Previewing Reeling 2021: The 39th Chicago LGBTQ+ International Film Festival, screening in person and in virtual cinemas 9/23 – 10/7
We are so excited to share with you some of the films that will be screening and streaming at Reeling: The 39th Chicago LGBTQ+ International Film Festival! Reeling elevates LGBTQ+ films and is the second oldest film festival of its kind that features films from all over the world. This year, the festival kicks off […]
#TBT 2019 Sundance Ebert Fellows
Chaz Ebert introduced me to the 2019 Sundance Ebert Fellows Niani Scott, Whitney A. Spencer, and Tiffany Walden via Instagram as they were on their way to Park City, Utah, to cover Sundance Film Festival. I read up on these intelligent and extremely talented women, and I was so inspired by their drive and past experience. During our interview in March, we talked about their Sundance experiences, their favorite films from the festival, and the importance of having diverse voices in film criticism.
‘Clueless’ broke down barriers and paved the way for today’s comedies
At the end, “Clueless” is both reflective and ahead of its time. It implants the image of the modern woman of the nineties, rebelling against the clean-shaven stereotypical second-wave feminists and paving the way for women of the fourth-wave feminist, who unlike their predecessors were able to subvert the gaze completely by liberating from the gender and sexual spectrum. Despite resistance, the atmosphere right now is more welcoming than ever for a female-led comedy that does not fear the sexual power of its funny lead actress.
‘Girls Trip’: a dose of Black Girl Magic
“Girls Trip” is a film that highlights and celebrates Black womanhood in a variety of forms. This includes a honour roll call of Black excellence with people like Iyanla Vanzant, Mariah Carey, Mike Epps, Terry McMillan, Morris Chestnut, Estelle, Common, Ne-Yo, and Ava DuVernay who specifically talks about “Black Girl Magic”; DuVernay says, “It feels like a reminder, a rallying call, a term of endearment.” “Girls Trip” is all about the journey that is “Black Girl Magic.”
A cult classic is in our midst with Jennifer Reeder’s teen noir ‘Knives and Skin’
“Knives and Skin” follows the investigation of a young girl’s disappearance in a rural Midwest town. The coming-of-age film has been described as a mix of Lynchian thriller and high school musical.
The Bend and Snap, works every time: an essay on ‘Legally Blonde’
Elle Woods spent so much of her life playing by the rules that had been laid out for her, bending under the weight of what society wanted her to be. Until finally, she snapped and became who she wanted herself to be. For generations, women have been bending under societal pressures and conforming to the rules men have laid out for them, until they all finally snap and start walking their own path in life, and that’s when we all truly shine. Because if there’s one thing that we all learned from “Legally Blonde,” it’s that the “Bend and Snap” works every time.
Chosen ‘Family’
Family is about the lengths you will go to listen and hear others, not just the blood bonds that you have. Kate and Maddie are each other’s chosen family, and that is poignant.
Why was ‘Thelma & Louise’ such an impactful film? Jennifer Townsend’s documentary explores why
I recently spoke with Townsend over the phone about how she created this fascinating documentary and how things have changed for women in film since “Thelma & Louise” came out in 1991.
Patti Vasquez brings representation onstage and behind the mic
Patti Vasquez is a renaissance woman: She’s the host of “The Patti Vasquez Show” on Chicago’s WGN Radio, a stand-up comedian, and the founder of With Kind Words, a consulting company for health care providers. Patti brings her passion and love for people into her comedy, her radio show on WGN, and her writing. I […]
The Women of Tribeca
Film festivals afford you an opportunity to meet filmmakers from all over the world who are involved in the industry in many different capacities. And this year, at the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival, I spoke with writers on the red carpet, watched Q and As as an audience member, and literally bumped into or by […]
From Hollywood to Chicago, Katherine O’Brien is helping aspiring screenwriters
Cinema Femme is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com. Katherine O’Brien is a brilliant, comedic, down-to-earth individual. For fifteen-plus years, she’s thrived in Hollywood and throughout the international marketplace as a […]
Cleveland comedian Sam Dee is creating spaces for women in comedy
For the past several years, Sam Dee has been creating inclusive, creative spaces for comedians and audience members in Cleveland. She cocreated the comedy advice show Share-apy in 2017, cofounded the female-run comedy festival Mass Hysteria Comedy Fest and started the comedy competition Improv Death Match in 2018, and is part of the improv troupe […]