The state of women in film can seem pretty bleak for many aspiring female directors. With only 6.4 percent of the top 250 grossing films of 2014 being directed by women, it can seem like an impossible world to break into. But have no fear! Even though it seems like almost no women can make it big as professional directors, in reality there’s hundreds of brilliant women currently making waves behind the camera. Here’s just a few of them. For even more recommendations, check out film critic/blogger Marya E. Gates’ A Year With Women project.
Jane Campion
You may know her from: Her Academy-Award winning 1993 film The Piano, for which she became the first woman ever the win the Cannes film festival’s coveted Palme D’or. More recently, she directed John Keats biopic Bright Star and Emmy-winning miniseries Top of the Lake.
Upcoming Projects: Campion is working on an adaptation of Rachel Kushner’s novel The Flamethrowers.
Ava DuVernay
You may know her from: Her most recent film, Best Picture nominee Selma, for which she became the first black woman to be nominated for the Best Director Golden Globe. She missed out on an Oscar nomination for her work, which is something I’m totally not still upset about at all. (Yes I am.)
Upcoming Projects: She’s executive producing and directing two TV shows for CBS and OWN, and a film set during Hurricane Katrina that will star Selma’s David Oyelewo.
Lisa Cholodenko
You may know her from: Her 2010 Oscar nominee The Kids Are All Right, starring Julianne Moore, Annette Bening, and Josh Hutcherson.
Upcoming Projects: Cholodenko recently directed the HBO miniseries Olive Kitteridge, as well as NBC’s The Slap.
Sofia Coppola
You may know her from: Coppola is probably the most prolific female director working today, with popular, mostly critically acclaimed films like Lost in Translation, Marie Antoinette, and The Bling Ring, and she has an Academy Award for screenwriting under her belt.
Upcoming Projects: Coppola is working on a live-action adaptation of The Little Mermaid.
Julie Taymor
You may know her from: Taymor has directed several notable films, such as Frida and Across the Universe, in addition to her work on Broadway. There, she directed the original run of The Lion King in 1999, and became the first woman to win a Tony Award for Best Director of a Musical.
Upcoming Projects: Taymor recently finished a filmed version of her stage adaptation of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream.
Mira Nair
You may know her from: Her classic Bollywood film Salaam Bombay!, as well as Mississippi Masala, with Denzel Washington, and Vanity Fair, with Reese Witherspoon.
Upcoming Projects: She is currently shooting a new film, Queen of Katwe, with Lupita N’yongo and David Oyelewo, about a woman from Uganda who becomes a world chess master.
Miranda July
You may know her from: Her critically acclaimed directorial debut Me and You and Everyone We Know, and her 2015 novel The First Bad Man. She’s also besties with Lena Dunham, because of course.
Upcoming Projects: Unfortunately July doesn’t have any upcoming feature films, but she did recently direct a short film, in addition to releasing her book.
Kathryn Bigelow
You may know her from: Her 2009 film The Hurt Locker, for which she became the first woman ever to win a Best Director Oscar.
Upcoming Projects: Bigelow is currently working on a film based on the life of Bowe Bergdahl.
Sarah Polley
You may know her from: Her Oscar-nominated directorial debut Away From Her, as well as her 2011 film Take This Waltz, starring Michelle Williams and Seth Rogen, and her 2012 documentary Stories We Tell about Polley’s own dysfunctional family.
Upcoming Projects: It was recently announced that Polley will direct a film adaptation of John Green’s first novel Looking for Alaska.
Amma Asante
You may know her from: Her latest film, Belle, about the life of an 18th-century black noblewoman, starring Gugu Mbatha-Raw.
Upcoming Projects: Asante doesn’t have any listed upcoming projects, and she took a nine year break between her first and second films. Hopefully she’ll direct another film in a shorter timespan, but in the meantime check out her great recent TED Talk on being a black female director in Hollywood.
Gina Prince-Blythewood
You may know her from: Her 2014 indie hit Beyond the Lights, 2008’s The Secret Life of Bees, starring Queen Latifah and Dakota Fanning, and her debut film Love & Basketball.
Upcoming Projects: Like Asante, Prince-Blythewood tends to only make films every couple of years, so she doesn’t have anything planned right now. She has a great Twitter, though!
Now that you have the inspiration, get out there and direct some movies of your own!