Hollywood is seeing more women filmmakers take control of their destiny. Many are stepping behind the camera to create stories that relate to all people. This was a slow process to see these talents recognized at Oscars, particularly in best director.
In the Academy Awards’ 94-year history, 581 films have been nominated to win the Academy Award for Best Picture. 18 of those films had a female director. It is quite a staggering statistic but we are seeing a rise of female-led stories and their increasing popularity.
Jane Campion is the nominee leader and we have our first woman director nominated this year. “The Power of the Dog.”This western is the second consecutive year that a female-directed film has received the most Oscar nominations in each year. It also marks the first time that a film directed by a woman director has been nominated for the most Oscars. For the third time in history, two films that a woman directs are recognized for best picture, along with Sian Heder’s “CODA.”In fact “CODA”And “The Power of the Dog”They are expected to be among the top three features that win best image on March 27.
Many films were directed by women that received nominations which include Maggie Gyllenhaal’s “The Lost Daughter,”It was nominated for three nominations: supporting actress (Jessie Buckley), actress (Olivia Colman) and adaptation screenplay for Gyllenhaal. The DGA first-time Director award is up for grabs this weekend. This would make her the second woman in the category.
The animated feature race’s favorite, “Encanto,”Latinas Charise Castro Smith and Yvett Melino co-directed, wrote and produced the film. The same goes for documentary feature hopefuls “Attica,” “Ascension”And “Writing with Fire”They were all directed by women filmmakers.
There are also the movies that should have received recognition, like Rebecca Hall’s “Passing” and Julia Ducournau’s “Titane”They were truly amazing.
The late Lina Wertmüller, who became the first woman nominated for directing “Seven Beauties”(1975) was a pioneer in this category, which is undoubtedly one of the most important film years in the Academy. However, her film didn’t ultimately land one of the five coveted spots for best picture, in favor of eventual winner “Rocky,” “All the President’s Men,” “Bound for Glory,” “Network,”And “Taxi Driver.” The first movie wouldn’t come until Randa Haines’ “Children of a Lesser God” (1986).
Read Variety’sFull list of 18 films nominated for Best Picture by incredible women directors