Director Levack, Hollywood Suite shine a light on women in film

Filmmaker Chandler Levack has joined forces with Hollywood Suite to commemorate Women’s History Month with a special day of programming March 30.

Levack, a writer/director/journalist whose Burlington-set film I Like Movies was released in theatres earlier this month, worked with the specialty channel provider to curate a day of programming that features the work of women filmmakers and performers. The films will air on Hollywood Suite’s 70s, 80s, 90s and 00s channels and will be  available to stream all month on Hollywood Suite On Demand.

“All of my favourite movies will screen this month, including life-changing gems like Claudia Weill’s Girlfriends and Susan Seidelman’s Smithereens, and true boundary-breaking auteur films by Sofia Coppola and Elaine May,” said Levack. “The series ends with two films by Canadian geniuses that totally blew my mind when I first watched them and prove that the future of Canadian cinema is female — Joyce Wong’s Wexford Plaza and Grace Glowicki’s wholly original and jaw-dropping Tito — both shot for under $150,000. It’s a true honour to be asked to curate this series. 

“In case you didn’t know, I like movies! Especially when they put women in the centre of the frame.”

“Chandler is an exceptional filmmaker and fierce champion of talented women,” added Sharon Stevens, Vice President, Programming for Hollywood Suite. “With her award-winning feature debut I Like Movies now in Canadian theatres, she is the perfect person to lead our Women’s History Month programming.”

Levack’s guest programmer picks include:

• A New Leaf (1971), directed by Elaine May, starring Elaine May, Doris Roberts, Renée Taylor
• Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore (1974), directed by Martin Scorsese, starring Ellen Burstyn, Leila Goldoni
• Girlfriends (1978), directed by Claudia Weill, starring Melanie Mayron
• Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982), directed by Amy Heckerling, starring Jennifer Jason Leigh, Phoebe Cates
• Smithereens (1982), directed by Susan Seidelman, starring: Susan Berman
• The Witches of Eastwick (1987), directed by George Miller, starring Cher, Susan Sarandon, Michelle Pfeiffer
• Orlando (1993), directed by Sally Potter, starring Tilda Swinton
• The Virgin Suicides (1999), directed by Sofia Coppola, starring: Kirsten Dunst, Kathleen Turner
• Grace of My Heart (1996), directed by Alison Anders, starring Illeana Douglas, Jennifer Leigh Warren
• Tito (2019), directed by Grace Glowicki, starring: Grace Glowicki
• The Diary of a Teenage Girl (2015), directed by Marielle Heller, starring: Bel Powley, Kristin Wiig
• Wexford Plaza (2016), directed by Joyce Wong, starring: Reid Asselstine, Ellie Posadas

Hollywood Suite’s Women in Film collection, airing throughout March and available all month on demand, features 50 movies that showcase talented women in front of and behind the camera. The collection is available on the Hollywood Suite website.