For this weeks’ #WomenWednesdays we’re taking a trip back to the 1950s, to celebrate the female actor-turned-director, producer and screenwriter, Ida Lupino.
After starring in Golden-Age Hollywood classics such as ‘Her First Affaire’ (1932), ‘They Drive by Night’ (1940), and ‘High Sierra’ (1941), the trailblazing Lupino launched her own production company, The Filmmakers [sic], in 1949 with her husband and producing partner Collier Young. At the time Lupino helmed her debut feature, ‘Never Fear’ (1949), female directors were practically non-existent in the film industry.
Lupino’s courage and single-minded vision led her to take a more organic, realistic approach to filmmaking, to counter what she saw as an artificially contrived studio system:
By the 1960s, Lupino was working primarily in television, and would direct nearly 100 episodes of anthology series’ like ‘The Twilight Zone’, ‘Thriller’, and American sitcom ‘Gilligan’s Island’. She fell in love with the filmmaking process, preferring the anonymity that behind-the-scenes work afforded her, as well as the inspiration and freedom that it offered her creatively:
Lupino’s pioneering work paved the way for future generations of female filmmakers, and her prominence in film history makes her the perfect subject for this week’s #WomenWednesdays.
Catch us next Wednesday for our next #WomenWednesdays entry!
Have a suggestion on a female filmmaker you’d like us to cover? Get in touch via marketing@londonfilmacademy.com
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