Why are there so few female film directors?

Yeah, actually, if anything, the innate talent of black artists has become a sort of pernicious stereotype. That is, we're told black artists have "natural rhythm," that the blues comes from deep within their souls, that Charlie Parker's dazzling improvisation is an outpouring of his tortured inner life, etc., all of which downplays the role of conventional training and hard work in their artistic success.

If only women naturally remembered which end of the camera to look into.

find the right end of the camera? mine can't even find the *kitchen*

^^^not really doing ILX any favors here guys

I can think of a few favors I'd like to ask of certain female directors. Meow!

i am trying to put words to the vague idea that genius or artist is bestowed on white authors or whatever sooner than it is elsewhere

The closest guess I can make is schlump is making a roughly parallel diagnosis to the way the sports media lauds black athletes as "natural." (and whites as gritty hustlers)

Anyway, I didn't know Timespeople could curse in real life like Dargis, cuz I had drinks w/ at least two last week and they didn't!

Way to network, Morbs!

one, there was a lot of discussion of "the hurt locker" on the kathryn bigelow thread.

two, my one and only post on this thread is :) to me right now

this thread has a classic 'first post' imo.

q: why are there so few black film directors?
a: spike lee!

I am sincerely hoping Bigelow continues to make as thorough a bitch of Cameron at the major awards as she has in the various critics' circles.

I do not miss gabbnebb I gotta say

x-post

I do not miss gabbnebb I gotta say

x-post

― Magnolia Caboose Babyfinger (Shakey Mo Collier), Tuesday, December 15, 2009 6:42 PM (23 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

that is basically the only thing i was going to contribute to this thread---good riddance

This thread was the only time I got into it with gabbneb.

The relative lack of prominent female Hollywood directors is less distressing to me than the near complete lack of (Hollywood, at least) films not based on existing properties. It's almost all sequel/remake/adaptation, all the time. Credit both Bigelow and Cameron this: at least "Hurt Locker" and "Avatar" are proper original screenplays, albeit drawn from complete opposite ends of the spectrum.

Sorry, thread derail over. I was happy to see at least a few best of the decade lists that included "Beau Travail." Curious about Claire Denis' "White Material" (adapted from Doris Lessing's "The Grass Is Singing").

My brother says Dec. 2012 is not the end of the world, but the end of when Hollywood comes up with original storylines.

I do not miss gabbnebb I gotta say

x-post

― Magnolia Caboose Babyfinger (Shakey Mo Collier), Tuesday, December 15, 2009 7:42 PM Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

What, did he die?

zing?

points awarded

why are there so few blended haircuts?

I really enjoyed Zoe Cassavettes' "Broken English", would like to see it again (preferably not on a date as I did on the first go-round, awkwardsies)

re Denis, White Material is nowhere as good as 35 Shots of Rum. Also, I don't remember reading it was adapted, and the iMsB seems to indicate an original script:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1135952/

ppl should pay heed to Dargis' point about Hurt Locker -- it wasn't US-financed. (Hell, 2 projects after semi-sweeping the Oscars the COENS can't make an entirely US-produced film. They might as well be women!)

The relative lack of prominent female Hollywood directors is less distressing to me than the near complete lack of (Hollywood, at least) films not based on existing properties. It's almost all sequel/remake/adaptation, all the time. Credit both Bigelow and Cameron this: at least "Hurt Locker" and "Avatar" are proper original screenplays, albeit drawn from complete opposite ends of the spectrum.

Sorry, thread derail over. I was happy to see at least a few best of the decade lists that included "Beau Travail." Curious about Claire Denis' "White Material" (adapted from Doris Lessing's "The Grass Is Singing").

― Josh in Chicago, Wednesday, December 16, 2009 1:25 AM (8 hours ago) Bookmark

im not sure why it matters that much if stuff is or is not "based on" existing properties. especially when both 'beau travail' and 'white material' are adaptations.

yaaaaaaawwwwwnnnnnnnnn

don't get up so early then

"Beau Travail" is hardly a straight (ha) adaptation of "Billy Budd," no more than "Adaptation" was a straight adaptation of "The Orchid Thief." Or Winterbottom's "Tristam Shandy" was a straight adaptation of Sterne. And so on.

Regardless, it doesn't matter if something is adapted or not, as long as it's good. But talking with Hollywood and/or screenwriter friends these days, it sounds like if it's not adapted or based on an existing property then it has no shot getting made at all in this climate. I mean, there's always the indie route, but that creative freedom doesn't make it any easier to get a movie made, let alone to land distribution. I'm ignoring the myriad exceptions, of course, but who ever said Hollywood was consistent?

if melville is what h-wood producers would call an 'existing property' then we're in better shape than i thought

Well, I mean, currently as well as historically most of the top grossing movies as well as Best Picture noms are/were existing properties, so it can be both good and bad. A good story is a good story. What I'm talking about is an original story as potential preemptive deal-killer, which is too bad.

lets focus on removing endemic institutional sexism from the industry before we address the much bigger issue of creative bankruptcy

In some loose way they're related, I think. In that female directors might get less work because they're stereotyped as capable of making only certain types of films. Bigelow is an awesome director because not only does she make action movies and thrillers, she pretty much only makes action movies and thrillers. Who is next in line there? Mimi Leder, who went from a couple of big budget action flicks to fucking "Pay It Forward," and has been paying penance in TV ever since? But I'm sure Jane Campion or someone could make an awesome "Harry Potter" movie, at least as easily as Alfonso Cuaron did.

The Hurt Locker is not an 'action movie' in the sense her earlier ones are (tho I missed a couple like the Harrison Ford one)

Of course it's not a shoot 'em up. But there are explosions. I mean, is "Near Dark" an "action" film? "Strange Days?" No, but like Michael Mann's movies, action is inevitably one major component.

Strange Days is an action mess.

http://fadeinonline.com/articles/minority-report/

Laurel Canyon: not bad, although--the limits of my staid imagination--completely implausible in one regard (if you've seen it, you'll know what I'm referring to). Liked seeing a couple of landmarks I knew about from a book on Laurel Canyon I recently read. Haven't seen any of Lisa Cholodenko's other films.

I know I've seen that one and High Art, but I can't remember anything about them (it's been a while). Kids Are All Right has some good and some bad.

The Kids Are All Right won me over as it went along, which was a challenge after such a terrible first half hour.

Laurel Canyon: not bad, although--the limits of my staid imagination--completely implausible in one regard (if you've seen it, you'll know what I'm referring to).

ive seen it and i dont

You do, it's just that you didn't find it implausible. Myself, I don't think two of those three characters would cross that line. The "Whoa" that Frances McDormand finally throws up, I think it would have occurred to her a lot sooner than it did, no matter how casual her lifestyle or alleged bad parenting skills.

Meant to say that I loved the final shot of this.

It's her weakest movie. clem, watch High Art, still her best.

I've been meaning to--a friend put that on a 50-favourite list a few years ago.

yeah laurel canyon plays like a trial run for Kids are alright

I remember really liking High Art, but I had it recorded off telly onto the same VHS as Kissed (also directed by a woman, coincidentally), and now I get them a bit confused. Which is a little weird if you know what Kissed is about...

1400 films by female directors:

https://mubi.com/lists/films-directed-by-women

this thread is definitely the point where I started hating ILX and decided it was a waste of time to talk here (posting as Abbott)

I'm sorry :(

Didn't mean to dredge up bad memories (I'm re-reading the beginning of the thread now). The link showed up on my Facebook wall; didn't give it any thought, it just looked like a real labour of love, and the layout is great.

nbd; i just don't post much or try to ever change anyone's mind

or, maybe, ilx prepared me for dealing with petulant know-it-alls, and i do that in my day job now

always enjoyed when you would show up in threads about mormons and comics and whatnot

hahaha holy shit the opening run of this thread is obscene