Behind the Camera: 5 More Female Directors to Watch

Last month I shared my love for director Ava DuVernay and her contemporaries, and since this month is Women’s History Month I thought why not celebrate five more amazing female directors? This time around I’ll be highlighting five independent filmmakers who truly have a singular vision and voice, and are examples of what adventurous cinema should aspire to be, both in the U.S. and abroad.


Behind the Camera: 5 Female Directors to Watch

It’s also heartening to see that after her snub last year the Academy realized that it had a diversity problem; this year (for the first time) there are people of color nominated in every major acting category and in the director’s category. This is likely the result of a diversified voting pool this year which leads to a more diverse selection of nominees. While this is certainly progress, there still has never been a female Black director nominated for an Oscar. So, instead of focusing on this year’s nominees (love you, Moonlight) I’m going to focus on a handful of films directed by African-American women that you should definitely seek out.


Tournament of Sadness: Round 4

This is the fourth in a series of posts I will be writing to determine the most depressing movie we have in the library’s film collection. I will be watching 16 devastating movies in the coming months — feel free to join in the “fun” and share your feedback!



Throwback Thursday: Scar(r)ed for Life

There are few modern horror movies that I find truly frightening—sure, a few have made me jump now and then, but most don’t stick with me once I’ve left the theater. Rather than rehash a list of spooky movies for the Halloween season (Editor’s Note: Halloween is “over,” but just enjoy this post anyway if you’d really like to not think about Christmas yet), I’ve decided instead to focus on that most sinister of genres: the children’s movie.


Tournament of Sadness: Round 3

This is the third in a series of posts I will be writing to determine the most depressing movie we have in the library’s film collection. I will be watching 16 devastating movies in the coming months — feel free to join in the “fun” and share your feedback! Round 3 tackles depressing movies about addiction: Leaving Las Vegas and Requiem for a Dream.


Love Your Library: 5 Favorite Film Librarians

This month I’m taking a break from watching heaps of sad movies to focus on something a little happier — namely libraries and my favorite movie librarians. As noted earlier on this fine blog, September is officially Love Your Library Month in Allegheny County. Donations given during this month will be eligible for a match from the Jack Buncher Foundation. The generous match of $125,000 will be split among all libraries in the Allegheny County Library Association.


Tournament of Sadness: Round 2

This is the second in a series of posts I will be writing to determine the most depressing movie we have in the library’s film collection. I will be watching 16 devastating movies in the coming months — feel free to join in the “fun” and share your feedback!


Tournament of Sadness: Round 1

This is the first in a series of posts I will be writing to determine the most depressing movie we have in the library’s film collection. I will be watching 16 devastating movies in the coming months — feel free to join in the “fun” and share your feedback!


Adventures in Regional Cinema

Lately I’ve been thinking about the idea of regional cinema – smaller, independent movies that are so much about a specific region or place, that they could not have been filmed anywhere else. Check out one of these three great examples of regional cinema from the library’s film collection.