Directors Digest — Thursday 31 August

There’s a horror element to this week’s Directors Digest, with a look at Stephen King’s It and the real-life peril for children in Hollywood, and a study of the career of Tobe Hooper. Elsewhere, the question of female representation presented itself at Venice and also behind the camera on Game of Thrones. Read all about it below.

Film

Congratulations to our member Paul Greengrass, who is to be awarded a BFI fellowship at the London Film Festival. (BFI)

Child peril isn’t just a theme for Hollywood’s biggest films, it’s an off-screen reality. (Guardian)

Texas Chainsaw Massacre director Tobe Hooper sadly passed away last weekend. Indiewire takes a look at his career, and how box office returns can undercut a visionary director. 

Annette Bening has addressed the shortage of female directos at the Venice. (Variety)

Meanwhile, Little White Lies takes a look at the Sarajevo Film Festival — which presented over fifty films made by women. 

Television

Netflix has offered an interesting glimpse at its subscribers’ viewing habits. (C21 Media)

Josh Cole will be the new comedy commissioner for Sky. (Televisual)

The seventh season of Game of Thrones came to end this week — but the gender statistics behind the camera make for grim reading. (Indiewire)

And finally, there’s good news for lovers of canal trips and countryside bus rides, as BBC4 orders more slow TV. (Televisual)

Are you a member with an opinion on one of these stories? Is there an issue affecting directors that you think isn’t getting enough attention in the media? Why not write for us and make yourself heard — email [email protected] with your article idea.