book live-action theatrical release film.
It's International Women's Day, and all around the world, people are spreading the love to all or favourite ladies. Whether in front or behind the camera, fictional or real, on TV, film, or YouTube, women have been successfully leaving their mark on the media industry for years, and will continue to do so for many years to come. Below are some of my favourite female actresses, directors, writers and boss ass ladies that have inspired me to become better at what I do:
Bridesmaids
Written by Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumblo, the film is a completely female lead comedy about a bride and her six bridesmaids as they plan her wedding and everything that goes along with it - with all the drama, chaos and competition that goes with it. This 2011 film proved to audiences, but more importantly to production companies, that you don't need male stars to get an audience, and that an all-female comedy can still be funny as well as make a huge profit ($288.4 million USD).
Hazel Hayes
After co-writing and directing her first short film Super Brainy Zombies in January 2014 , Hazel Hayes’s filmmaking
talents went from strength to strength, with horror-short Dementia following not long after
in October of the same year and my personal favourite, Septem, in June 2015. Often
writing, directing and performing in her films, she was the first female
director I saw who made me confident in my own ability to go into the industry
- which I partly put down to the detailed behind the scenes footage she also
puts on her channel, which shows both the highs and lows of the filmmaking
process in dedicated videos and through her now-completed monthly vlogging
series, Time of the Month.
Lucy Moon
So whilst not ~technically~ a filmmaker in the sense that she
doesn’t make traditional shorts/films, Lucy’s videos showcase how to make
everyday mundane tasks look exciting. Her weekly vlog series 168 Hours showcases this well,
along with some of her more arty videos in which she displays a
great skill in using different components of filming and editing to make her
videos more exciting and visually brilliant. Lots of the techniques she
incorporates into her videos can be applied across all types of filmmaking, and
when attempting to start building my own portfolio I ended up watching a lot
of her videos to try gain inspiration.
Shonda Rhimes
A kick-ass writer and producer, Shonda has her own production company, Shondaland, which makes shows such as Greys Anatomy, Scandal and Private Practice. Being both POC and a woman, she's had to overcome a lot of adversity in the industry as she's raised through the ranks to get to the position she's in. She doesn't stand for any drama, and is quick to deal with any diva's - no matter how important or indispensable they may think they are.
Those are just a few people off my list, but what about everyone else? I threw out the question to some of my favourite ladies to see who their inspirations are - whether an actress, female lead, or female character in any film or TV show. Here's what they said:
"I love Emma Watson - not only is she a really talented actress but she also uses her fame to do amazing charity/awareness work which I think is really cool. I grew up on Harry Potter so she's been there all my life."
"Character wise, Black Widow is a huge inspiration for me. A kickass trained assassin, still saving the world after all the crap she's been through. I don't really know how to word it but she's so strong and independent, I aspire to be like her (minus the assassin part of course)"
"Okoye from Black Panther; she doesn't let the male characters overpower her, instead she stands up for what she believes in"
"Narrowing it down to only one is hard, but I'd say my main inspiration is Stephanie Beatriz, who plays Rosa Diaz in Brooklyn 99. Not only because she's a badass woman who is a strong, fully rounded character, but she's not afraid to get her hands dirty. She's a great example of Latina representation, as well as being an advocate for Latina women getting into acting. As well as this, she is a strong ally to the LGBTQ+ community - her character Rosa Diaz has recently come out as bisexual, and the show did an excellent job at showing the journey to discovery and coming out which was great"
"Angelina Jolie - from being really young I was always really into Tomb Raider and when I watched the movie I believed that she was Lara. She's inspired me to be unapologetic and badass; since then I've seen more of her movies, such as Girl, Interrupted and Salt, I think she's truly an amazing actress, as well as an activist for UNICEF, sex workers and more"
"Julie Andrews. Whether it be The Sound of Music or Mary Poppins she is the ultimate lady boss. I remember sitting in my great aunties house watching The Sound of Music for the first time and I absolutely fell in love with the character of Maria, there was something about her that I couldn't put my finger on till I got older. She's a fierce, strong independent woman - something I find some young girls these days shy away from. How can you not love a woman who stands up to a man, bosses them around tells them what to do; but also brings the love and joy, ticking all the right boxes. I'd like to think I act a lot like her when it comes to men - even if I don't have the physical balls, I can bloody well act like I do."
Best Wishes
Mel // Film for Thought
Shonda Rhimes
A kick-ass writer and producer, Shonda has her own production company, Shondaland, which makes shows such as Greys Anatomy, Scandal and Private Practice. Being both POC and a woman, she's had to overcome a lot of adversity in the industry as she's raised through the ranks to get to the position she's in. She doesn't stand for any drama, and is quick to deal with any diva's - no matter how important or indispensable they may think they are.
Those are just a few people off my list, but what about everyone else? I threw out the question to some of my favourite ladies to see who their inspirations are - whether an actress, female lead, or female character in any film or TV show. Here's what they said:
"I love Emma Watson - not only is she a really talented actress but she also uses her fame to do amazing charity/awareness work which I think is really cool. I grew up on Harry Potter so she's been there all my life."
"Character wise, Black Widow is a huge inspiration for me. A kickass trained assassin, still saving the world after all the crap she's been through. I don't really know how to word it but she's so strong and independent, I aspire to be like her (minus the assassin part of course)"
"Okoye from Black Panther; she doesn't let the male characters overpower her, instead she stands up for what she believes in"
"Narrowing it down to only one is hard, but I'd say my main inspiration is Stephanie Beatriz, who plays Rosa Diaz in Brooklyn 99. Not only because she's a badass woman who is a strong, fully rounded character, but she's not afraid to get her hands dirty. She's a great example of Latina representation, as well as being an advocate for Latina women getting into acting. As well as this, she is a strong ally to the LGBTQ+ community - her character Rosa Diaz has recently come out as bisexual, and the show did an excellent job at showing the journey to discovery and coming out which was great"
"Angelina Jolie - from being really young I was always really into Tomb Raider and when I watched the movie I believed that she was Lara. She's inspired me to be unapologetic and badass; since then I've seen more of her movies, such as Girl, Interrupted and Salt, I think she's truly an amazing actress, as well as an activist for UNICEF, sex workers and more"
"Julie Andrews. Whether it be The Sound of Music or Mary Poppins she is the ultimate lady boss. I remember sitting in my great aunties house watching The Sound of Music for the first time and I absolutely fell in love with the character of Maria, there was something about her that I couldn't put my finger on till I got older. She's a fierce, strong independent woman - something I find some young girls these days shy away from. How can you not love a woman who stands up to a man, bosses them around tells them what to do; but also brings the love and joy, ticking all the right boxes. I'd like to think I act a lot like her when it comes to men - even if I don't have the physical balls, I can bloody well act like I do."
Best Wishes
Mel // Film for Thought
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