Girls On Film

Eliza Scanlen joins Anna for an exclusive interview about her new film Babyteeth, a bitterly funny and moving drama directed by Shannon Murphy. She also talks about working with Greta Gerwig on Little Women, and her hopes for women in the film industry. Film critic Larushka Ivan-Zadeh reviews Babyteeth with Anna, along with two other female-directed films: Summerland and Make Up. Finally, we talk...

Chemical Hearts stars Coral Peña and Kara Young join Anna for a spirited conversation about brown queer love on screen, describing how their characters were developed from Krystal Sutherland’s novel. They talk about their real-life friendship, their support network on set, and share what they’ve been watching at home, from Pose to I May Destroy You. Award-winning Young Adult author Tanya Byrne als...

The writers of Legally Blonde join us to spill the inside story on the beloved 2001 comedy starring Reese Witherspoon as perky law student Elle Woods. Kirsten “Kiwi” Smith and Karen McCullah talk about adapting Amanda Brown’s novel for the big screen, describing the moment of inspiration for the iconic ‘bend and snap’ move and revealing which cast member was difficult to handle on set… Meanwhile,...

Caitlin Moran and Coky Giedroyc give exclusive interviews about their new film How To Build A Girl, a coming-of-age tale of rock n roll and reinvention amid the male-dominated music press of the 1990s. The film is based on the Moran's girlhood in working-class Wolverhampton. Like her heroine Johanna (played by Booksmart star Beanie Feldstein), Moran began her journalistic career as a rock critic a...

Rachel Griffiths (Muriel's Wedding, Six Feet Under) and Ruth Madeley (Years and Years) give exclusive interviews about their work in this special uncut version of our latest video show on the BFI YouTube. Actor Ruth Madeley talks to Anna about Diversity In Ability and her latest film, Verisimilitude, in which she plays a wheelchair user training an able bodied actor for a role as a character with...

An uplifting summer camp doc and a hard-hitting death row drama are explored in a special episode with Birds’ Eye View. Our first guest is Chinonye Chukwu, writer director of Sundance Grand Jury Prizewinner Clemency. It follows the story of prison warden Bernadine Williams - played by Alfre Woodard - who is forced to confront the psychological impact of her profession as she prepares to execute ye...

This episode is a deep dive into the hit show Little Fires Everywhere. Based on the novel by Celeste Ng, it’s the gripping story of artist Mia (Kerry Washington), who upsets the suburban life of controlling mother Elena (Reese Witherspoon). US journalist Valerie Complex and British broadcaster Rhianna Dhillon join Anna to explore the show’s themes including privilege, racism, microaggressions, ado...

It’s Pride season! And we’re bringing you a packed Pride special. Actress and vocal LGBTQ+ advocate Bella Thorne joins Anna to talk pansexuality, love and support in the queer community, and the power of social media to make real social change. She also unpacks her starring role in Bonnie & Clyde-style crime thriller Infamous, as well as quirky college comedy The Duff. Plus, guest critic and Dr of...

Young Irish actor Lola Petticrew (A Bump Along The Way) joins Anna to chat about her new comedy Dating Amber, directed by David Freyne. She plays Amber, a lesbian schoolgirl who pretends to date Eddie (Fionn O'Shea - Normal People) so the pair can pose as straight. As Eddie struggles with his sexual identity, he and Amber grow closer. Lola talks frankly about the film, her friendship with her co-s...

Isobel Waller-Bridge talks about living and working with her sister, Phoebe, in the second of our special episodes with Scala Radio. The composer talks about life in lockdown, Fleabag, Vita and Virginia and composing electronic scores for period film and TV. She’s joined by Anne Nikitin, who scored the award-winning film American Animals. The two compare notes about their experiences in a male-dom...

This episode features extended, uncut interviews from the latest Girls On Film YouTube show with the British Film Institute. Actor Monica Dolan chats about her leading role in Days of the Bagnold Summer, and about collaborating with writers and directors in films including Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa and The Falling. She explores three of her favourite iconic female roles in cinema, and shares her...

Host Anna Smith is joined by trailblazing Oscar-winner Anne Dudley and BAFTA Breakthrough Brit Nainita Desai. They talk about their careers as film composers, in the first of two episodes partnered with Scala Radio. Anne and Nainita discuss the details and challenges of this offscreen role, and share their stories of breaking into the film scoring industry. Addressing gender imbalance, we look to...

Empire film critic Helen O'Hara and broadcaster Wendy Lloyd take a deep dive into Greta Gerwig's Little Women in this uplifting episode celebrating the joys of the award-winning classic. Along with host Anna Smith, they take a look at the themes, the performances and the enduring feminist message, examining Gerwig's clever use of structure and time. The critics also review the new thriller Ema, Mi...

Inspired by real-life stories, The Assistant is a day in the life of a young woman(Julia Garner) who’s working for a powerful film producer. Writer-director Kitty Green joins host Anna Smith for an in-depth interview about power dynamics in the workplace, and making this film in the wake of the Weinstein scandal. Kitty also offers advice for filmmakers who are starting out. Observer film critic Si...

Director Carol Morley joins Anna Smith to talk about her #FridayFilmClub, the weekly watch party uniting film fans during lockdown. She shares heartwarming stories about the way it’s brought cinema lovers together, and explains how gender and diversity inform her film choices. She also gives an update on her upcoming films and tells how she discovered a young Florence Pugh while casting The Fallin...

Film critic Hanna Flint is joined by her mother, former MP Caroline Flint, to discuss Little Women - the book and the film. The pair chat with host Anna Smith about their personal relationship with Louisa May Alcott’s novel and Greta Gerwig’s adaptation, and the story’s relevance to modern day feminism. In our latest Isolation Pod, Hanna and Caroline also share their recommendations for home viewi...

Actors Emily Mortimer and Dolly Wells join Anna Smith for a lively discussion about films, friendship, nostalgia, and the notion of 'strong women'. The pair take us behind the scenes in their TV series Doll & Em, and talk about Good Posture, Dolly's directorial debut starring Emily as a reclusive writer living in New York. Dolly also discusses Can You Ever Forgive Me? and Emily reveals the connect...

In the first of a series of ‘Isolation Pods’ recorded online in our virtual studio, our host Anna Smith is joined by pioneering Saudi director Haifaa al-Mansour and Managing Director of Modern Films Eve Gabereau for a special discussion of al-Mansour’s new feature The Perfect Candidate – set for digital release this Friday 27 March. We’re also joined by British-Bahraini trumpet player and composer...

An International Women's Day special sees host Anna Smith joined by BAFTA-winning Misbehaviour director Philippa Lowthorpe to discuss Misbehaviour, the new film about the infamous Women's Liberation protests at the 1970 Miss World Competition. Anna also welcomes Marjane Satrapi (Persepolis), the Oscar-nominated director of the Marie Curie biopic Radioactive, and actress Kerry Fox (Shallow Grave),...

Director Marielle Heller joins host Anna Smith for a special mini-episode devoted to her new film, A Beautiful Day In The Neighbourhood, starring Matthew Rhys and Tom Hanks. Heller reveals the story behind casting Hanks as legendary children's TV presenter Fred Rogers, and discusses the need for compassionate filmmaking. She also talks about following The Diary Of A Teenage Girl with the Oscar-win...

Ep 26: Live from International Film Festival Rotterdam: Bombshell, Parasite, Oscars 2020 + Rocks director Sarah Gavron and guests Director Sarah Gavron (Suffragette) joins Anna Smith on stage in Rotterdam for an inspiring conversation about female film collaborations and her gritty new teen movie, Rocks. Her associate director, Anu Henriques, reveals a new initiative supporting industry newcomers,...

Live in the last of our series of six episodes from HOME Manchester, Anna reviews a vintage year of stellar guests and compelling conversation for Girls On Film, and looks ahead at what 2020 has in store. With Sight & Sound's 50 films of the year topped by Joanna Hogg's The Souvenir, and initiatives from the F-Rating to Bumble's Female Film Force going from strength to strength, we're here to help...

Aislinn Clarke and Bronagh Taggart join host Anna Smith in episode 24 of Girls On Film, recorded in front of a live audience at the 30th Cinemagic Festival in Belfast. Actress and writer Bronagh Taggart talks about her short film Guard, her love of sports movies, and about her BBC TV series Millie Inbetween and Flatmates, now on BBC iPlayer. She also talks about her very first ever acting role – w...

Linda Hamilton, Mackenzie Davis and Natalia Reyes join host Anna Smith for an exclusive interview about Terminator: Dark Fate, discussing everything from action women on film to race, nudity and time travel. On stage at HOME in Manchester, Anna celebrates Girls On Film’s first birthday with guests Pamela Hutchinson and Anna Bogutskaya. They assess the new film Joker starring Joaquin Phoenix, plus...

The hills are alive in an episode dedicated to big screen musicals, recorded with an audience at Widescreen Weekend to mark the BFI's nationwide musicals season. Emma Read and Mia Bays join host Anna Smith to discuss the joys and gender politics of The Sound Of Music, Grease, Calamity Jane, Funny Girl, Seven Brides For Seven Brothers and more. Anna also reviews the best female-focused films of the...