FemaleDirectors.com is a website for female-directed movies: you can find, play, and add them to your Netflix queue, and buy them on Amazon.com. Browse within our genres to find movies from the female perspective.
Independent
Xiu Xiu: The Sent Down Girl
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Xiu Xiu: The Sent Down Girl

1999
At the height of China's Cultural Revolution, a girl is sent to a remote area as part of a government initiative and finds her exile a thrilling adventure -- and a nightmarish trap. This rich tale examines the individual cost of collective decisions.

Directed by:

  • Joan Chen
    • rating:3.8.png 3.8 Average Rating


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    The Secret Life of Words
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    The Secret Life of Words

    2005
    After surviving the war in Yugoslavia, taciturn nurse Hanna heads to Ireland for some relaxation. But when she hears about an oil-rig accident off the coast, she agrees to tend to a heroic burn victim, who changes her life.

    Directed by:

  • Isabel Coixet
    • rating:3.6.png 3.6 Average Rating


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    Stranger Inside
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    Stranger Inside

    2001
    Treasure Lee (Yolonda Ross) is a bad girl on the move ... out of "juvenile" and into the state penitentiary. There, she befriends Brownie (Davenia McFadden), a lifer who deals drugs, using an extended family of loyal girls who swear their undying allegiance to the cell-block mama. But Brownie's charisma shields a malevolence that just might put Treasure in harm's way.

    Directed by:

  • Cheryl Dunye
    • rating:3.3.png 3.3 Average Rating


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    Before Tomorrow
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    Before Tomorrow

    2008
    In 1840, Inuit grandmother Ningiuq (Madeline Piujuq Ivalu) and her grandson, Maniq (Paul-Dylan Ivalu), unexpectedly find themselves fighting for their lives on an isolated, harsh tundra island after they dry their clan's cache of fish in preparation for the long winter. Filmmakers Ivalu and Marie-Hélène Cousineau beautifully mesh storytelling traditions of the Arctic Circle's Inuit clan with European filming methods.

    Directed by:

  • Madeline Piujuq Ivalu
    • rating:3.3.png 3.3 Average Rating


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    Documentary
    The Children of Leningradsky
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    The Children of Leningradsky

    2005
    Nominated for an Academy Award, this gut-wrenching 2004 documentary examines the plight of homeless youngsters who've made Moscow's Leningradsky train station their sanctuary. While post-Cold War Russia rises as an industrial and economic power, its children continue falling through the cracks into a chasm engulfed by drugs, violence, sexual predators and the soul-killing dance of survival played out on the streets.

    Directed by:

  • Andrzej Celinski
  • Hanna Polak
    • rating:3.6.png 3.6 Average Rating


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    American Experience: The Kennedys
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    American Experience: The Kennedys

    1992
    The cult of Camelot is demystified in this fascinating PBS documentary featuring interviews with Kennedy family members and friends, archival footage, never-before-seen photographs and other documents. What comes across is a detailed portrait of a political dynasty that figured prominently in American history and continues to do so in the new millennium. The documentary ncludes an interview with historian Robert Dallek.

    Directed by:

  • Marilyn H. Mellowes
    • rating:3.4.png 3.4 Average Rating


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    West of Memphis
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    West of Memphis

    2012
    After the 1994 conviction of three troubled teens for the murders of three younger boys, questions began to arise about the prosecution of the case, with numerous legal experts and celebrities demanding that previously ignored evidence be examined.

    Directed by:

  • Amy Berg
    • rating:3.9.png 3.9 Average Rating


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    What I Want My Words to Do to You
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    What I Want My Words to Do to You

    2003
    Inmates at Bedford Hills Correctional Facility for Women try to determine if redemption is really possible after committing a crime. Proctored by playwright Eve Ensler, the convicts (including two former members of the Weather Underground) perform a series of writing exercises and discussions that could lead to healing. The film culminates in a prison performance of the women's writings by Glenn Close, Marisa Tomei and Rosie Perez.

    Directed by:

  • Madeleine Gavin
    • rating:3.7.png 3.7 Average Rating


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    Television
    Gangland: Bullets Over Hollywood
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    Gangland: Bullets Over Hollywood

    2005
    Exploring Tinseltown's portrayal of the underworld, this made-for-cable documentary is packed with film clips, interviews and archival footage featuring bona fide gangsters. Boasting stars such as Edward G. Robinson and Al Pacino, along with fare ranging from The Godfather to "The Sopranos," the mobster genre has always thrived. James Caan, ex-wiseguy Henry Hill, former G-man Joe Pistone and others discuss our fascination with organized crime.

    Directed by:

  • Elaina Archer
    • rating:3.2.png 3.2 Average Rating


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    Good Luck Charlie: It's Christmas
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    Good Luck Charlie: It's Christmas

    2011
    It's a holiday adventure the Duncans won't soon forget as Teddy and Amy get separated from the family upon their flight to Palm Springs -- and soon learn that the next flight isn't scheduled until after Christmas.

    Directed by:

  • Arlene Sanford
    • rating:4.1.png 4.1 Average Rating


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    Frontline: The Released
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    Frontline: The Released

    2009
    Five years after their landmark documentary The New Asylums, filmmakers Karen O'Connor and Miri Navasky return to the Ohio prison system to chronicle the next chapter in the journey of mentally ill inmates: what happens when they leave prison. The film traces the stories of six mentally ill offenders who face daunting obstacles and slim odds as they struggle to transition from life behind bars to life on the outside.

    Directed by:

  • Karen O'Connor
    • rating:3.7.png 3.7 Average Rating


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    Friends of God: A Road Trip with Alexandra Pelosi
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    Friends of God: A Road Trip with Alexandra Pelosi

    2006
    Filmmaker Alexandra Pelosi takes a remarkable journey across the heartland to uncover the religious, cultural and political beliefs of evangelical Christians, including Jerry Falwell, Ted Haggard and best-selling author Joel Osteen. Interviewing both leaders and rank-and-file believers and attending events such as a Christian wrestling match, Pelosi reveals a vibrant subculture whose convictions may surprise and possibly bewilder you.

    Directed by:

  • Alexandra Pelosi
    • rating:3.3.png 3.3 Average Rating


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    Faith & Spirituality
    Iron Jawed Angels
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    Iron Jawed Angels

    2004
    From 1912 to 1920, a group of fiery young suffragettes led by Alice Paul (Hilary Swank) and Lucy Burns (Frances O'Connor) band together to wheedle the United States into adapting a Constitutional amendment guaranteeing women the right to vote. Along the way, they incur the wrath of President Woodrow Wilson (Bob Gunton) and anger other suffragette leaders (Anjelica Huston and Lois Smith). Directed by Katja von Garnier.

    Directed by:

  • Katja von Garnier
    • rating:3.9.png 3.9 Average Rating


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    Household Saints
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    Household Saints

    1993
    In post-World War II New York, Joseph (Vincent D'Onofrio) wins Catherine (Tracey Ullman) in a pinochle game. They marry and have a daughter, Teresa (Lili Taylor), who becomes a religious zealot as she seeks purity through prayer -- much to the consternation of Teresa's boyfriend (Michael Imperioli) and parents. Director Nancy Savoca's third film is based on Francine Prose's novel of the same name.

    Directed by:

  • Nancy Savoca
    • rating:3.4.png 3.4 Average Rating


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    The Third Miracle
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    The Third Miracle

    1999
    Deeply devout Helen O'Regan (Barbara Sukowa) is nominated for sainthood when her death causes a statue of the Virgin Mary to weep blood and cure a terminally ill girl. A skeptical priest (Ed Harris) is sent to investigate the miracles and prove that Helen was only human. But as he seeks a logical explanation in a realm supported by faith, he discovers his true purpose in life. Anne Heche co-stars.

    Directed by:

  • Agnieszka Holland
    • rating:3.2.png 3.2 Average Rating


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    Heaven Ain't Hard to Find
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    Heaven Ain't Hard to Find

    2010
    Clifton Powell, Kym Whitley, Andre Pitre and Tasha Taylor co-star in this inspiring tale about a close-knit black community that rallies to restore a crumbling Baptist church that's haunted by the spirits of three sisters. But while the friendly ghosts have hung around to ensure that the once-glorious church rises again, a greedy land developer is ready to tear it down so he can pounce on the property.

    Directed by:

  • Neema Barnette
    • rating:3.6.png 3.6 Average Rating


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    Now and Then
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    Now and Then

    1995
    Waxing nostalgic about the bittersweet passage from childhood to puberty in this tender coming-of-age tale, four childhood girlfriends -- Teeny, Chrissy, Samantha and Roberta -- recall the magical summer of 1970. During their walk down memory lane, they reconcile experiences with boys, secrets, bullies and more. Lesli Linka Glatter directs; Gaby Hoffmann, Ashleigh Aston Moore, Cloris Leachman, Thora Birch and Christina Ricci co-star.

    Directed by:

  • Lesli Linka Glatter
    • rating:3.8.png 3.8 Average Rating


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    Now and Then (1995)
    A heartwarming movie about four childhood girlfriends who, in adulthood reunion, relive their experience of the life-changing summer of 1970, including a mystery death, divorce, standing up to the boys, first kiss, and the meaning of true friendship. Each explores her unique identity amidst family and friends. Beautifully directed by Lesli Linka Glatter.
    - Frances   
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