This year, the 2024 Oscars have achieved a remarkable milestone for female filmmakers. For the first time, three out of the ten films nominated for the Best Picture category were directed by women. These films are Justine Triet’s “Anatomy of a Fall,” Greta Gerwig’s “Barbie,” and Celine Song’s “Past Lives.” This is a significant achievement in the 96-year history of the Academy Awards.
The other movies competing for Best Picture are “American Fiction,” “Killers of the Flower Moon,” “Maestro,” “Oppenheimer,” “The Holdovers,” “Poor Things,” and “The Zone of Interest.”
Before this year, 591 films had been nominated for Best Picture, but only a few times have multiple films directed by women been included in the same year. These instances were in 2009, 2010, 2020, and 2021, with films like “The Hurt Locker,” “The Kids Are All Right,” “Winter’s Bone,” “Nomadland,” “Promising Young Woman,” “CODA,” and “The Power of the Dog.” Some of these films even won the Best Picture award.
In another exciting development, Emma Stone and Margot Robbie have both been recognized for their roles as producers and actresses in the same year, a rare feat. They are nominated for “Poor Things” and “Barbie” respectively. This achievement was first accomplished by Frances McDormand at the 93rd Oscars.
Furthermore, seven out of the ten films nominated for Best Picture this year have women as producers. This is the second-highest number of films with female producers ever nominated, just behind the record set in 2019 with eight films. Notable female producers this year include Stone, Robbie, Emma Thomas, Marie-Ange Luciani, Amy Durning, Kristie Macosko Krieger, Ewa Puszczynska, Pamela Koffler, and Christine Vachon.
Women Directors Have Three Best Picture Nominees, Setting Oscar Record https://t.co/WdOzkuU4xK via @variety
— Clayton Davis (@ByClaytonDavis) January 23, 2024
The 2019 record was highlighted by Kwak Sin-ae, who was the first woman of color to win Best Picture for the film Parasite. All other years had six or fewer films with female producers in the Best Picture category. Source
