NYWIFT Blog

Heather Taylor on Crowdfunding for Pay to Stay and the Importance of Onscreen Diversity

"I want to have representation across different sexualities and different races in my films because that is the world I see when I walk down the streets of New York," says NYWIFT member Heather Taylor. Katrina Medoff sat down with Taylor to talk diversity in filmmaking (both onscreen and off) as her crowdfunding campaign for her horror short Pay to Stay draws to a close.

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The Women’s Film Preservation Fund 2016 Grants are awarded to five groundbreaking works from the 1920s and 1970s

The NYWIFT Women’s Film Preservation Fund's (WFPF’s) 2016 grants have now been awarded. The films include three shorts from the 1920’s by pioneering filmmaker Angela Murray Gibson and two important films from the 1970’s, SISTERS! by Barbara Hammer and Women’s Happy Time Commune by Sheila Paige. WFPF Steering Committee Co-Chair Ann Deborah Levy explains why these particular films are important to women's legacy, and how you can help.

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Terry’s Picks: Representation Matters, Sheila Nevins, Box Office

Representation Matters: Kathryn O’Kane was among the five NYWIFT board members who joined me at the Women’s Media Summit in Provincetown, MA, last month. She recaps it for our Huffington Post column, as we look ahead to what’s next. Sheila Nevins: NYWIFT member Sheila Nevins, President of HBO Documentary Films, sat down with Lesley Stahl...

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Moving Forward: Representation Matters: NYWIFT at the Women’s Media Summit

NYWIFT Board member Kathryn O'Kane was among the six NYWIFT representatives who attended the historic Women's Media Summit in Provincetown, MA, last month. She offers a recap, including the opinions and takeaways of fellow board members, and looks ahead at what's next.

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Terry’s Picks: Zookeeper’s Wife, 25 Films, Female Heroes

Zookeeper’s Wife: Go see The Zookeeper’s Wife! Jessica Chastain gives a great performance, as directed by Niki Caro. 25 Films: Mark your calendars – here are 25 women-directed films being released this year. Female Heroes: The Guardian digs into why seeing a female hero – not just passive female characters – on screen is critical...

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Terry’s Picks: Spring Drive, Tribeca Films, Black Comediennes

Spring Drive: Now through May 15th is the NYWIFT Spring Membership Drive, during which we offer 50% off the initiation fee for new members. If you’re thinking of joining our community of women calling the shots, now is the time to do it! Tribeca Films: I’m looking forward to next week’s Tribeca Film Festival, which...

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Terry’s Picks: Zookeeper’s Wife, Female Friendship, Theresa Rebeck

Zookeeper’s Wife: USA Today highlights the team behind The Zookeeper’s Wife, which might be the most women-populated crew in Hollywood history. Female Friendship: Grace and Frankie stars Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin talk about aging in Hollywood, women’s sexuality and the importance of female friendship. Theresa Rebeck: In an excerpt from her essay for the...

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Women in Film & Television History: Meet Tressie Souders, Director, Producer, Screenwriter

The story of Tressie Souders, or perhaps more accurately, the lack of details about Tressies Souders’ life and work exemplifies the need to research and rescue early film-works of women and women of color.

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Terry’s Picks: Diana Means, Stacy Smith, Women Editors

Diana Means: When she’s not working her day job in production and creative services at Warner Bros., Diana Means has been running the L.A. Women’s International Film Festival for the past 13 years. Stacy Smith: Social scientist Stacy Smith gives a Ted Talk on how the media underrepresents and portrays women – and the potentially...

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Women in Film & Television History: Meet Marion E. Wong, Film Company President, Director, Screenwriter, Producer, Actor, Costume Designer

During the silent film era, Marion E. Wong started the Mandarin Film Company, the first Chinese-American film company. The company’s feature film The Curse of the Quon Gwon: When the Far East Mingles with West (1916) is credited as being the first American film made with an all-Chinese cast and company as well as one of the first films directed by a woman.

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“Knowledge is Something Nobody Can Take Away from You:” Yvonne Ng Discusses her Student Academy Award Win

NYWIFT scholarship recipient Yvonne Ng, a Singaporean immigrant who came to the U.S. to study photography, discusses inspiring women, her powerful short film Cloud Kumo, and her Student Academy Award win.

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Terry’s Picks: Influential Women, Jill Soloway, Loreen Arbus

Influential Women: Our friends at B&H, with support from Canon and Sony, are running a wonderful Women of Influence series, an inspirational look at the talent, drive and perseverance that forged some remarkable photographic and filmmaking careers. Jill Soloway: In her keynote address at SXSW, Jill Soloway addressed challenges – and solutions – to hiring...

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Women in Film & Television History: Meet Dorothy Arzner, Director, Editor, Screenwriter, Boom Inventor

Dorothy Arzner is one of the most prolific directors of early American cinema, having worked with some of the biggest stars of the era. She is also the first woman to direct a film with sound. It was during such a project that Arzner is credited with inventing the boom microphone!

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11 Things I Learned While Producing My First Short Film

Actor and writer Katrina Medoff took on a third role - producer - for the first time with the short film Lovestuck, which premieres Sunday, March 19th at the Queens World Film Festival. She shares her top takeaways from the experience.

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Terry’s Picks: Watch It, True Story, Immigrant Series

Watch It: Celebrate Women’s History Month by watching these 40 movies by women directors – all available for streaming. True Story: Are female-fronted biopics finally on the rise? Immigrant Series: NYWIFT is thrilled to partner with the Queens World Film Festival to present the next installment in this year’s Women Filmmakers: Immigrant Stories screening series...

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Meet Kahane Cooperman, the Director of Oscar-nominated Short Doc Joe’s Violin

Director and producer Kahane Cooperman discusses the inspiration for her short documentary Joe's Violin, her Oscar nomination, and the support she received from New York Women in Film & Television.

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Terry’s Picks: Data Driven, Amal Ramsis, Women’s Movement

Data Driven: With support from Google.org’s Global Impact Challenge, the Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media teamed up with Google to develop software that accurately measures how often we see and hear women on-screen. Amal Ramsis: Here is a wonderful profile of Amal Ramsis, founder of the Cairo International Women’s Film Festival. Women’s Movement:...

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Terry’s Picks: Hannah Beachler, Sarah Barnett, New Space

Hannah Beachler: Congratulations to Hannah Beachler, who was awarded “Excellence in Production Design for Awards or Event Special” during the Art Directors Guild Awards last week. The recognition was for her production design for Beyoncé’s Lemonade. Beachler was also the production designer on Moonlight, Creed and Don Cheadle’s Miles Ahead and her work will next...

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