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Read our most recent issue with stories that validate, inspire, and change the way we see— and make — film.
About a year ago, I sat down for what was probably my sixth movie of the day at the 2025...
As I spent twelve hours in the hospital last week, waiting for my dad to recover from his long-belated knee...
As someone who was born four decades ago, any fragments of home movie footage that exist from my childhood—most of...
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 Dawn Borchardt
January 29, 2026
“Joybubbles” is filmmaker Rachael J. Morrison’s debut feature documentary, which just premiered at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival in the U.S. Documentary Competition. Built almost entirely from archival film footage
6 min read
by Rebecca Martin
January 29, 2026
There’s a particular kind of honesty that surfaces at Sundance—usually not on the red carpet, but in the quiet spaces where filmmakers gather to tell the truth about how hard
8 min read
by Dawn Borchardt
January 28, 2026
“Without Kelly” screened at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival as part of the Shorts Program, following its Orizzonti International Short Film Award win at the Venice Film Festival. Made by
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
16 min read
by Elisa Shoenberger
January 20, 2026
The short film “4th Dementia” manages to do something incredible: make a film about Alzheimer’s Disease that is funny. It may seem like an unlikely premise, but this 16-minute short
7 min read
by Anna Pattison
January 6, 2026
The Chair Company follows Ron, who investigates a conspiracy after an embarrassing incident at work. How did you get started in cinematography? I grew up a big film lover. I
9 min read
by Rebecca Martin
December 23, 2025
I often think about a particular scene from the second series of “Fleabag” as the year draws to a close. Kristin Scott Thomas’s character, Belinda, is at a bar with
5 min read
by Rebecca Martin
December 19, 2025
Kaouther Ben Hania is a two-time Academy Award–nominated filmmaker whose fearless, formally inventive work has positioned her as one of the most vital voices in contemporary international cinema. Moving fluidly
5 min read
by Rebecca Martin
December 13, 2025
Annette Elliot is a Chicago-based writer and director whose work sits at the intersection of cinema, art history, and architecture. Drawing consciously from painting, sculpture, and the built environment, her
7 min read
by Emily Jacobson
March 20, 2026
About a year ago, I sat down for what was probably my sixth movie of the day at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival. My eyes were burning, my brain was
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
14 min read
by Matt Fagerholm
March 9, 2026
As someone who was born four decades ago, any fragments of home movie footage that exist from my childhood—most of which was recorded on a cumbersome camcorder borrowed from my
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
14 min read
by Rebecca Martin
March 3, 2026
In conversation with Elizabeth Stam, Wendy Robie, Brookelyn Hebert, Mary Tilden, and Heather Kuhlmann. Some films move like a straight line. “Hekla doesn’t. It rushes, swerves, collides—then bursts into color
17 min read
by Matt Fagerholm
February 19, 2026
The sun is just beginning to set as the twenty-something characters in Jessica’s Barr’s mesmerizing new film, “The Plan,” start to congregate in an East LA apartment. The calmness of
8 min read
by Rebecca Martin
February 10, 2026
“The Way of the Whale” tells the untold story of an extraordinary interspecies bond — a connection so profound it feels like love — between humans and gray whales in
10 min read
by Rebecca Martin
February 10, 2026
My discussion with Swedish-native Malin Barr at Sundance quickly evolved beyond a standard interview. By the time we secured coffee amidst the festival’s intensity, the conversation felt like a continuation
7 min read
by Rebecca Martin
February 9, 2026
Cinema Femme is thrilled to reconnect with director, writer, and actress Gabriela Ortega on the occasion of her latest short film, “Marga en el DF”, which makes its World Premiere
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
17 min read
by Matt Fagerholm
February 19, 2026
The sun is just beginning to set as the twenty-something characters in Jessica’s Barr’s mesmerizing new film, “The Plan,” start to congregate in an East LA apartment. The calmness of
4 min read
by Matt Fagerholm
February 13, 2026
There is no filmmaking duo whose work I await with greater anticipation than Kelly O’Sullivan and Alex Thompson. In 2019, Thompson made his debut feature, “Saint Frances,” written by and
21 min read
by Veronica Miles
February 12, 2026
Yes, you can just go to Sundance. Yes, you will definitely have fun. Yes, you will see celebrities. Yes, you will see movies that may win Oscars or launch the
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
13 min read
by Matt Fagerholm
November 17, 2025
As I sat in my favorite movie palace, the Music Box Theatre, waiting for my wife—Cinema Femme founder Rebecca Martin—to arrive for that evening’s eagerly awaited Chicago International Film Festival
14 min read
by Anna Pattison
November 1, 2025
When a laid-off sex worker falls for a mail carrier in a world frozen by pandemic unknowns, it will take the help of an astrologer, cinema guru, cam model, retired dungeon owner,
14 min read
by Matt Fagerholm
October 25, 2025
With the 61st Chicago International Film Festival nearly in the rearview mirror, there are so many memories from the past several days that I know I will be cherishing for
7 min read
by Rebecca Martin
November 15, 2022
Last week Chicago’s Asian Pop-Up Cinema Film Festival wrapped up its 15th season showing eight Hong Kong productions. I was fortunate to interview one of the filmmakers behind one of
3 min read
by Rebecca Martin
October 11, 2022
Buy your tickets: https://www.chicagofilmfestival.com/film/art-and-pep/ Cinema Femme kicks off its 2022 ChiFilmFest coverage by speaking with filmmaker Mercedes Kane about her doc “Art and Pep”. We talked about why
10 min read
by Matt Fagerholm
August 11, 2022
Bringing back our Sundance interview for the film’s theater release today. One of my favorite movies I’ve seen at this year’s Sundance Film Festival is easily the Finnish coming-of-age drama,
7 min read
by Rebecca Martin
May 20, 2022
As I watched the films for Short Block 3 at our virtual film festival a few weeks ago, we just finished Heidi Neff’s “The Long Goodbye”, an animated short film
14 min read
by Rebecca Martin
May 6, 2022
With the recent news of the Supreme Court leak detailing their plan to overturn Roe vs. Wade, we wanted to bring back our interview with Kelly O’Sullivan about her film
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
4 min read
by Rebecca Martin
April 12, 2024
“The Tuba Thieves” premieres tonight at the Siskel Film Center. Get your tickets here. “The Tuba Thieves,” directed by Alison O’Daniel, is a cinematic vision for the senses. I love
6 min read
by cinemafemme
February 2, 2024
Here are our capsule reviews of four new releases we recommend you seek out! How to Have Sex – directed by Molly Manning Walker (Feb. 9) | review by Rebecca
5 min read
by Emily Jacobson
January 30, 2024
A teenage girl goes on a camping trip with her father and his oldest friend. Typically, this type of movie would be a coming of age film, focusing on the
4 min read
by Peyton Robinson
January 30, 2024
Haley Elizabeth Anderson’s feature debut, “Tendaberry,” is a narrative document on change. Dakota (Kota Johan) is a 23 year old New York City transplant, somewhat estranged from her family, but
5 min read
by Emily Jacobson
January 29, 2024
It is 2005 and Brad Pitt and Jennifer Anniston have just split up. While the pop culture world cries out in despair, Doris (Nico Parker) recites the news to her
4 min read
by Peyton Robinson
January 29, 2024
“In the Summers” won the U.S. Grand Jury Prize at this year’s Sundance 2024 film festival for Dramatic. Alessandra Lacorraza Samudio’s semi-autobiographical film, “In the Summers,” is a portrait of
5 min read
by Peyton Robinson
January 28, 2024
Theda Hammel’s directorial debut, “Stress Positions” is a head-spinning comedy that takes place in the throes of pandemic hell. Terry (John Early) is a recent divorceé holed up in his
5 min read
by Rebecca Martin
January 27, 2024
I’ve been embarking on a new frontier in my self-journey. I’ve started to go through fertility treatments because my husband Matt and I want to try to have a biological
4 min read
by Peyton Robinson
January 26, 2024
“Handling the Undead,” directed by Thea Hvistendahl, mainly follows a trio of isolated vignettes. Anna (Renate Reinsve) and her father, Mahler (Bjørn Sundquist), mourn the loss of her young son.
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About a year ago, I sat down for what was probably my sixth movie of the day at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival. My eyes
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
As someone who was born four decades ago, any fragments of home movie footage that exist from my childhood—most of which was recorded on a
For me, movies and meaning are inseparable; I process my daily life through this art form. The cinema is not just entertainment—it’s a vital lens
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
In conversation with Elizabeth Stam, Wendy Robie, Brookelyn Hebert, Mary Tilden, and Heather Kuhlmann. Some films move like a straight line. “Hekla doesn’t. It rushes,
About a year ago, I sat down for what was probably my sixth movie of the day at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival. My eyes
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
As someone who was born four decades ago, any fragments of home movie footage that exist from my childhood—most of which was recorded on a
For me, movies and meaning are inseparable; I process my daily life through this art form. The cinema is not just entertainment—it’s a vital lens
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
In conversation with Elizabeth Stam, Wendy Robie, Brookelyn Hebert, Mary Tilden, and Heather Kuhlmann. Some films move like a straight line. “Hekla doesn’t. It rushes,
About a year ago, I sat down for what was probably my sixth movie of the day at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival. My eyes
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
As someone who was born four decades ago, any fragments of home movie footage that exist from my childhood—most of which was recorded on a
For me, movies and meaning are inseparable; I process my daily life through this art form. The cinema is not just entertainment—it’s a vital lens
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
In conversation with Elizabeth Stam, Wendy Robie, Brookelyn Hebert, Mary Tilden, and Heather Kuhlmann. Some films move like a straight line. “Hekla doesn’t. It rushes,
