Read our most recent issue with stories that validate, inspire, and change the way we see— and make — film.
Dear Readers, Chicago’s film community is full of people who are not only making movies, but actively reshaping the culture,...
Indie distributor Persimmon has acquired North American rights to “Bird in Hand,” the latest release from The Future of Film...
After a drunk-driving accident, a young woman with her jaw wired shut sets out for a fun night with her...
This is a living record of underrepresented brilliance in film. Dive into our archive of stories and hear from bold voices that paving the industry forward.
5 min read
by Rebecca Martin
July 1, 2024
I had the opportunity to speak with Sam Flancher, programmer of the Chicago International Film Festival, about the free summer screenings they held for the first half of the summer
3 min read
by Rebecca Martin
June 20, 2024
On the eve of her graduation from DePaul’s MFA Film and Directing program, I had the pleasure of speaking with emerging filmmaker Jewells Santos about her short film “Fatfish.” Jewells
6 min read
by cinemafemme
June 14, 2024
Cora Bora – Hannah Utt (script written by Rhianon Jones) Catch the NYC and LA premieres this weekend! Megan Stalter reminds me of Catherine O’Hara when she was getting started
18 min read
by Matt Fagerholm
June 10, 2024
When it comes to monumentally euphoric moviegoing experiences in 2024, Kelly O’Sullivan and Alex Thompson have set a mightily high bar with their latest crowd-pleaser, “Ghostlight.” Five years after helming
33 min read
by Matt Fagerholm
June 3, 2024
Every once in a while, I come across a film that feels as if it has been made especially for me. That happened most recently at this year’s joyous in-person
12 min read
by Rebecca Martin
May 29, 2024
“Tell That to the Winter Sea” is a masterfully crafted journey into womanhood, filled with captivating performances, stunning visuals and assured direction. The film brings me back to being a
6 min read
by cinemafemme
May 24, 2024
Babes – Pamela Adlon (screens in theaters nationwide starting today) At the beginning of the film “Babes,” directed by Pamela Adlon, we start with two childhood best friends, Eden (Ilana
17 min read
by Rebecca Martin
May 22, 2024
My Great Grandmother was a maid at the Chicago Athletic Club in the early 1900s. She would collect the cigar wrappers that were left behind and make them into beautiful
13 min read
by Rebecca Martin
May 14, 2024
“As a filmmaker, my work has shed light on underrepresented people and stories. Films like ‘Enormous Changes,’ ‘Nobody’s Girls,’ ‘Last Dance,’ ‘The Only Real Game,’ and ‘No Fear No Favor,’ got
15 min read
by Rebecca Martin
August 30, 2026
After a drunk-driving accident, a young woman with her jaw wired shut sets out for a fun night with her friends—but what begins as a night of parties and social
8 min read
by Rebecca Martin
August 20, 2026
Teresa Moore is a Chicago-based filmmaker, entrepreneur, and actor and co-founder and executive producer of Film in a Bag Productions, a video production company founded by five filmmakers dedicated to
5 min read
by Rebecca Martin
August 19, 2026
At the intersection of high-stakes ambition and personal vulnerability lies “Achiever”, a sharp, heartfelt comedy that offers a tender look at an often-unspoken reality: the impact of psychiatric medication on
20 min read
by Rebecca Martin
August 12, 2026
For decades, the “stoner comedy” has been a heavily male-dominated subgenre, often leaning on the same predictable tropes. With “The Wrong Girls” (premiering August 14 from NEON), writer-director Dylan Meyer
13 min read
by Rebecca Martin Fagerholm and Matt Fagerholm
August 11, 2026
To celebrate our fourth wedding anniversary last month, my husband Matt and I flew to San Francisco, rented a car and drove all over the state of California, visiting friends
9 min read
by Megan Henderson
August 9, 2026
I’m always a sucker for a crime action thriller. I can’t get enough of the heart-pounding tension, the sweaty-palmed anticipation, and the edge-of-your-seat fight scenes. It gets me every time,
8 min read
by Rebecca Martin
August 7, 2026
Few debut features arrive with the confidence and emotional honesty of Megan Seely’s “Puddysticks.” Equal parts dark comedy, psychological drama, and coming-of-age story for adults, the film follows anxious video
7 min read
by Rebecca Martin
August 6, 2026
Kateryna Sazonova’s work sits at the intersection of environmental advocacy and cinematic storytelling. A Ukrainian filmmaker and environmentalist based in the United States, she has built her career around films
18 min read
by Megan Henderson
August 5, 2026
Everyone remembers the complicated feelings that come along with being a young adult. In fact, some of us may still be in that season of our lives, experiencing those feelings.
12 min read
by Matt Fagerholm
July 8, 2025
I was ten years old when Danny DeVito’s euphoric screen adaptation of Roald Dahl’s 1988 novel Matilda arrived in theaters. I had read the book so many times that the
14 min read
by Matt Fagerholm
June 24, 2025
As annoyed as I was about Barry Jenkins, one of the greatest filmmakers working today, recently helming a prequel to the worst Disney remake in history, the Oscar-winning director of
41 min read
by Matt Fagerholm
May 23, 2025
It’s difficult to put into words the gratitude I have for Sabrina S. Sutherland. The collaborations she forged with filmmaker David Lynch, particularly over the last decade, have transformed my
15 min read
by Emily Jacobson
May 20, 2025
Hannah Welever is a queer filmmaker based in New York, but her roots are Midwestern. In her newest short, “Soirée,” Welever creatively holds space for women’s bodies, and how often
21 min read
by Anna Pattison
May 1, 2025
Samantha (Sam) Cole returns to her childhood home when her mother suddenly passes. In place of familiar spaces and memories, Sam finds only uneasiness and confusion. Things are missing, the
21 min read
by Anna Pattison
April 18, 2025
From writer and director Florence Bouvy, “Where We Stay” is a beautiful and touching examination of human connection and unspoken truths. The film was partially inspired by Florence’s own story
10 min read
by Peyton Robinson
April 15, 2025
Cheryl Dunye is best known for her iconic film “The Watermelon Woman” — a tale of an aspiring Black lesbian filmmaker (played by Dunye herself) who seeks to learn more
6 min read
by Davide Abbatescianni
March 6, 2025
After a successful festival run kicked off at San Sebastian and BFI London last year, Sylvia Le Fanu’s debut, titled “My Eternal Summer,” heads to the Göteborg Film Festival, one
6 min read
by Davide Abbatescianni
March 5, 2025
In her latest endeavor, “White Roses Fall!” (in Spanish: “¡Caigan las rosas blancas!”), Argentinian filmmaker Albertina Carri follows Violeta, a director known for her breakout amateur lesbian porn hit, as
15 min read
by Rebecca Martin
March 16, 2022
For Women’s History Month and Trans Visibility Day approaching on March 31, we bring back our interview from the Chicago International Film Festival in October 2020. We are proud to
5 min read
by Rebecca Martin
December 30, 2021
Watching “New Flesh for the Old Ceremony”, the Audience Award-winner for narrative shorts at this year’s Reeling Film Festival, I was pleasantly surprised that it opened with a passionate love
6 min read
by Rebecca Martin
December 28, 2021
Following The Chicago LGBTQ+ Reeling International Film Festival in October 2021, I had the pleasure of speaking with three female filmmakers behind three selections in the Revolutions of the Heart
1 min read
by Rebecca Martin
December 14, 2021
Cinema Femme “The Novice” interview with star Isabelle Fuhrman and director Lauren Hadaway “The Novice” comes to digital and theaters Friday, December 17th! Moderated by Cinema Femme managing editor Rebecca
29 min read
by Matt Fagerholm
August 13, 2021
Emily Robinson is, without question, one of the most gifted and promising talents of her generation. She earned a Young Artist Award and Young Entertainer Award, as well as a Screen
4 min read
by cinemafemme
June 24, 2021
For Pride month Cinema Femme is excited to elevate Mary Tilden’s short film “Rough River Lake”. Read more about the film below, and please donate to support! Details below are
7 min read
by Dawn Borchardt
June 16, 2021
“The Novice” is the feature directorial debut from accomplished sound artist Lauren Hadaway. The film follows college student Alex (Isabelle Fuhrman), who finds herself obsessing over whatever she puts her
6 min read
by Marjorie H. Morgan
June 1, 2021
13 min read
by Rebecca Martin
May 19, 2021
Actor/writer Elliot Frances Flynn (“Shoplifters of the World”, “Mare of Easttown”), is an emerging talent who has been a strong supporter of Cinema Femme over the past year, and I’ve
8 min read
by Peyton Robinson
February 9, 2026
Whether a creator or observer, one’s relationship with art dictates a host of qualities: values, ambitions, fantasies, etc. That umbrella term – art – can be composed of so many
6 min read
by Emily Jacobson
February 5, 2026
For my final dispatch of Sundance 2026, I talk about three films I screened virtually from home (though I originally saw “The Musical” in Park City, but I enjoyed it
8 min read
by Peyton Robinson
February 3, 2026
For many women, sexual discovery is a kind of reckoning. It comes in waves. Answering the question of “what was your first sexual experience?” can be immensely complex when bearing
7 min read
by Emily Jacobson
February 3, 2026
As I got deeper into the festival and more sleep deprived, my second dispatch from Sundance saw some common themes begin to emerge in the films I was seeing. In
4 min read
by Rebecca Martin
January 31, 2026
Barbara Hammer once said, “If we’re experimenting with our lives and the way we’re going to live, our film and our art should also be experimental. It breaks tradition, and
9 min read
by Emily Jacobson
January 30, 2026
When I landed in what would be the last Sundance in Park City, Utah, a notable feeling of gratitude washed over me. My first day was a frenzy of badge
16 min read
by Matt Fagerholm
January 28, 2026
Sundance has always been a festival I had admired at a distance. How Robert Redford had gone about using his platform to launch the careers of countless filmmakers for over
7 min read
by Matt Fagerholm
October 21, 2025
The Girl in the Snow One of the great discoveries I made at CIFF ten years ago was the talent of young Galatéa Bellugi. As a pregnant teen in the
3 min read
by cinemafemme
April 11, 2025
BEING MARIA – directed by Jessica Palud “I want to be free as an actor to explore where a scene can go, but if it’s going to be a fight
2 min read
by cinemafemme
September 10, 2026
Dear Readers, Chicago’s film community is full of people who are not only making movies, but actively reshaping the culture, infrastructure, and possibilities of how those movies get made, seen,
2 min read
by Anna Pattison
November 1, 2025
Dear Cinema Femme Readers, Let’s celebrate: our talents, passions, our goals, and dreams. Let’s support: to ensure these dreams are made a reality. Let’s thrive: in spaces where we
Join us in fostering a vibrant film culture through strategic partnerships. Together, we can create opportunities that benefit both your organization and our community.
By clicking Join Us, you agree to our Terms and Conditions.
Dear Readers, Chicago’s film community is full of people who are not only making movies, but actively reshaping the culture, infrastructure, and possibilities of how
Indie distributor Persimmon has acquired North American rights to “Bird in Hand,” the latest release from The Future of Film Is Female, written and directed
After a drunk-driving accident, a young woman with her jaw wired shut sets out for a fun night with her friends—but what begins as a
Festival runs October 11–13, 2026, featuring 20 short films, special guests, filmmaker panels, Breaking Down Walls mentorship program, and the Chicago premiere of Emily Robinson’s
As an alternative to Femme Filmmaker Friday, this article spotlights the remarkable work of three women, beginning with a tribute to a true legend. REMEMBERING
Teresa Moore is a Chicago-based filmmaker, entrepreneur, and actor and co-founder and executive producer of Film in a Bag Productions, a video production company founded
Dear Readers, Chicago’s film community is full of people who are not only making movies, but actively reshaping the culture, infrastructure, and possibilities of how
Indie distributor Persimmon has acquired North American rights to “Bird in Hand,” the latest release from The Future of Film Is Female, written and directed
After a drunk-driving accident, a young woman with her jaw wired shut sets out for a fun night with her friends—but what begins as a
Festival runs October 11–13, 2026, featuring 20 short films, special guests, filmmaker panels, Breaking Down Walls mentorship program, and the Chicago premiere of Emily Robinson’s
As an alternative to Femme Filmmaker Friday, this article spotlights the remarkable work of three women, beginning with a tribute to a true legend. REMEMBERING
Teresa Moore is a Chicago-based filmmaker, entrepreneur, and actor and co-founder and executive producer of Film in a Bag Productions, a video production company founded
Dear Readers, Chicago’s film community is full of people who are not only making movies, but actively reshaping the culture, infrastructure, and possibilities of how
Indie distributor Persimmon has acquired North American rights to “Bird in Hand,” the latest release from The Future of Film Is Female, written and directed
After a drunk-driving accident, a young woman with her jaw wired shut sets out for a fun night with her friends—but what begins as a
Festival runs October 11–13, 2026, featuring 20 short films, special guests, filmmaker panels, Breaking Down Walls mentorship program, and the Chicago premiere of Emily Robinson’s
As an alternative to Femme Filmmaker Friday, this article spotlights the remarkable work of three women, beginning with a tribute to a true legend. REMEMBERING
Teresa Moore is a Chicago-based filmmaker, entrepreneur, and actor and co-founder and executive producer of Film in a Bag Productions, a video production company founded
