Latest news with #femaleDirectors
Reuters
20-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Reuters
Iranian film director Jafar Panahi in Cannes for first time in over 20 years
CANNES, France, May 20 (Reuters) - Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi, who was barred from travelling by the government in Tehran for 15 years, appeared on the Cannes Film Festival's red carpet on Tuesday evening for the premiere of his competition entry "It Was Just An Accident". Panahi, who has been arrested several times for his filmmaking, was last at the festival in person in 2003, when "Crimson Gold" was screened in the Un Certain Regard category. His wife and daughter, as well as several of his cast members, including main actor Vahid Mobasseri, also attended. The 64-year-old director has not officially been under any sanctions for the past few years, and no court cases are currently pending, according to a spokesperson for the film. In 2010, an Iranian court banned Panahi from making movies or travelling abroad for 20 years after he was convicted of "propaganda against the system". Panahi wept after the film's premiere at the plush Grand Lumiere Theatre, his voice wavering as he dedicated the movie to banned filmmakers in Iran, particularly the female directors and actors who supported activists protesting for women's rights. In an interview with Screen Daily, opens new tab published on Tuesday, Panahi said that though those bans had been lifted, he still had to maintain a secrecy about his work and to work illegally. "It Was Just An Accident" follows Vahid, played by Mobasseri, who kidnaps a man with a false leg who looks just like the one who tortured him in prison and ruined his life. Vahid sets out to verify with other prison survivors that it is indeed their torturer, and then decide what to do with him. Panahi has won several international awards, including the Cannes Film Festival's Camera d'Or prize for his 1995 movie "White Balloon" and the 2015 Berlin Film Festival's Golden Bear for his film "Taxi", shot in Iran while he was free on bail.
News.com.au
19-05-2025
- Entertainment
- News.com.au
Nicole Kidman opens up about career and her big public pledge during candid chat in Cannes
IN CANNES Nicole Kidman has opened up about fulfilling a vow she made eight years ago and revealed the roles she's keen to take on next during a wide-ranging and candid chat in Cannes. The Australian actress appeared as a guest speaker for Kering's Women in Motion series, which was run in tandem with the annual film festival. Back in 2017, Kidman publicly pledged to work with a female director every 18 months in a bid to help uplift women in the industry. At the time, women had directed only 4% of the top-grossing films of the year. In 2024, that number was a little over 13%, but that 'still seems incredibly low', Kidman - dressed in a leather Balenciaga jacket and black jeans - admitted. The Nine Perfect Strangers star has personally worked with 27 women in the eight years since her vow. 'I was going to make it possible,' Kidman said. 'I was at a point where we had a discussion where there was such a disparity in terms of the choice. You'd go, 'Could a woman direct this?' 'And there wasn't a number of names where you could even consider people. They'd say it was someone's first time and you didn't want to risk it. 'I had to start to say this is how I am doing it. This is what I am doing. 'We will take the risk and we are going to mentor and support and help and then really protect. Because part of it is protecting and surrounding the women with almost like a force field of protection and support so they can do their best work. At the same time, it's giving them the opportunity where they feel like this isn't the only chance. A lot of it is like, 'OK, you get one shot.'' Despite her fierce support of female directors, Kidman firmly ruled out walking the well-worn path of actors trying their hand behind the camera. 'I find it incredibly fulfilling supporting filmmakers in a producer capacity. It's beautiful being an actor and saying, 'I'm in your hands and shape me and do with me what you will.' I enjoy the intimacy of the work. The intimacy is what keeps me coming back. It's salvation for me.' From Practical Magic to Big Little Lies to The Undoing, Kidman has well and truly shown off her range over the years. So what's next? 'I'm looking to experiment,' she said. 'I don't want to be contained. I don't want to be safe.' Kidman then addressed ageism in the industry, especially in regard to female actors. 'You get to a certain age and maybe you had made a great film in your 20s that got lauded and then suddenly you're in your 40s and you haven't followed it up or made choices that didn't succeed,' Kidman said. 'But you're like, 'I'm not over! Please still keep believing in me and investing in me.' That is important too, resisting ageism. There's the emerging talents and then the ones that are still going who have a wealth of knowledge and experience and have somehow been cast out or are not the cool person. 'It's about going, 'No, you actually can have a second or third chapter.'' Kidman was later honoured with an award at the Women in Motion gala held in Cannes on Sunday night.
ABC News
19-05-2025
- Entertainment
- ABC News
Nicole Kidman honoured at Cannes Film Festival for championing female directors
In 2017, Oscar-winning actor Nicole Kidman made a public declaration that she would work with a female director every 18 months. In the eight years since, Kidman has exceeded that pledge, having worked with 27 female directors to date, including projects in development. In recognition of her efforts, the Australian actor has picked up the 2025 Women in Motion award from luxury conglomerate Kering at the Cannes Film Festival. Kering has joined forces with the festival for the past decade to recognise a groundbreaking woman in film each year as part of the Women in Motion program which highlights the contribution made by women on and off the screen in culture and the arts. Of her pledge, Kidman told Kering that she was determined to "make it possible". "You would go, 'Okay, cool, well, could a woman direct this?' And there just wasn't the number of names that you could consider." Kidman said first-time directors, in particular, were seen as a risk that people were reluctant to take. "So, I went, I have to start to just say, well, this is how I'm doing it, and this is what I'm doing, and we'll take the risk, and we're going to mentor, and support, and help, and then really protect, because part of it is protecting and surrounding the women with, almost like, a force field of protection and support, so that they can do their best work," Kidman said. "And then at the same time giving them the opportunity to not feel like this is the only chance, because a lot of it is 'okay you get one shot', which as we know creatively is almost impossible." She said opportunities need to continue regardless of whether a project has taken off. "It just means you're in process, and we need to support the long process of building the female voices, particularly the directors and the writers, and then also all of the crew members." When announcing two weeks ago that Kidman would receive the award, Kering referred to the Australian actor's storytelling as "bold" and "uncompromising". "A major figure in cinema, Nicole Kidman has built a career marked as much by her artistic audacity as by her virtuosity and transformative portrayals that have reshaped the representation of women on screen," Kering posted on Instagram. "From Eyes Wide Shut and The Hours to Big Little Lies and Babygirl, her work reflects a deep commitment to bold, uncompromising storytelling." Kidman won an Academy Award in 2002 for her portrayal of Virginia Wolf in The Hours. She founded a production company called Blossom Films in 2010.
Yahoo
18-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Nicole Kidman champions gender equality at star-studded Cannes party
By Hanna Rantala and Miranda Murray CANNES, France (Reuters) - Australian actor Nicole Kidman vowed to keep pushing for gender equality in cinema at an exclusive party attended by celebrities like popstar Charli XCX and Irish actor Paul Mescal on the sidelines of the Cannes Film Festival on Sunday. "I'm just an advocate and want to continue to keep moving forward with that, with my pledge from 2017, so it ain't over," said the Oscar-winning actor at the Women in Motion dinner at Cannes, part of a program set up by luxury group Kering in 2015. Kidman, who won an Oscar for her portrayal of Virginia Woolf in "The Hours" in 2002, has worked with many of the leading male directors of her generation, but she pledged in 2017 to shoot with a female director every 18 months. She told journalists in the French Riviera resort town earlier on Sunday that in the eight years since, she's worked with 27 female directors, including projects in development. "Part of it is protecting and surrounding the women with almost like a force field of protection and support," she said. Other stars at the dinner included Dakota Johnson and Julianne Moore as well as Patrick Schwarzenegger of "The White Lotus." Director Guillermo del Toro was also in attendance. Brazilian director Marianna Brennand received the initiative's emerging talent award, which includes a grant of 50,000 euros ($55,920.00) to work on a second feature project. "If you look at the numbers, unfortunately, the numbers, they don't change," said French director Coralie Fargeat, whose Demi Moore-led body horror hit "The Substance" found widespread success after premiering at Cannes last year. "We really need to keep making huge changes and not cosmetic changes," she said. According to Women in Motion organisers, the share of women directors increased to only 13.6% from 7.5% among the top 100 box office films in the United States between 2015 and 2024. Seven out of the 22 films in competition this year were made by women, including an entry from Julia Ducournau, one of only three women to have ever won the Palme d'Or top prize. ($1 = 0.8941 euros)
Reuters
18-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Reuters
Nicole Kidman champions gender equality at star-studded Cannes party
CANNES, France, May 18 (Reuters) - Australian actor Nicole Kidman vowed to keep pushing for gender equality in cinema at an exclusive party attended by celebrities like popstar Charli XCX and Irish actor Paul Mescal on the sidelines of the Cannes Film Festival on Sunday. "I'm just an advocate and want to continue to keep moving forward with that, with my pledge from 2017, so it ain't over," said the Oscar-winning actor at the Women in Motion dinner at Cannes, part of a program set up by luxury group Kering in 2015. Kidman, who won an Oscar for her portrayal of Virginia Woolf in "The Hours" in 2002, has worked with many of the leading male directors of her generation, but she pledged in 2017 to shoot with a female director every 18 months. She told journalists in the French Riviera resort town earlier on Sunday that in the eight years since, she's worked with 27 female directors, including projects in development. "Part of it is protecting and surrounding the women with almost like a force field of protection and support," she said. Other stars at the dinner included Dakota Johnson and Julianne Moore as well as Patrick Schwarzenegger of "The White Lotus." Director Guillermo del Toro was also in attendance. Brazilian director Marianna Brennand received the initiative's emerging talent award, which includes a grant of 50,000 euros ($55,920.00) to work on a second feature project. "If you look at the numbers, unfortunately, the numbers, they don't change," said French director Coralie Fargeat, whose Demi Moore-led body horror hit "The Substance" found widespread success after premiering at Cannes last year. "We really need to keep making huge changes and not cosmetic changes," she said. According to Women in Motion organisers, the share of women directors increased to only 13.6% from 7.5% among the top 100 box office films in the United States between 2015 and 2024. Seven out of the 22 films in competition this year were made by women, including an entry from Julia Ducournau, one of only three women to have ever won the Palme d'Or top prize. ($1 = 0.8941 euros)
