There are is a growing number of women filmmakers braving the tides to make themselves a name. Following in the footsteps of those before them, studying the lives and hardships of these legendary filmmakers would help explain the beauty and boldness in the change of filmmaking over time.
Easily pinned a South Korean mogul, Choi Eun-Hee (a.k.a. Eun-Hie Choi) is a retired actor and director based in South Korea. Well-known for her role in ‘Red Scarf’ (1964), Choi Eun-Hee has been in over 80 titles over a span of some 30 years. Following the popular trends of the culture, Choi starred in dramatic roles and set the bar for several actors. Looked up to, respected, and well-liked, Choi and her husband, Shin Sang-Ok, started the Shin Film Company. Read more on Notable Women Filmmakers of Asia…
It’s that time of the year where we want to hear from all of you. There is a short 10 question survey for you to fill out and I beg that you take a few moments to fill out the survey in order to make the Awards Circuit a better place for all entertainment enthusiasts. Greatly appreciated!
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With the Oscar nominations being announced tomorrow morning and all other nominations revealed, it’s that time folks where we all wonder and debate who will be honored with a nomination Oscar morning.
With the upcoming DVD/Blu-ray release of Sarah Polley’s second directorial feature, Take This Waltz, the Canadian-born writer/director builds upon the promising foundation of her filmmaking career.
Polley follows up her acclaimed and Oscar-nominated debut, Away from Her (2006), with a simply honest portrayal of a woman’s struggle to fill the gaps in her seemingly happy marriage. Boasting crisp cinematography, good writing, and believable character depictions, the effort mostly succeeds in coming across as composed and genuine. While Michelle Williams predictably delivers a solid performance, it’s difficult at times to understand or empathize with her predicament and decisions, due to their impulsive and somewhat erratic nature. Seth Rogen as the naively loving, slightly disconnected husband and Sarah Silverman as the strangely wise alcoholic sister-in-law both fill their supporting roles effectively. It’s worth a look if you’re curious.
On her prom night, Carrie White is humiliated in front of the whole school and lets her telekinetic powers get out of control, killing all the people that made her life hell. Carrie (1976), the first ever Stephen King novel to be adapted into a film became a hit and a true horror classic thanks to Sissy Spacek. Read more on Women in Horror: Sissy Spacek…
When young actresses are first starting out in Hollywood they tend to find themselves in the horror genre. Lately in the modern age of terror, if an actress stars in a horror film it leads to the audience seeing what her breasts look like and then what they look like when they’ve been gutted open with a big sharp knife. Back in the day when horror was a respectable genre, one actress broke ground and is especially known for making certain horror films classics. Fortunately for her, she was lucky enough to have Psycho goddess Janet Leigh as her mother. Jamie Lee Curtis obviously learned a thing or two from her mother.
It’s that time of the month, so it’s time to talk about the “Oscarettes”. If you missed last month’s edition, here is a little recap of what this segment is all about.
At the start of each month, we will travel back a year at a time and discuss the Best Actress and Best Supporting Actresses of that year. I will recognize who was nominated and who won, and I will share my opinions about them, but I want yours. I want to know who you thought deserved to win and be nominated those particular years.
It’s that time of the month! It’s time to talk about the “Oscarettes”. If you missed the latest edition, here is a little recap of what this segment is all about.
We will travel back a year at a time and discuss those nominated for Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress of that year. I will recognize who was nominated and who won, and I will share my opinions about them, but I want yours. I want to know who you thought deserved to win and be nominated those particular years.
This week we will not be traveling back but focusing on the 84th Academy Awards. So, here we go.
With the Oscar nominations right around the corner and the critics’ awards nearly complete, it’s that time of the year folks where we all wonder and debate who will be honored with a nomination Oscar morning. Right now it seems that the women who will be nominated are Viola Davis, Meryl Streep, and Michelle Williams. But while some of these women may be a lock for a nomination, we all know there’s plenty of room for upset. So let’s go through the performances that have a chance to score a nomination January 24th. Read more on Women in Cinema- The “Oscarettes”: Who Will be nominated for Best Actress?…
Every year the Supporting Categories are the hardest to predict. And it makes me so damn frustrated. Grr. This year I am 100% positive two actresses will receive nominations; Octavia Spencer and Berenice Bejo.
Keira Knightley is one of the best working actresses in Hollywood.
Keira Knightley is one of those rare actresses who chooses their roles carefully. The beautiful British actress began her career as a child in Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace, but became a name in 2002, when she starred in the soccer film, Bend It Like Beckham. Knightly is a rare jewel and an extraordinary talent.
Bend It Like Beckham was the film that opened audience’s eyes to Knightley. Her beauty and talent shined through when playing tomboy, Jules. Before Knightley became known for her dramatic roles, her role as Jules was light and upbeat; a performance that was so much fun to watch.
In 2003, Knightley became internationally known for her turn as Elizabeth Swann in Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl. With the movie being the Johnny Depp show, her role was very memorable and gave her a nice boost in her growing popularity. She went on to appear in the two following sequels to the Pirates series.
Amanda Seyfried is one of the up in coming actresses still trying to find their way. With a strong beginning to a career, this young actress is beautiful and talented but hasn’t seemed to make her mark in the business.
Seyfried made her film debut in 2004 in Mean Girls, playing Karen Smith, the ultimate dumb blond. Playing one of the “plastics”, her supporting role was one that stood out among a cast filled with big names. Seyfried perfected the dumb airhead smile and brought a certain confidence in the character of Karen. Karen was this incredibly foolish girl and knew that she was a bit off but had a confidence in what she did well, even if it wasn’t an ability that was necessary to society. Mean Girls was a great start to Seyfried’s career.
Anne Hathaway is this generations “America’s Sweetheart”. In every film, including Rachel Getting Married, she manages to shine and win the audience’s heart. They admire her because they love to watch her. She has an amazing sense of comedy, an outstanding dramatic side, a wonderful singing voice and obviously is incredibly attractive. A full package you might say.
Anne Hathaway was born November 12th, 1982 in Brooklyn, New York. At a young age, Hathaway was inspired to follow in her mother’s footsteps and become an actress. She then went to star in many school productions and was a part of The Barrow Group, a New York theater company. All of this was preparation for her first job in the industry where she appeared in the TV series “Get Real.”
Anne Hathaway is this generations “America’s Sweetheart”. In every film, including Rachel Getting Married, she manages to shine and win the audiences heart. Audiences love her because they love to watch her. She has an amazing sense of comedy, an outstanding dramatic side, a wonderful singing voice and is incredibly attractive. This makes her the full package.
Anne Jacqueline Hathaway was born November 12th, 1982 in Brooklyn, New York. Her father was a lawyer and her mother was actress/singer, Kate McCauley Hathaway. At a young age, Hathaway was inspired to follow in her mother’s footsteps and become an actress. She then went to star in many school productions and was a part of The Barrow Group, a New York theater company. All of this was preparation for her first job in the industry where she appeared in the TV series Get Real.
Do you ever watch a young actress in a film, and say to yourself, “What a good actress, and at such a young age too”? Do you ever wonder after that what their career will be like? Well, I did, with Evan Rachel Wood, when I first saw Thirteen. Now, this might not be the typical piece where I compliment this week’s woman’s career but merely a disappointment with the road it’s gone in.
Evan Rachel Wood was born in Raleigh, North Carolina on September 7th, 1987 to actor/director parents. She began acting at age 3, at the theater her father owned in Raleigh. At the age of seven, Wood made her way into film. She had a few small roles in various TV movies and landed a 3 episode recurring role on the TV series American Gothic in 1996.
This is a special week for me writing Women in Cinema. It’s not because of the actress I am spotlighting but why I have chosen this actress. In honor of my husband taking a huge step in his career, I have decided to spotlight his favorite actress. His favorite actress is, Christina Ricci.
Most famous for her role as Wednesday Addams, Christina Ricci was born February 12th, 1980 in Santa Monica, California and was the youngest of four children of a lawyer father and realtor mother. Ricci attended Glenfield Middle School in New Jersey and soon after, enrolled at the Professional Children’s school after appearing in a school play.
After enrolling at the Professional Children’s School, Ricci appeared in many commercials at the age of six, soon after she made her big screen debut in Mermaids (1990) as Cher’s younger daughter.
Due to the recent reviews focusing on the HBO miniseries Mildred Pierce, I figured I’d take some time to compliment Kate Winslet’s work.
Winslet was born October 5th, 1975 in Reading, England to a family filled with actors and stage managers. Both of her grandparents were stage managers and her parents were actors. Winslet began acting as a child, making appearances in commercials and British TV. She eventually dropped out of school to pursue her acting career.
Winslet appeared on the British stage and had a recurring role on a British TV sitcom before landing her debut film role in Peter Jackson’s Heavenly Creatures (1994). The movie attracted a lot of attention for Winslet leading her to her next film Sense and Sensibility (1995). Winslet played a supporting role, surrounding herself with well known actors such as Alan Rickman, Emma Thompson and Hugh Grant. The movie earned Winslet her first Academy Award Nomination for Best Supporting Actress.
Each year numerous romantic comedies are released. Some are good, some are bad and some become movies we talk about for years. Aside from Woody Allen, women write some of the best romance movies. Women love watching them and men hate to admit they love them. I can tell you that I sure do. A lot of common romance movies concentrate on younger actors falling in love but Nancy Meyers brings the love of the typical average woman to the screen.
Nancy Meyers was born December 8th, 1949. She earned her Journalism Degree from American University in 1971. In 1972 she relocated to Los Angeles to work as a story editor for Rastar Productions. After being in the industry she lent her words to such sitcoms as The Odd Couple and All in the Family.
Every year when the Academy Awards come around, we predict who will get nominated, react to the nominations, predict who will win, then react and talk about the winner until the following year. But, for die hard movie followers like us, we never stop talking about previous winners. We, for years talk about who should have been nominated and who should have won. We react to it like we know these people. It’s important to us, just like a sports team is to a diehard fan.
So, I figured at the start of each month, we will travel back a year at a time and discuss the Best Actress and Best Supporting Actresses of that year. Let’s call it “Oscarettes”. I will recognize who was nominated and who won, and I will share my opinions about them, but I want yours. I want to know who you thought deserved to win and be nominated those particular years.
Before Kathryn Bigelow became the first woman to win the Academy Award for Best Director, she was either known as James Cameron’s ex wife or just another woman director. On Sunday, March 7th, 2010, Bigelow made Oscar history and for that, she will never be considered just another woman director.
Bigelow was born November 27th, 1951. After High School she studied painting at the San Francisco Art Institute. She eventually moved to New York after winning a scholarship and from there decided to change her focus in life from art to film. In 1978, she made her first short film, The Set-up, which focused primarily on the topic of violence. From her body of work you can tell violence is a recurring theme in all of her films. In 1979, she earned her Master’s degree in film theory and criticism from Columbia University. And from there the story and success of Kathryn Bigelow begins.
It’s that time of the month, so it’s time to talk about the “Oscarettes”. If you missed last month’s edition, here is a little recap of what this segment is all about.
At the start of each month, we will travel back a year at a time and discuss the Best Actress and Best Supporting Actresses of that year. I will recognize who was nominated and who won, and I will share my opinions about them, but I want yours. I want to know who you thought deserved to win and be nominated those particular years.
Last month we discussed the 82nd Academy Awards, this month we will look back on the 81st Oscars. So, here we go:
It’s that time of the month, so it’s time to talk about the “Oscarettes”. If you missed last month’s edition, here is a little recap of what this segment is all about.
At the start of each month, we will travel back a year at a time and discuss the Best Actress and Best Supporting Actresses of that year. I will recognize who was nominated and who won, and I will share my opinions about them, but I want yours. I want to know who you thought deserved to win and be nominated those particular years.
Last month we discussed the 83rd Academy Awards, this month we will look back on the 82nd Oscars. So, here we go:
In the movie industry we often like to separate who we consider a movie star and a film actor. During the course of Reese Witherspoon’s career, she has proven that she can be put in both categories. She’s an Academy Award Winning actress while also being one of the most popular actresses around. But since her Oscar win in 2005, her career has unfortunately taken a sour course.
Laura Jeanne Reese Witherspoon was born on March 22nd, 1976 in New Orleans, Louisiana. Her father was a surgeon in the Army and her mother was a pediatric nurse. During the early years of her life, her family was stationed in Germany but eventually moved back to the states and resided in Nashville, Tennessee.
At the age of seven, Witherspoon began modeling, which led to appearances on several local television commercials. In 1990, Witherspoon answered a call for extras in her hometown newspaper. This led to her first major acting role in Robert Mulligan’s The Man in the Moon (1991). Her role as a 14 year old tomboy earned her rave reviews and opened the door to future projects such as Jack the Bear(1993) and A Far off Place (1993).
I’ve had people come to me and ask me to write about Natalie Portman. And I thought about it and enjoyed the fact that people love her so much. To me, she has always been considered an artsy type of actress, even though she’s been in some high profile movies such as Star Wars and V for Vendetta, but she is unique and an actress who is a delight to watch. She’s so versatile and very rarely plays a character twice. She is a wonderful actress, who has taken the necessary steps to get to where she is in her career right now.
Natalie Hershlag was born June 9th, 1981 in Jerusalem, Israel. While she was just a toddler, her family moved to Washington, DC and eventually settled in New York. While at a local pizza parlor, Portman was discovered by a representative of Revlon Cosmetics who encouraged the 11 year old to pursue and career in modeling. She found modeling to be mundane and took an interest in acting.
She made her film debut in the magnificent film, The Professional (1994). Her demanding role as a hit mans apprentice was received very well by audiences and critics. Failing to win a part in the movie Little Women, Portman was cast in a far more superior film; Heat (1995), Directed by Michael Mann. She sustained her popularity by playing a small but captivating performance as Al Pacino’s troubled daughter. In an interview Michael Mann was reported saying that Natalie Portman was a “prodigy”.
