Inspirational Women in the TV and Film Industry
There are more women than ever working in the TV and film industry however this hasn’t always been the case. Historically, female directors and producers have been few and far between or have struggled to establish their careers. That’s why it’s super important to shout out to these amazing women who are absolutely smashing stereotypes and becoming role models for other aspiring women.
Maria Klonaris
Maria Klonaris’s experimental cinema and pioneering work has been showcased internationally. She was a driving force for art and cinema, with many movies and installations throughout the 80s and 90s, pieces such as Mystère I: Hermaphrodite endormi/e, Le Rêve d'Electra, Night Show for Angel, XYXX: Mosaic Identity and Stranger than angel.
Maria and her long-time friend and partner Katerina Thomadaki were able to push the ideologies of what being feminine was in their projects together. Maria sadly passed away in 2014 but has left her strength and feminist commitments in the art and film community.
Jihan El-Tahri
Jihan El-Tahri is an absolute powerhouse in the industry. Now a writer, director and producer of documentary films Jihan has a background in political science. Most notably, she was a news correspondent, TV researcher, associate producer and even documented Osama Bin Laden’s Camp. Her news correspondence was covering politics in the Middle East between 1984 and 1990.
Jihan then went on to the producing and directing of documentaries in 1990 for French television and then for the BBC in 1995. Her work ranged from Bin Laden’s camp to The House of Saud. Her most recent work Behind the Rainbow was screened at the London Film Festival in 2009.
Mo Abudu
Mo Abudu is a Nigerian media mogul, philanthropist and all-around badass. Described as ‘Africa’s Most Successful Woman’ by Forbes and rated one of the ‘25 Most Powerful Women in Global Television’ by the Hollywood Reporter, Mo is an absolute inspiration. Mo’s career started in recruitment and HR in the UK however swiftly moved to create Ebonylife TV in 2006. Airing in 49 countries the station was among the 25% most-watched channels on DStv in less than a year.
After the success of the station, EbonyLife Films was born where Mo was co-producer and executive producer on many films and even collaborated with Netflix in 2020. She’s not stopping there - with the success of her films she is also the creator and exec producer of The Debators and even has her own TV talk show!
Joy Batchelor
Joy Batchelor was an animator, director, screenwriter and producer during the 50’s. Co-owner of Halas and Batchelor Cartoons with her husband, John Halas, their cartoon Animal Farm (1954) made Joy the first female director of an animated feature since Lotte Reiniger. Halas and Batchelor then produced over 2000 shorts and films with around 70 propaganda pieces during WW2.
Joy went on to become the art director of the film Cinerama Holiday and the writer of Ruddigore. Her move into television included directing series, one of which was the animated show The Jackson 5ive (1971).
Over to you
It’s important to recognise the women that have come before us in the industry so that we can celebrate the women that are continuing to break down stereotypes today. It’s a tough industry to break but everyone deserves a voice and to be seen in TV and film.
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