Through Her Lens: 2018 (The 91st Oscars)

A series by Juan Carlos Ojano 
Previously: Episode 1 - 2020-21 / Episode 2 - 2019 

Eyes were on the Best Director category at the 91st Academy Awards after Greta Gerwig became only the fifth woman to be nominated in the said category the previous year. Contemporaneous articles expressed disappointment with this fact, but this Oscar year was also plagued with other issues: no ceremony host, plans to give out awards during commercial break, and divisive films like Green Book, Bohemian Rhapsody, and Vice being major factors, too.

In a way, these other controversies clouded what could have been a more extensive discussion regarding representation in the Best Director category. Out of the 347 films included in the Reminder List of Eligible Films in 2018 (91st Academy Awards), 62 of them (or 17.9%) were directed/co-directed by women.

OSCAR-NOMINATED FEMALE-DIRECTED FILMS (in alphabetical order): Animal Behaviour*, Bao*, Can You Ever Forgive Me?, Capernaum, Free Solo, Late Afternoon*, Marguerite*, Mary Queen of Scots,  Period. End of Sentence.*, and RBG. (*not in the eligibility list for Best Picture)

OUR ALTERNATIVE SET OF FIVE...

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Best International Film: Mexico's "Prayers for the Stolen"

by Cláudio Alves

I don't usually take notes while watching films. However, after a screening ends, I might run to my notebook or laptop to jot down some detail, the description of an incredible image I want to preserve in my memory. It's especially true when I know I'm reviewing said film later on, as was the case with Tatiana Huezo's narrative feature debut, Prayers for the Stolen or Noche de Fuego. This time, though, I didn't just have a couple of stray compositions that had left an impression. Indeed, I wrote down a review's worth of small observations, fleeting images that captured the imagination, portentous symbolism that enchanted through its menace, sounds echoing in my head long after the credits rolled. Such is Huezo's ability to draw poetry from harsh realism

Watching Mexico's Oscar submission is to be immersed in a cinematic world of dangerous beauty, a sinister corner of the country, rural and ruthless. In the right circumstances, the vast landscapes of mountains and poppy fields might have looked pastoral, but there's far too much menace in the air for it to register...

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Through Her Lens: 2019 (The 92nd Oscars)

A new series by Juan Carlos Ojano moving backwards through time looking at female-helmed films. Here's the full introduction if you missed it.

The biggest story of the 2019 awards season was Parasite breaking the language barrier and becoming the first non-English language film to win Best Picture at the Academy Awards. Another story also gained prominence during that season: despite the considerable number of films directed by women that had awards buzz, none of them were nominated in the Best Director category yet again.

This was disappointing since the eligible films coming from all continents displayed the diversity of the work that women directors produced that year. Out of the 344 films included in the Reminder List of Eligible Films in 2019 (92nd Academy Awards), 78 of them (or 22.7%) were directed/co-directed by women...

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AFI World Premiere: Halle Berry's "Bruised"

by Eurocheese

Bruised gives us Halle Berry behind and in front of the camera, telling the story of a former MMA fighter who has been down on her luck for some time. When her life is complicated by the return of her son, she is forced to get her priorities in order and address the demons of her past. Berry spoke about revamping the script – originally written with a young white protagonist in mind – to reflect her own vision with the writer’s assistance, and it’s clear this was a passion project for her.

Does that passion translate to the screen? Yes, but this can be both a curse and a blessing...

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Ranking Jane Campion

by Cláudio Alves

The upcoming release of The Power of the Dog is a joyous moment for all cinephiles everywhere. Finally, after twelve long years, Jane Campion is back with a new feature that won her the Best Director prize at Venice earlier this year and might lead her to more Oscar nominations, maybe victories. Personally speaking, I'm on cloud nine right now, seeing as Campion is my favorite living filmmaker. Having watched every one of her features and most shorts, I've fallen in love with her cinema of extreme materiality and negative capability, her portraits painted with unsaid words and aborted gestures, silences, and voids.

 Such is my love that, to celebrate the incoming release of The Power of the Dog, I've decided to rank Jane Campion's nine features. It's a veritable cornucopia of cinematic excellence…

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