The Oscars may not be recognizing the efforts of female directors this year, but that is not stopping a site called Women In Film from calling attention to the many and varied movies directed by women in cinema history. WIF is asking movie fans to make a simple, quite doable pledge: Watch 52 movies directed by women—an average of one per week—in 2016. As of this writing, nearly 5,000 visitors to the site have agreed to at least attempt this challenge. January is already two-thirds over, so those who sign up for this challenge now will have to do a little catching up at first. But there are still 11 full months ahead this year, and who says that a person can’t actually watch two or even three female-directed films in a single week?
Pop culture blogger and Jane Austen fan KC Kahler is promoting the 52 Films By Women pledge at her Tumblr. Even better, a Tumblr called Fuck Yeah Women Film Directors offers a whole host of resources for those who want to take on the challenge but may not know where to start. The Tumblr posts these helpful links.
- 103 Essential Films by Women
- Lists of Films Directed by Women By Theme
- 22 Best Woman Directed Films on Netflix according to Tribeca
- Melissa Silverstein’s List of Greatest Films Directed by Women
- 84 Films By and About Women of Color
Action-starved viewers looking to have their expectations of female-directed films challenged might even begin with a screening of 2008’s Punisher: War Zone, directed by the indefatigable Lexi Alexander. This is one of the rare examples of a well-known character from a major comics franchise being entrusted to a female filmmaker. Hopefully, in the years to come, pledges like this will no longer be necessary. For now, though, it’s time to start digging through Netflix.