Girls On Film

Intimacy coordinator Ita O’Brien talked with Girls On Film co-founder Hedda Archbold at last summer’s Latitude Festival about the work of her company, Intimacy On Set. She explains the way their work is transforming on-set working practices, and the kind of intimate scenes we see on screen – as well as how we think about consent in our everyday lives. In this episode we announce that on 23 February 2023, the second Girls On Film Awards will be held at the Garden Cinema in Covent Garden, co-hosted once again by Girls On Film host Anna Smith, and co-founder and exec producer Hedda Archbold. We are delighted to champion the amazing work done by women in film over the past year. We’ll be joined by some brilliant female filmmakers, and Ita O’Brien will be a special guest at the event, giving industry context to our Best Female Orgasm Award. In this episode of Girls On Film you can hear all about Ita O’Brien’s approach to the portrayal of sexuality on screen. Films and television series mentioned in this episode include: Normal People, Directed by Lenny Abrahamson and Hettie Macdonald, written by Alice Birch, Mark O’Rowe and Sally Rooney (based on the novel by Sally Rooney) I May Destroy You, written, directed, produced by and starring Michaela Coel It’s a Sin, created by Russell T Davies, starring Olly Alexander and Lydia West Lady Chatterley’s Lover, directed by Laure Clermont de Tonnere, screenplay by David Magee based on the novel by DH Lawrence, starring Emma Corrin and Jack O’Connell Become a patron of Girls On Film on Patreon here: www.patreon.com/girlsonfilmpodcast Follow us on socials: www.instagram.com/girlsonfilm_podcast/ www.facebook.com/girlsonfilmpodcast www.twitter.com/GirlsOnFilm_Pod www.twitter.com/annasmithjourno Watch Girls On Film on the BFI’s YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLX…L89QKZsN5Tgr3vn7z Girls On Film is an HLA production. Host: Anna Smith. Executive Producer: Hedda Archbold Audio Producer: Benjamin Cook Intern: Eleanor Hardy House band: MX Tyrants

Naomi Ackie, the British star of Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody, talks to Anna Smith about preparing for her portrayal of the musical icon. Ackie has been longlisted for a BAFTA Film Award for Leading Actress for her extraordinary performance. She explains how important it was to her that the audience was being shown a side of Houston that perhaps they hadn’t seen before, particularly with her same-sex relationship with her girl friend Robyn Crawford. They also discuss the importance of having a female director, Kasi Lemmons, at the helm with the involvement of Whitney Houston's long-time producer Clive Davis, who is played by Stanley Tucci. Anna is also joined by Vanja Kaludjercic, the director of the International Film Festival Rotterdam, giving insight into the 2023 programme and what it is that makes this film festival special. Vanja and Anna talk diversity, inclusion and internationalism within film and film festivals, and Vanja also picks out a few of this year’s highlights. Vanja also talks about why she has invited Girls On Film to return for the third time in January 2023 to record a live podcast episode - check back soon for that episode. Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody was released in theatres nationwide in December 2022. 2023 International Film Festival Rotterdam is taking place from the 25th January 2023 to the 5th February 2023. For all information go to: https://iffr.com/en Other films mentioned in this episode include: The Plains, David Easteal, 2022 Mayday! May day! Mayday!, Yonri Revolt, 2022 Deadly Love Poem, Garin Nugroho, 2022 Sri Asih, Upi Avianto, 2022 Like & Share, Gina S. Noer, 2022 Indivision, Leïla Kilani, 2023 Le spectre de Boko Haram, Cyrielle Raingou, 2023 Mama dan so que sorriso, Cyrielle Raingou, 2023 Gagaland, Teng Yuhan, 2023 Become a patron of Girls On Film on Patreon here: www.patreon.com/girlsonfilmpodcast Follow us on socials: www.instagram.com/girlsonfilm_podcast/ www.facebook.com/girlsonfilmpodcast www.twitter.com/GirlsOnFilm_Pod www.twitter.com/annasmithjourno Watch Girls On Film on the BFI’s YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLX…L89QKZsN5Tgr3vn7z Girls On Film is an HLA production. Host: Anna Smith. Executive Producer: Hedda Archbold Producer: Lydia Scott Audio Producer: Emma Butt Intern: Eleanor Hardy House band: MX Tyrants Principal Partners: Vanessa Smith and Peter Brewer. Thank you also to our Patreon Supporters.

This week is all about horror as we’re joined by film critic Clarisse Loughrey. She joins Anna to share her thoughts on gender and female identity in the contemporary horror genre, particularly through the new Spanish horror film Piggy. Piggy stars Laura Galán as Sara, an overweight teen in rural small town Spain, whose bullying at the hands of the ‘in crowd’ takes a turn when a stranger arrives. Piggy’s writer and director, filmmaker Carlota Pereda, speaks to Anna about her motivations behind making the film, as an embodiment of her own personal fears and her filmic inspirations. UK listeners can watch Piggy in cinemas from the 6th January 2023 Other films mentioned in this episode include: Stoker, Park Chan-wook, 2013 Las rubias (The Blondes), Carlota Pereda, 2016 Trouble Every Day, Claire Denis, 2001 Who Can Kill a Child?, Narciso Ibáñez Serrador, 1976 Eden Lake, James Watkins, 2008 Stranger by the Lake (Original title: L'inconnu du lac), Alain Guiraudie, 2013 The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, Tobe Hooper, 1974 Become a patron of Girls On Film on Patreon here: www.patreon.com/girlsonfilmpodcast Follow us on socials: www.instagram.com/girlsonfilm_podcast/ www.facebook.com/girlsonfilmpodcast www.twitter.com/GirlsOnFilm_Pod www.twitter.com/annasmithjourno Follow Clarisse Loughrey on socials: www.twitter.com/clarisselou Watch Girls On Film on the BFI’s YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLX…L89QKZsN5Tgr3vn7z Girls On Film is an HLA production Host: Anna Smith Executive Producer: Hedda Archbold Producer: Lydia Scott Audio Producer: Cam Griff Intern: Eleanor Hardy House band: MX Tyrants This episode is in partnership with Vertigo Releasing

When Mark Kermode, feminist ally of Girls On Film, and one of the UK’s top film critics, expressed a wish to come on the Girls On Film podcast, Anna Smith asked listeners in an online poll which recent films they would like the two of them to discuss on the show. They discuss two recent films, beginning with a Don't Worry Darling review. **SPOILER ALERT** from 11:01 they move into spoiler territory, so skip to 18:36 if you'd like to avoid that. They then discuss The Woman King, as well as the winner of the Sight and Sound poll of the top 100 films of all time, Jeanne Dielman; why awards matter, the sense and nonsense of making lists of favourite films, and whether the film industry is making advances where gender parity is concerned. Mark Kermode is film critic for The Observer, co-presenter of BBC Radio 4’s Screenshot alongside Ellen E Jones, host of his own film music programme on Scala Radio, and co-presenter of Kermode and Mayo’s Take podcast. Don’t Worry Darling is available on all the usual platforms in the UK. The Woman King will be available on digital January 30th and on DVD February 13th 2023. Jeanne Dielman, 23, quai du commerce, 1080 Bruxelles is available to stream on BFI Player in The Sight and Sound Greatest Films of All Time collection on BFI Player – which now includes over 50 titles from the top 100 to rent or for subscribers. The full top 100 will also screen at BFI Southbank throughout January, February and March. Films mentioned in this episode are: Aftersun, Charlotte Wells, 2022 The Woman King, Gina Prince-Bythewood, 2022 Don’t Worry Darling, Olivia Wilde, 2022 Blonde, Andrew Dominik, 2022 The Souvenir, Part II, Joanna Hogg, 2021 Stepford Wives, Bryan Forbes, 1975 Rosemary’s Baby, Roman Polanski, 1968 Get Out, Jordan Peele, 2017 Jeanne Dielman, 23, quai du commerce, 1080 Bruxelles, Chantal Akerman, 1975 Braveheart, Mel Gibson, 1975 Summer of Soul (...Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised, Questlove, 2021 Woodstock, Michael Wadleigh, 1970 Amazing Grace, Alan Elliott, 2018 Heavy Load, Jerry Rothwell, 2008 Dig!, Ondi Timoner, 2004 Safe, Todd Haynes, 1995 Poison, Todd Haynes, 1991 Enys Men, Mark Jenkin, 2022 Citizen Kane, Orson Welles, 1941 Vertigo, Alfred Hitchcock, 1958 The Godfather, Francis Ford Coppola, 1972 Eraserhead, David Lynch, 1977 Become a patron of Girls On Film on Patreon here: www.patreon.com/girlsonfilmpodcast Follow us on socials: www.instagram.com/girlsonfilm_podcast/ www.facebook.com/girlsonfilmpodcast www.twitter.com/GirlsOnFilm_Pod www.twitter.com/annasmithjourno Watch Girls On Film on the BFI’s YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLX…L89QKZsN5Tgr3vn7z Girls On Film is an HLA production. Host: Anna Smith. Executive Producer: Hedda Archbold Audio Producer: Nic Wassell Intern: Eleanor Hardy House band: MX Tyrants This episode is in partnership with our principal partners, Vanessa Smith and Peter Brewer.

Gillian Anderson, Kate Hudson & Kathryn Hahn join Anna Smith to talk about their new films hitting Netflix. The always brilliant Gillian Anderson delves into her career in the industry, and the changes she has seen for women. She speaks about her character process and how she approached her distinctive role in the new Netflix mystery The Pale Blue Eye, a murder mystery starring Christian Bale and Harry Melling as a young Edgar Allen Poe. Also the hilarious Kate Hudson and Kathryn Hahn chat to Anna about their full circle of working together, most recently on Glass Onion, the brilliant follow up to Rian Johnson's Knives Out in which Detective Benoit Blanc, played by Daniel Craig, travels to Greece to peel back the layers of a new whodunnit. You can watch Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery on Netflix from the 23rd December, and The Pale Blue Eye is in select UK cinemas from 23rd December available globally on Netflix from the 6th of January. Television series mentioned in this episode include: Great Expectations, 2011 The Fall, 2013-2016 Sex Education, 2019-2021 The X Files, 1993-2018 The Great, 2021 White Bird, Marc Forster Become a patron of Girls on Film on Patreon here: www.patreon.com/girlsonfilmpodcast Follow us on socials: www.instagram.com/girlsonfilm_podcast/ www.facebook.com/girlsonfilmpodcast www.twitter.com/GirlsOnFilm_Pod www.twitter.com/annasmithjourno Watch Girls On Film on the BFI’s YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLX…L89QKZsN5Tgr3vn7z Girls On Film is an HLA production Host: Anna Smith Executive Producer: Hedda Archbold Producer: Lydia Scott Audio Producer: Benjamin Cook Intern: Eleanor Hardy House band: MX Tyrants Principal Partners: Vanessa Smith and Peter Brewer. Thank you also to our Patreon Supporters: Lisa Fraser-Ashton Colin Udall Stephen Baxter Rebecca del Tufo Julie Elizabeth Robards Sophie Fyles Claire Vaughan and Jessica Phillips

Lila Neugebauer, the director of Jennifer Lawrence’s new film Causeway, joins Anna Smith to discuss the film, which is available on AppleTV+ now. Lila chats in-depth about the journey of the characters in the film, and her own from theatre director to film director. She discusses her admiration for the filmmakers who influenced her, who share an economy in their use of cinematic language – and she gives us an “invitation to patience” with her work. Causeway is a beautifully nuanced film, written by Ottessa Moshfeg, Luke Goebel and Elizabeth Sanders. It features a fantastic central performance by Jennifer Lawrence as Lynsey, a soldier who is recovering after an explosion in Afghanistan. Heading home to New Orleans, she struggles to reconnect with her mother and ends up forming a friendship with a mechanic called James, brilliantly played by Brian Tyree Henry. Causeway is available globally on Apple TV+ Become a patron of Girls on Film on Patreon here: www.patreon.com/girlsonfilmpodcast Follow us on socials: www.instagram.com/girlsonfilm_podcast/ www.facebook.com/girlsonfilmpodcast www.twitter.com/GirlsOnFilm_Pod www.twitter.com/annasmithjourno Watch Girls On Film on the BFI’s YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLX…L89QKZsN5Tgr3vn7z Girls On Film is an HLA production Host: Anna Smith Executive Producer: Hedda Archbold Producer: Lydia Scott Audio Producer: Cam Griff Intern: Eleanor Hardy House band: MX Tyrants This episode is in partnership with Apple Original Films

Sally El Hosaini joins Anna Smith to discuss her new film The Swimmers and to talk in-depth about compassion and empathy in her work, her filmmaking as a political act, and her journey to become a director. Anna also speaks with the stars of the film, real-life siblings, Nathalie and Manal Issa, as well as one of the women who inspired the film, Yusra Mardini. They talk about their shared experience of being displaced from their homes, and the special relationship between sisters. Based on a true story, The Swimmers follows sisters Yusra and Sara Mardini from their war-torn Syrian home via Germany to the 2016 Rio Olympics. Over the course of their harrowing journey as refugees they put their skills as champion swimmers to heroic use, and this becomes their saving grace. The girls’ story is an uplifting and inspiring look at sisterhood, compassion, bravery and the refugee experience. There’s also a postscript to the film: Sara Mardini is now a humanitarian worker who has been helping refugees in Greece. She has been charged with people smuggling - her trial is currently on hold: https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2021/11/sean-binder-and-sarah-mardinis-lives-remain-on-hold-as-trial-is-adjourned/ The Swimmers is in select UK cinemas now and will be available globally on Netflix from 23rd November. For more information on refugees, and on some of the charities that aid those who are displaced, click the below links: www.amnesty.org.uk www.refugee-action.org.uk www.actionaid.org.uk www.unicef.org.uk Other films mentioned in this episode include: My Brother The Devil, Sally El Hosaini, 2012 Become a patron of Girls On Film on Patreon here: www.patreon.com/girlsonfilmpodcast Follow us on socials: www.instagram.com/girlsonfilm_podcast/ www.facebook.com/girlsonfilmpodcast www.twitter.com/GirlsOnFilm_Pod www.twitter.com/annasmithjourno Watch Girls On Film on the BFI’s YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLX…L89QKZsN5Tgr3vn7z Girls On Film is an HLA production. Host: Anna Smith Executive Producer: Hedda Archbold Producer: Lydia Scott Audio Producer: Elliana Jay Hamer Intern: Ellie Hardy House band: MX Tyrants This episode is in partnership with The Swimmers

In this episode filmmaker Ondi Timoner joins Anna Smith to talk about her new documentary, Last Flight Home, sharing with Anna how the documentary came to be, her personal journey throughout the making of it, and the impact that the film is having on audiences. They also talk about her journey to becoming a filmmaker, and her experience of being a woman in the industry. Last Flight Home is a beautifully moving and deeply personal account of her, and her close-knit family’s, experience as it follows them as their extraordinary father chooses to end his own life following a long illness. The film explores Eli Timoner’s life, his past as the co-founder of Air Florida, and his decision to exercise his right to die with dignity. Ondi Timoner's Last Flight Home will be in UK cinemas from Friday 25th November 2022. Other films mentioned in this episode include: Dig!, Ondi Timoner, 2004 We Live in Public, Ondi Timoner, 2009 Brand, A Second Coming, Ondi Timoner, 2015 Mapplethorpe, Ondi Timoner, 2018 Chrysalis (or Coming Clean), Ondi Timoner, 2020 Become a patron of Girls On Film on Patreon here: www.patreon.com/girlsonfilmpodcast Follow us on socials: www.instagram.com/girlsonfilm_podcast/ www.facebook.com/girlsonfilmpodcast www.twitter.com/GirlsOnFilm_Pod www.twitter.com/annasmithjourno Watch Girls On Film on the BFI’s YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLX…L89QKZsN5Tgr3vn7z Girls On Film is an HLA production. Host: Anna Smith. Executive Producer: Hedda Archbold Producer: Lydia Scott Audio Producer: Nic Wassell Intern: Ellie Hardy House band: MX Tyrants This episode is in partnership with MTV Documentary Films

What’s your leadership style? Just one of the questions answered by our impressive panellists at the Evolution Mallorca International Film Festival, where festival director Sandra Lipski invited Girls On Film to host a panel discussion on Women and Leadership, with a focus on the creative and business side of the industry. Four high profile industry women joined Anna Smith on stage at the Fondacio Sa Nostra in Palma on 29 October 2022. In this recording, you can hear our guests talking about how they got started in the industry, the importance of mentorship and diversity, and how to lead well with compassion, heart and humour. Panellists are Lee Broda, founder and CEO of LB Entertainment and producer of Call Jane, whose film premiered at EMIFF the night before our panel; Teresa Fernández-Valdés, co-founder and co-director of Bambú Producciones, who were the first company in Spain to make shows for the streaming platforms and have grown rapidly over the past 15 years; Uzma Hasan, film producer at Little House Productions, whose feature Creature directed by Asif Kapadia with choreographer Akram Khan is about to be released in the UK; and finally Kirsten Niehuus, who holds the purse strings at Medienboard Berlin-Brandenburg as their CEO of Film Funding. The conversation about women in leadership roles in the film industry takes some surprising turns and is inspiring, wise and funny. Films and series mentioned in this episode include: Call Jane, 2022 Phyllis Nagy - you can hear Phyllis talk about Call Jane in episode 129 Grand Hotel, 2019, Brian Tannen Creature, 2022, Asif Kapadia How To Sell Drugs on the Internet (Fast), 2019, Philip Kässbohrer, Mathias Murmann Become a patron of Girls On Film on Patreon here: www.patreon.com/girlsonfilmpodcast Follow us on socials: www.instagram.com/girlsonfilm_podcast/ www.facebook.com/girlsonfilmpodcast www.twitter.com/GirlsOnFilm_Pod www.twitter.com/annasmithjourno Watch Girls On Film on the BFI’s YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLX…L89QKZsN5Tgr3vn7z Girls On Film is an HLA production. Host: Anna Smith. Executive Producer: Hedda Archbold Audio Producer: Nic Wassell Intern: Ellie Hardy House band: MX Tyrants This episode is in partnership with EMIFF

Director Phyllis Nagy and stars Elizabeth Banks and Wunmi Mosaku join Anna to talk about the inspiring new film CALL JANE. CALL JANE follows Joy, played by Elizabeth Banks, a woman whose life-threatening pregnancy leads her to seek help from the 'Janes', an underground collective. In Chicago during the 1960s, a group of extraordinary women came together to secretly provide nearly 12,000 women and girls with safe abortions. Sigourney Weaver features as Virginia, the founding member of the female activist group, along with Wunmi Mosaku as Gwen, and a fantastic wider ensemble cast. In this episode, Nagy and Banks talk about how they learned of the 'Janes', discussing the importance of activism through art, and the pertinence of CALL JANE in the wake of the US Supreme Court overruling the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade case. They also talk about establishing the tone of this comedy-drama that is as entertaining as it is empowering. Anna also speaks with Wunmi Mosaku about her personal motivation for being a part of the project, and about CALL JANE through a lens of race, both in the reality of the 'Janes', but also in the telling of the story today. She also shares her joy about working with the group of women who play the 'Janes'. UK listeners can watch CALL JANE in cinemas from 4th November 2022. Advice and information about abortion can be found on the NHS website here: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/abortion/ Other films mentioned in this episode include: ALICE, DARLING, Mary Nighy, 2022 Television series mentioned in this episode include: WE OWN THIS CITY LOKI LOVECRAFT COUNTRY Become a patron of Girls on Film on Patreon here: www.patreon.com/girlsonfilmpodcast Follow us on socials: www.instagram.com/girlsonfilm_podcast/ www.facebook.com/girlsonfilmpodcast www.twitter.com/GirlsOnFilm_Pod www.twitter.com/annasmithjourno Watch Girls On Film on the BFI’s YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLX…L89QKZsN5Tgr3vn7z Girls On Film is an HLA production Host: Anna Smith. Executive Producer: Hedda Archbold Producer: Lydia Scott Audio Producer: Jenny Nelson Intern: Ellie Hardy House band: MX Tyrants This episode is in partnership with Vertigo Releasing