BBC History Magazine

Screen queens

here is a battle going on in Hollywood; women directors are on the rise and they want Hollywood back. Film critic Helen O’Hara’s newest book is part of a wave of women-written work uncovering the forgotten histories and triumphs of women filmmakers throughout tells a story that establishes women as long-term creators rather than just objects of the cinematic gaze. It explores the contributions of hidden figures of American cinema, such as Tressie Souders (the first black female director of a feature film), Lois Weber (one of the most prolific silent movie filmmakers), and Ida Lupino (one of the most prominent female directors in 1950s Hollywood).

You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.

More from BBC History Magazine

BBC History Magazine9 min read
“It Is Absolutely Important To Look At African History Through The Lens Of African People Themselves”
Danny Bird: You've written a rich and fascinating history of Africa spanning a vast sweep of cultures, regions, personalities and centuries. Did you seek out any particular stories or narratives in preparation for this book? Zeinab Badawi: When I set
BBC History Magazine2 min read
Alfred Russel Wallace 1823-1913
Alfred Russel Wallace was a British naturalist, explorer, geographer, anthropologist and biologist. Besides independently conceiving the idea of evolution through natural selection at around the same time as Charles Darwin, he explored the Amazon riv
BBC History Magazine3 min read
Prize Crossword
1 African kingdom conquered by warriorqueen Njinga in the 17th century (7) 5 Term, meaning ‘son of a king’, used to describe a member of one of the patrilineal clans of western, central and northern India that first emerged in the sixth and seventh c

Related Books & Audiobooks