Women and Hollywood's Weekly Newsletter
June 13
NEWS & HIGHLIGHTS OF THE WEEK
Our latest interview is with director Rachel Elizabeth Seed, whose new documentary feature “A Photographic Memory” opens June 14-16 in Los Angeles before expanding across more cities over the summer. The film charts Seed’s attempt to piece together a picture of her mother, journalist Sheila Turner Seed, who died when the filmmaker was just a baby. Read the full interview to learn about how the film got made, and the challenges faced along the way.
Lucy Liu is set to receive a career achievement award at the Locarno Film Festival in Switzerland this summer, with the “Kill Bill” and “Elementary” star also poised to present the international premiere of her new film, “Rosemead,” at the fest alongside her fellow cast members and crew. The Locarno team highlighted Liu’s “iconic performances across film, television, and stage,” as well as her work as a visual artist. “Rosemead” sees the actress portray a Chinese immigrant who’s battling a terminal illness while navigating her son’s worsening schizophrenia - the film, written by Marilyn Fu and Eric Lin, and directed by Lin - premiered at Tribeca last week. The 78th Locarno Film Festival will run August 6 - 16, with Liu set to be honored on the evening of August 14.
Previously announced Peacock series “The Five-Star Weekend,” which Jennifer Garner will headline and exec produce, has begun assembling the rest of its cast: Regina Hall, Chloë Sevigny, Gemma Chan, and D’Arcy Carden have all boarded in series regular roles in the project from Bekah Brunstetter (“Maid,” “This is Us”). The drama is based on the bestselling novel “The Perfect Couple” by Elin Hilderbrand, who also exec produces - it centers on Garner’s Hollis Shaw, a famed food influencer who suffers a devastating loss that exposes cracks in her picture-perfect life when she’s unable to move forward through her grief. Brunstetter is the creator, writer, and executive producer, while Beth Schacter (“Billions”) also serves as writer and executive producer.
All synopses are courtesy of press materials, unless otherwise noted.
FILMS ABOUT WOMEN AND NON-GENDERED PERSONS OPENING AND COMING TO STREAMING/VOD
Materialists – Written and Directed by Celine Song (Now in theaters)
A young, ambitious New York City matchmaker (Dakota Johnson) finds herself torn between the perfect match (Pedro Pascal) and her imperfect ex (Chris Evans).