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.
8 min read
by cinemafemme
January 27, 2020
Cineme Femme is about amplifying the voices of underrepresented filmmakers and those who support them. During the 2020 Sundance Film Festival, in addition to our own original interviews, we will
6 min read
by cinemafemme
January 26, 2020
Cineme Femme is about amplifying the voices of underrepresented filmmakers and those who support them. During the 2020 Sundance Film Festival, in addition to our own original interviews, we will
5 min read
by cinemafemme
January 25, 2020
Cineme Femme is about amplifying the voices of underrepresented filmmakers and those who support them. During the 2020 Sundance Film Festival, in addition to our own original interviews, we will
3 min read
by cinemafemme
January 24, 2020
Cineme Femme is about amplifying the voices of underrepresented filmmakers and those who support them. During the 2020 Sundance Film Festival, in addition to our own original interviews, we will
7 min read
by Cineuropa
January 24, 2020
The following Cineuropa interview is with filmmaker Anne Sewitsky. After studying directing at the Norwegian Film School, her feature-film debut came in 2010 with the comedy “Happy, Happy”, which was awarded
2 min read
by cinemafemme
January 23, 2020
Cineme Femme is about amplifying the voices of underrepresented filmmakers and those who support them. During the 2020 Sundance Film Festival, in addition to our own original interviews, we will
8 min read
by Rebecca Martin
January 22, 2020
Sundance is my “happy place”. It’s the place I go to in my mind when sh**t in the real-world gets too real. I fell in love with Sundance in 2016.
7 min read
by Rebecca Martin
January 17, 2020
You know when you are so excited by a director that your excitement oozes? Alice Waddington is that director. Being touched in my life with a fire that takes me
4 min read
by Rebecca Martin
January 16, 2020
20 min read
by Matt Fagerholm
July 31, 2026
For our fourth wedding anniversary, Cinema Femme founder Rebecca Martin Fagerholm and I spent a week driving to see friends and family all around California. One of our essential stops
10 min read
by Rebecca Martin
July 24, 2026
In an age where our online and offline identities increasingly blur together, writer-director Noam Argov explores what happens when the emotional realities of virtual spaces become impossible to separate from
8 min read
by Megan Henderson
July 23, 2026
“Margo’s Got Money Troubles” is an electric, neon-soaked story that follows young Margo (Elle Fanning), whose life gets turned upside down once she gets pregnant and decides to keep the
8 min read
by Rebecca Martin
July 21, 2026
I’ve been a fan of Abby Pierce’s work for years. I’ve had the chance to interview her about several of her short films, and each project is completely unique while
23 min read
by Peyton Robinson
July 16, 2026
The intersection of absurdity and anxiety in the everyday is propulsively becoming more intertwined with American culture. But still, there must be room to laugh. Allison Torem’s “Don’t Come Home
7 min read
by Megan Henderson
July 14, 2026
The first time I went to summer camp was when I was 15 years old. My parents sent me to a theatre arts camp, and at that point in my
7 min read
by Rebecca Martin
July 10, 2026
Revisiting our interview with Carolina Cavalli ahead of the film’s Chicago release. The film opens at the Siskel Film Center on July 30, buy tickets here. It also landed a
8 min read
by Rebecca Martin
June 26, 2026
Joelle Velez is an award-winning actress, writer, and filmmaker based in Chicago whose work blends comedy, suspense, and emotional honesty. A graduate of The Second City Film School, her first
16 min read
by Rebecca Martin
June 16, 2026
Years ago, while working at Chicago Filmmakers, I came across a large pile of magazines from the organization’s archive that were destined for the trash. To some, they may have
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
20 min read
by Matt Fagerholm
July 31, 2026
For our fourth wedding anniversary, Cinema Femme founder Rebecca Martin Fagerholm and I spent a week driving to see friends and family all around California. One of our essential stops
5 min read
by Matt Fagerholm
July 13, 2026
When my wife, Cinema Femme founder Rebecca Martin Fagerholm, and I decided to visit California for our fourth wedding anniversary, we knew that one of our destinations would have to
24 min read
by Matt Fagerholm
June 8, 2026
Upending an audience’s expectations has become one of the most joyous experiences to have in a movie theater, especially when so many releases from mainstream studios are content to remain
6 min read
by Matt Fagerholm
May 29, 2026
As a variation on our Femme Filmmaker Friday articles, our contributor Matt Fagerholm is offering his thoughts on three new male-directed films (plus one new female-directed series) all bolstered by
24 min read
by Matt Fagerholm
April 29, 2026
It’s a special kind of thrill when the greatness of an emerging filmmaker’s work hits you like a thunderbolt. That’s precisely what happened to me upon discovering the sublimely nuanced
25 min read
by Matt Fagerholm
April 13, 2026
After seeing Chicago’s BDSM community turn out in huge numbers for a euphoric preview screening of Harry Lighton’s acclaimed movie “Pillion” earlier this year, it’s clear that Madison Young’s equally
22 min read
by Matt Fagerholm
March 13, 2026
As I spent twelve hours in the hospital last week, waiting for my dad to recover from his long-belated knee replacement surgery, I found a liberating mode of escapism in
17 min read
by Matt Fagerholm
March 8, 2026
If she could, Amber would be a wall painted nondescript grey. Paint isn’t like wallpaper. It can’t be removed completely. No matter how much sanding down, they would still be
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
8 min read
by Rebecca Martin
November 4, 2024
“This movie that saved my life also holds a complicated and controversial history in the queer film canon. I’m not seeking to change anyone’s mind with this film, but to
4 min read
by Rebecca Martin
July 3, 2024
I had the opportunity to speak with Jac Cron about her feature debut “Chestnut.” We talked about how she came to this project, and how her time after college was
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
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
5 min read
by Emily Jacobson
January 25, 2024
On Friday, January 19th, the Utah House of Representatives voted to advance a restrictive anti-trans bill outlawing trans people from using bathrooms aligning with their gender identity. It will now
16 min read
by Rebecca Martin
August 31, 2023
Speaking with “American Psycho” screenwriter Guinevere Turner about her book When the World Didn’t End: A Memoir and her films that have changed the face of independent cinema, like “Go
6 min read
by Peyton Robinson
February 25, 2025
For my final dispatch of this year’s Sundance Film Festival, I’m covering three films that I watched virtually. Ironically, these films, while not all specifically tailoring their plots to location,
8 min read
by Emily Jacobson
February 18, 2025
For my second Sundance dispatch, I exchanged my snow boots for my slippers, and viewed most of the films from the comfort of my couch. While certainly not comparable to
7 min read
by Peyton Robinson
February 18, 2025
The endeavors of love and lust can feel like matters of life and death, but the films which compose this dispatch also find the humor in these escapades. I was
8 min read
by Emily Jacobson
January 31, 2025
When I was thirteen, I remember scrolling through the movie channels of my parents’ television and finding a film called “Like Crazy,” which was labeled as a “breakout Sundance hit.”
7 min read
by Peyton Robinson
January 28, 2025
It’s Saturday, January 25th and today is my last day at my first in-person Sundance Film Festival. Writing from a sardined high top table at Atticus, where yesterday I met
10 min read
by cinemafemme
December 13, 2024
This year started as it usually does for Cinema Femme with the Sundance Film Festival. Although we didn’t get the kind of coverage we’d like, as we were covering mostly
8 min read
by Rebecca Martin
November 4, 2024
“This movie that saved my life also holds a complicated and controversial history in the queer film canon. I’m not seeking to change anyone’s mind with this film, but to
9 min read
by Emily Jacobson
October 31, 2024
This past year has seen a wave of female directed movies – whether it be horror, drama, or comedy – fixed upon the female body. Unsurprisingly, with the political climate
8 min read
by Peyton Robinson
October 31, 2024
I have always found that the Chicago International Film Festival is a formidable venue for riveting, empathetic tales about women and girls. Last year, “Paradise is Burning” was my favorite
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
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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
