Where are all the female directors?

I read today that less then 1% of the movies on Netflix are directed by women. Not even a full percent. It was shocking at first but then when I started to think about it, one percent is 1 in a hundred and their are A LOT of movies out there, and there have always been a lot of movies getting made, and there used to be even less female directors. Now, at least, there are some, but, when curious, I started looking up statitstics on female directors I was suprised by HOW LOW they are, still are.

For example, the highest grossing movie directed by a women is SHREK, but it was co-directed by a man. The nine next highest grossing movies by women are LOOK WHOS TALKING, WHAT WOMEN WANT, DR. DOLITTLE, SLEEPLESS IN SEATTLE, DEEP IMPACT, WAYNE'S WORLD, ALVIN AND THE CHIPMUNKS:THE SQUEAKUEL, BIG, and TWILIGHT. First of all, most of these movies are about men. I shudder to realize TWILIGHT has the biggest female role of them all, followed closely by SLEEPLESS, but I would be willing to bet Meg Ryan clocks in at under 50% of screen time in that one. I have not seen WHAT WOMEN WANT and it does have a large female cast, and it also stars every feminists favorite actor, Mel Gibson. I do love BIG, another Tom Hanks one, I owned it growing up and loved it. I didn't know WAYNE'S WORLD was directed by a women, that was interesting to learn. The rest are pretty awful, and not that popular.

Another dismal statistic is that only four women have been nominated for best director ever. Kathryn Bigelow was the first to win in 2010 for THE HURT LOCKER. Before her there had only been three women ever nominated in that category. Sofia Copolla in 2003 for LOST IN TRANSLATION, Jane Campion in 1993 for THE PIANO, and Lina Wertmuller in 1976 for SEVEN BEAUTIES. Their pictures get nominated a little more often, but they are hardly recognized in the director category. This past year two films directed by women were nominated for Best Picture, WINTER'S BONE and THE KIDS ARE ALRIGHT, but neither of their female directors were up for Best Director.

I do feel there are an increasing amount of female directed movies being made and coming out, but it is still so far behind and moving so slowly towards an equal distribution of male and female director it is frustrating. So, to cheer myself up I made a list of films I like that are directed by women and that many people might not have seen (or heard of). Also, all the films on this list are mainly about females as well.

MY NEW GUN (1992) 

Somehow I discovered this movie when I was about 13 years old and loved it. It was one that I liked the rent over and over, as we do at that age. I am not really sure what clicked about it for me, but it is the story of an unhappy suburban housewife who gets a gun from her yuppie husband even though she is terrified of them, then begins an affair with her mysterious neighbor who steals it from her.  It is a funny satire of suburban lifestyle similar to DESPERATELY SEEKING SUSAN at times, but more 90's. The director is Stacy Cochran who hasn't done much else. She directed the Winona Ryder film BOYS several years later (which is pretty uninteresting) and in 2000 she directed a film called DROP BACK TEN that I had never heard of before writing this blog. I will check it out and let you know if it is any good.

AN ANGEL AT MY TABLE (1990)
This beautiful film, by Jane Campion, is slow and disturbing and is the story of  Janet Frame, a New Zealand author. Based on a three part autobiography the film is fascinating and restrained. Despite the rather extreme events that happened to Frame, Campion keeps the film focused on the quite strength of the lead character. The leading role is played by Kerry Fox who is wonderfully unique and odd. This might be my favorite Campion film, although I also love THE PIANO(1993) in so many ways. Also good is her most recent film BRIGHT STAR(2009) about poet John Keat's three year long romance with Fanny Brawne. Jane Campion's films are always beautiful, but ANGEL has a presence that is strong.

FAT GIRL (2001) 
One of the best films I have ever seen, I didn't enjoy watching this very much, but it was powerful and really affected me. The story is of 12 year old Anais, overweight and on summer vacation with her family. Elena is the pretty 15 year old sister of Anais, who gets all the boys, including an older Italian. Anair is a very unhappy girl, and her misery is long and drawn out, and she shares a room with her sister who has an incredibly akward sex scene with her older lover.  FAT GIRL has a shocking and disturbing ending that upset me enough to wonder if I even liked it at all? But upon reflection I feel it is an incredible film about adolescence and sibling rivalry. FAT GIRL also has some of the best acting from teenagers I have seen, it is like an artsy, French, KIDS. French director Catherine Breillat has made many films and they often are explorations of sexuality, often with young girls. Despite finding most of her films hard to connect with, many are interesting, and I appreciate films being made about female sexuality, disturbing or not, since they are told from a female perspective and it is subject matter that is often feared. Other Breillat films worth checking out to see a range of her style are A REAL YOUNG GIRL(1976), SEX IS COMEDY(2002) and THE LAST MISTRESS(2007).

WALKING AND TALKING (1996) 
This is a great film about two best friends, played by Catherine Keener and Anne Heche, who struggle to keep their tight friendship as one gets ready to marry a man who treats her great, while the other is at a bad place in her life with men and career. Keener is always great and she works with director Nicol Holofcener in all of her feature films, including the recent PLEASE GIVE(2010) This underrated movie has a great script and great 90's nostalgia. Both actresses are great making their characters seem like real women and very relatable. It is a film that is both funny and sad, showcasing a wonderful female friendship, not overshadowed with malice, like many female buddy movies.

WENDY AND LUCY (2008)
Michelle Williams is one of my favorite current actresses. WENDY AND LUCY  is a character piece that follows Wendy, traveling cross country with her dog, Lucy, to a new job. When the car breaks down, Wendy's poor finaciel state escelates her into very dire situations. Not a happy movie at all, it is a strong performance by both actress and director. Very straight forward and basic, the powerlessness of Wendy because she has no money sticks with you after you have seen it. Kelly Reichardt is the director, and one to watch for. I am eagerly waiting to see the film she made last year MEEKS CUTOFF (2010) also starring Williams. Reichardt makes film about people who become victim to their circumstance. Money, gender, passivity, are a common enemy of the characters in her films.