Despite the fact that, once again, not a single woman was nominated in the Best Director category for the Golden Globes this year, there’s a really exiting roster of great female-directed films on the way in 2018.
In the year that follows the powerful resurgence of #MeToo and with the incredible Time’s Up movement, November’s Golden Globes nomination announcement only reiterates what we already know about the exclusion of women from the boys club of typically celebrated directors. And obviously that doesn’t sit well at all.
You’d like to assume, of course, that revelations such as these would serve as a dramatic Hollywood wake-up call to do something about the stark lack of female directors walking across the stage throughout awards season. Depressingly, though, this is nothing new. We’re all too well aware that opportunities in the film industry have long been dominated by men and despite the continued conversation around the lack of women in positions of power, being paid equally and dually recognized for their work in the biz, very little seems to be changing very quickly.
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This time last year research by the Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film at San Diego State University found that just 7 percent of directors who worked on the highest grossing releases of 2016 were women. Looking ahead to 2018 however, it’s also been reported that two of Hollywood’s biggest studios – 20th Century Fox and Paramount – who reportedly won’t have any women directing any projects through 2018.
Yeah, it’s pretty mind boggling. But in spite of these shitty facts, there are some incredible, note-worthy female-directed films in the pipeline this year. And you know what is one of the best ways to support the work produced by our sisters in Hollywood? To go out and watch what they’ve made. So, you may as well start with these gems.
Debrief Films By Female Directors To Be Excited About In 2018
1 of 81. A Wrinkle In Time
Based on the book of the same name by Madeleine L'Engle, a movie adaptation directed by Ava DuVernay is on the way and if you haven't watched the trailer/seen that incredible Time magazine cover, you need to get on board because it's really exciting. It's a fantasy adventure film starring Oprah, Mindy Kaling and Reese Witherspoon and with this film Ava DuVernay has become the fourth woman and first African American woman to direct a film with a budget of more than $100 million. 23 March 2018
2 of 82. The Spy Who Dumped Me
Directed by Susanna Fogel, The Spy Who Dumped me is a comedy with Mila Kunis and Kate McKinnon starring as BFFs who find out that the guy who dumped one of them is - wait for it- a spy. At the moment we know very little else about the film beyond the fact that Mila wears a blond wig at some point but we'll keep you posted.
3 of 83. Lady Bird
Greta Gerwig's directorial debut comes in the form of Lady Bird, the already hotly anticipated coming of age story that we all wish existed back when we were still in school. In short, it's a beautiful film about a young woman who likes to go by the name Lady Bird who is trying to navigate all of the usual suspects: her mother, her best friend, going to college, sex and, well, herself. 16 February 2018
4 of 84. Blockers
Kay Cannon who wrote the screenplays for the Pitch Perfect films is the director behind this comedy about three parents who find out about their daughters' plan to have sex on Prom night (otherwise referred to as a Sex Pact, apparently) and try to stop it happening. ILeslie Mann is in it and she's great. 6 April 2018
5 of 85. The Darkest Minds
This is another book adaptation that you're going to want to get familiar with real quick. Directed by Jennifer Yuh Nelson and starring the incredible Mandy Moore, Amandla Stenberg and Gwendoline Crisitie, The Darkest Minds is all about the 2% of kids in America who survive a crazy disease and end up developing superpowers. It's got a bit of a Hunger Games meets Divergent vibe if you ask me. 14 December 2018
6 of 86. Can You Ever Forgive Me
Get ready for another dose of comedy fave Melissa McCarthy in this Marielle Heller directed project. She stars as the best-selling celebrity biographer Lee Israel (the film's based on her memoir, you see) who was well known for profiling big shots like Katherine Hepburn and Estee Lauder back in the 70s and 80s. That ism until she lost her groove and ended up selling forged letters and stuff. October 2018
7 of 87. High Life
Celebrated French director Claire Denis has only gone and directed her first English language movie. It's a sci-fi drama starring none other than Robert Pattinson, Juliette Binoche and Mia Goth and pretty much focuses on a group of convicts who are sent to explore a black hole (knowing that they probably won't be returning from space alive) in return for having their jail sentences reduced. It's about a father-daughter relationship, it's about family, it's about home, it's about the unknown.
8 of 88. You Were Never Really Here
And finally we have a thriller directed by Lynne Ramsay that promises to be the sort of thing that lingers in your mind for a while after watching. You Were Never Really Here is about a private 'contractor' who is tasked with recovering a teenage girl who's gone missing. It's pretty dark and violent and intense but packed a resounding punch at Cannes last year. 9 March 2018
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This article originally appeared on The Debrief.