Brenda Chapman

Disney Renders Merida Even More Unrecognizable

Remember when we all felt some vague relief while we briefly thought that Disney had pulled the new, sexy Merida due to protests. Brave creator, Brenda Chapman, called Merida's makeover "atrocious" and the petition to get rid of the new Merida received over 229,000 signatures.  That is a huge a...

First Image Debuts From 'Toy Story of Terror' Halloween Special; Brenda Chapman Weighs In On 'Brave' Princess Controversy

Anyone who thought that Disney/Pixar's "Toy Story" franchise would really be kaput following "Toy Story 3" (a movie that practically crow-barred tears out of even the most hardened misanthrope) were, of course, out of their collective minds. Since the third film was released, we've had three dazzlin...

Brave Director Brenda Chapman Responds to Merida Coronation

Disney Crowns Brave's Merida a Princess

In completely baffling and disturbing news, Disney has decided to make Brave heroine, Merida into their 11th Disney Princess.

Women Deserved Better at the 2013 Oscars

With Seth McFarlane hosting the Oscars, we here at Women and Hollywood weren’t expecting much. But the sexist, racist, homophobic and completely unfunny spree that McFarlane hosted was even worse than imagined.

Emmanuelle Riva, Lynne Ramsay and Juno Temple Win at 2013 BAFTAS

On Sunday, the BAFTAS held their annual awards ceremony. As awards season comes to a close, there weren’t many upsets but a couple interesting things of note. Emmanuelle Riva won lead actress for Amour. Brenda Chapman won for best animated film with Brave. Lynne Ramsay’s short film Swimm...

New York Times Says ‘Female Directors Gain Ground, Slowly.’ Should We Wait That Long?

The great Carrie Rickey published a piece in the New York Times this past weekend with the depressing headline ‘Female Directors Gain Ground, Slowly’. The piece reported that in 2012, by their count, women directors hit a recent high of 9% of the 250 top grossing films.  That number...

The Academy Snubs Kathryn Bigelow for History Making Second Best Director Nomination

I sit here ruminating, fulminating and seething, thinking about how Kathryn Bigelow could have been overlooked for a second best director nomination.  I'm pretty sure the people who thought Ben Affleck was also a sure thing are wondering how this could have happened to him.

Heroines of Cinema: An A-Z of Women in Film in 2012

Given the difficulty in characterising a single year in film, even through a specific prism such as gender, I have opted for the catalogue format of an A-Z review.