NYWIFT Blog

Notes from a Screenreader: To Genre or Not to Genre

Photo via Go Into the Story. A drama screenplay is fine, but it’s sort of like prose in that it is defined by what it isn’t. It’s not funny, scary, sci-fi or action. In competitions, that’s not such a handicap, because you are paying to be read, but neither are you giving yourself all the...

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Weekly Roundup: Aging & Opportunities in Hollywood

//instagram.com/p/oNOrvtQihJ/embed/ 92-year-old Betty White enjoys being spoiled, and vodka. Cheers! (video) The Paley Center for Media names Maureen Reidy as its new CEO. Diane Keaton and Robin Wright are embracing aging. Jezebel founder Anna Holmes highlights unconventional ways to success. Sony’s new (LA-based) Diverse Director’s Program may be perfect for you! Niki Caro is set to write and direct the eagerly...

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New Member Spotlight: Erica Fae

Photo by Alexander Berg.   A prolific and acclaimed artist, Erica Fae joins New York Women in Film & Television as an actor, director, writer, producer and teacher of movement at Yale School of Drama and The New School. She was encouraged to join NYWIFT by her producing partner Jane Applegate, whom she met while...

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Weekly Roundup: Gia Coppola, ‘Murphy Brown’ & a Media Internship

//embed.gettyimages.com/embed/488381047?et=2PeW3vM-R_1_VghSMDFcGA&sig=LZnMoBh1APTsZVOLw-lVbi9Nby6ktmJJfa3RgFZrY0c= Palo Alto director Gia Coppola is creating her own filmmaking buzz. A few theories behind NYT Executive Editor Jill Abramson’s firing. Portlandia star Carrie Brownstein has had success in three male-dominated areas of the entertainment industry…THREE! Kathryn Bigelow tackles another weighty post-9/11 theme. Women and Hollywood is looking for a summer intern. Deadline is May 23. Diane English tells...

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Weekly Roundup: Gabourey Sidibe, Director Kimberly Pierce & Oxygen Media

//embed.gettyimages.com/embed/487688169?et=cPqGSOaJQANxm9dho-6_lQ&sig=WUEG6AlUfgzcQ-dX4hK-lR36JRHm0BzXaCnDK0hh_5Y= Gabourey Sidibe says she’s “an a**hole!” It’s for a wonderful reason. Dawn Hudson will remain CEO of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences. Director Kimberly Peirce (Boys Don’t Cry, Carrie) gave a wonderful keynote speech at the AFI Directing Workshop for Women. (Video) Jovanka Vuckovic to direct Jacqueline Ess: Her Will & Testament. Clive Barker’s...

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Weekly Roundup: Disney’s Call for Writers & Broadway’s Gender Problem

Disney Channel launches a new screenwriting program. Hey, Broadway! Why weren’t any woman-written Broadway plays produced this season? Interview with Belle director Amma Asante (video) and Q&A with star GuGu Mbatha-Raw. Women (literally) rule at this year’s Cannes film festival. Fifteen of Time magazine’s “Top 100” are women in the arts. Happy 10th Anniversary, Mean Girls. #StopTryingToMakeFetchHappen

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NYWIFT’s May Events: Reality TV, Crowdfunding, and More

//embed.gettyimages.com/embed/132037876?et=icW4txOvQHdEavSB5nAJxA&SeoLinks=off&sig=xMCXtqKMEzUUksWEohaXF06lItNujTkOruxSvSGgjqw= Sign up for New York Women in Film & Television’s programs in May: Producing a Dynamite Sizzle Reel: The Key to the Sale Thursday, May 1, 6 pm Tribeca Film Center (375 Greenwich Street) TV and digital packaging agent Jim Arnoff will moderate an expert panel who will give you the insider’s take on how...

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Fiscal Sponsorship & NYWIFT for Indie Filmmakers

Musician Clarice Magalhães and producer-director Irene Walsh in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Walsh’s documentary LAPA: The Heart of Samba chronicles a community of musicians and composers as their music resurrects a Rio de Janeiro neighborhood. My first feature-length documentary, LAPA: The Heart of Samba, is a project that I have largely funded myself, with a third of...

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Member Spotlight: Kelly Glover

Kelly Glover during the production of The Contradictions of Fair Hope. You may recognize Kelly Glover’s name from her roundup posts right here on our blog, where she manages to find a compelling mix of TV, film and digital news every week. I was lucky enough to catch up with Glover to learn about her...

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Weekly Roundup: Jane Pauley, Chelsea Clinton & Women’s Media Status

Jane Pauley, 2012. Photo credit: David Shankbone. Journalist Jane Pauley leaves NBC to join CBS News. New SNL writer Katie Rich has witty insight on male comedians’ success. Women’s Media Center updates its Status of Women in the U.S. Media report. Pam Dawber, TV’s original “Mindy,” to reunite with Robin Williams. Persistence pays off for Shaun of The Dead and Hot Fuzz producer Nira...

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Weekly Roundup: Peabodys Announced & ‘Frozen’ Breaks Record

//embed.gettyimages.com/embed/479466007?et=nJS_4haSv02ARV_S30ZdPA&sig=VQUPmdJVaUZ420YSmZwtBWGQR-SXQcA20qQadX8IR4U= The Peabody Awards gave 43% of prizes to projects that featured a clear female protagonist or were made by a woman creator. Jennifer Lee’s ‘Frozen’ becomes the top-grossing animated film of all time. AFI’s superb Directing Workshop for Women turns 40. They grow up so fast! Variety’s Power of Women luncheon debuts in NYC — meet the honorees. Amy Schumer tackles the...

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Terry’s Picks: April 1, 2014

Anita playing at the Film Society of Lincoln Center Thought-provoking: and powerful, Freida Lee Mock’s Anita is my must-see of the week. Twenty years after Anita Hill sought to confidentially report Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas for sexual harassment, the archival footage (and new contemporary interviews) still feels startling relevant to gender inequality in the U.S. Anticipating: an amazing...

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Sign Up for NYWIFT’s April Events

Photo courtesy of NASA.   New York Women in Film & Television’s events for April 2014: Power Player Breakfast: Jana Bennett, President, A+E Networks’ FYI & LMN Thursday, April 3, 8:30 am  Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz, 488 Madison Avenue, 10th Floor A+E Networks executive Jana Bennett, who manages two of the company’s fastest growing...

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Terry’s Picks: March 25, 2014

Gloria Steinem at the Ms. Foundation for Women’s 23rd annual Gloria Awards on May 19, 2011. Photo via WikiMedia. Wishing a: happy birthday to Gloria Steinem! The feminist writer, activist, Women’s Media Center co-founder and Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient turns 80 today. Checking out: some wonderful films this week! Beth B.’s provocative Exposed (co-produced by NYWIFT member Sandra...

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NYWIFT Recap. Laughing Matters: Diverse Voices From the World of Comedy

Diversity in comedy has been all the buzz as of late, and on February 20, 2014, New York Women in Film and Television joined the conversation with Laughing Matters: Diverse Voices From the World of Comedy, a panel of seven female comedians. With much laughter and a riveting discussion, Laughing Matters unfolded into a memorable...

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Weekly Film & TV News Roundup

//embed.gettyimages.com/embed/183669878?et=XYPnmei_4068PYiAqEE8jQ&sig=SX4RxzmMCycPW_AXxiuqo2Q2XifTOs0kFYxLOqeoFp0= Netflix is bringing Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin back together. Hope Dolly Parton makes an appearance. Now Hiring! Women and Hollywood is looking for new columnists. These changes at Getty Images are most welcome and long overdue. (Video) Audition news: You may be too attractive to book a commercial. You should read this before entering that screenplay contest. The...

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NYWIFT Success Story: ‘In Montauk’ and the Value of PR

Lukas Hassel and Nina Kaczorowski in a scene from In Montauk, written and directed by NYWIFT member Kim Cummings. Photo by Aja Nisenson. Independent filmmaking on a micro-budget is a lonely business. People come and go throughout the process. As the filmmaker, you’re the only constant day in and day out. It’s not that you...

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Weekly Film & TV News Roundup

//embed.gettyimages.com/embed/477632659?et=ypH3AGd2mk6QsjKiitLTPQ&sig=qYCv0zRZXUqeFAov_qAHtLjzjKyIqiTlbiAP8rKqCFo= Lena Dunham tells a SXSW crowd that “things need to change and I’m trying.” Piers Morgan met his match and her name is Chelsea Handler. (Video) Anita Hill discusses Anita, the Freida Lee Mock–directed doc about her life. Producer Paula Wagner is bringing Pretty Woman to broadway. CBS This Morning had wonderful coverage of NatGeo’s...

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