Indiewire has just posted its list of top-grossing independent films of 2013; interestingly, a Mexican film directed by perennially popular comedic star Eugenio Derbez, was the top grosser, co-written by a woman, Leticia López Margalli. With Hollywood continuously confounded by the American Latino market, it's encouraging to see a Mexican film make such a nice showing. Read the Indiewire article for the details on eligibility for films included on this list.
Out of the top 30 films, women helmed only two of them, with the highest-ranking woman-directed film (Enough Said) at the #8 spot on the list, which is also the highest-ranked film both written and directed by a woman (Nicole Holofcener). Women wrote/co-wrote eight out of the top 30 films, with the highest-ranking co-written film at #1 for Instructions Not Included (co-writer Leticia López Margalli). See the entire list below.
Out of the top 30 films, women helmed only two of them, with the highest-ranking woman-directed film (Enough Said) at the #8 spot on the list, which is also the highest-ranked film both written and directed by a woman (Nicole Holofcener). Women wrote/co-wrote eight out of the top 30 films, with the highest-ranking co-written film at #1 for Instructions Not Included (co-writer Leticia López Margalli). See the entire list below.
1. Instructions Not Included (Lionsgate/Pantelion) - $44,467,206
Written by Guillermo Ríos, Leticia López Margalli
2. 12 Years a Slave (Fox Searchlight) - $37,951,371
3. Blue Jasmine (Sony Pictures Classics) - $33,022,324
4. Mud (Roadside Attractions) - $21,590,086
5. The Way, Way Back (Fox Searchlight) - $21,502,690
6. The Place Beyond The Pines (Focus) - $21,403,519
7. Quartet (The Weinstein Company) - $18,390,117
8. Enough Said (Fox Searchlight) - $17,464,587
Written and directed by Nicole Holofcener
9. Philomena (The Weinstein Company) - $17,312,034
10. Fruitvale Station (The Weinstein Company ) - $16,101,339
11. Dallas Buyers Club (Focus Features) - $15,847,213
Written by Craig Borten, Melisa Wallack
12. Spring Breakers (A24) - $14,124,284
13. Before Midnight (Sony Pictures Classics) - $8,114,62714.
Written by Richard Linklater, Julie Delpy, Ethan Hawke
14. Dhoom 3 (Yash Raj) - $7,185,407
15. The Spectacular Now (A24) - $6,854,611
16. The Grandmaster (The Weinstein Company) - $6,594,959
17. Nebraska (Paramount Vantage) - $6,058,098
18. All Is Lost (Roadside Attractions) - $5,972,093
19. The Bling Ring (A24) - $5,845,732
Directed by Sofia Coppola / Written by Sofia Coppola, Nancy Jo Sales
20. Pulling Strings (Lionsgate/Pantelion) - $5,842,961
Written by Issa López, Georgina Riedel, Gabriel Ripstein, Oscar Orlando Torres
21. Chennai Express (UTV) - $5,307,960
22. Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom (The Weinstein Company) - $5,236,120
23. Inside Llewyn Davis (CBS FIlms) - $5,198,928
24. The Company You Keep (Sony Pictures Classics) - $5,133,027
25. 20 Feet From Stardom (RADiUS) - $4,814,733
26. Much Ado About Nothing (Roadside Attractions) - $4,328,849
27. Frances Ha (IFC Films) - $4,066,582
Written by Noah Baumbach, Greta Gerwig
28. Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani (Eros) - $3,827,466
29. Metallica Through The Never (Picturehouse) - $3,419,967
30. Emperor (Roadside Attractions) - $3,346,265
Written by Vera Blasi, David Klass
For indie films, especially, we would all feel more encouraged to see better rankings of women-directed and women-written films than these, instead of the same old repetition of a dearth of women's stories and women behind the camera. And let's be honest, we need to do a lot better job at writing and producing stories by and about people of color, LGBTQ peoples, disabled people, etc., across the board. But tomorrow is a new day and there is still work to be done. Let's hope that the list for 2014 will look better! In the meantime, we can all do our part to help share films by women, go see them in theaters, rent them, and help fund them.
Written by Guillermo Ríos, Leticia López Margalli
2. 12 Years a Slave (Fox Searchlight) - $37,951,371
3. Blue Jasmine (Sony Pictures Classics) - $33,022,324
4. Mud (Roadside Attractions) - $21,590,086
5. The Way, Way Back (Fox Searchlight) - $21,502,690
6. The Place Beyond The Pines (Focus) - $21,403,519
7. Quartet (The Weinstein Company) - $18,390,117
8. Enough Said (Fox Searchlight) - $17,464,587
Written and directed by Nicole Holofcener
9. Philomena (The Weinstein Company) - $17,312,034
10. Fruitvale Station (The Weinstein Company ) - $16,101,339
11. Dallas Buyers Club (Focus Features) - $15,847,213
Written by Craig Borten, Melisa Wallack
12. Spring Breakers (A24) - $14,124,284
13. Before Midnight (Sony Pictures Classics) - $8,114,62714.
Written by Richard Linklater, Julie Delpy, Ethan Hawke
14. Dhoom 3 (Yash Raj) - $7,185,407
15. The Spectacular Now (A24) - $6,854,611
16. The Grandmaster (The Weinstein Company) - $6,594,959
17. Nebraska (Paramount Vantage) - $6,058,098
18. All Is Lost (Roadside Attractions) - $5,972,093
19. The Bling Ring (A24) - $5,845,732
Directed by Sofia Coppola / Written by Sofia Coppola, Nancy Jo Sales
20. Pulling Strings (Lionsgate/Pantelion) - $5,842,961
Written by Issa López, Georgina Riedel, Gabriel Ripstein, Oscar Orlando Torres
21. Chennai Express (UTV) - $5,307,960
22. Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom (The Weinstein Company) - $5,236,120
23. Inside Llewyn Davis (CBS FIlms) - $5,198,928
24. The Company You Keep (Sony Pictures Classics) - $5,133,027
25. 20 Feet From Stardom (RADiUS) - $4,814,733
26. Much Ado About Nothing (Roadside Attractions) - $4,328,849
27. Frances Ha (IFC Films) - $4,066,582
Written by Noah Baumbach, Greta Gerwig
28. Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani (Eros) - $3,827,466
29. Metallica Through The Never (Picturehouse) - $3,419,967
30. Emperor (Roadside Attractions) - $3,346,265
Written by Vera Blasi, David Klass
For indie films, especially, we would all feel more encouraged to see better rankings of women-directed and women-written films than these, instead of the same old repetition of a dearth of women's stories and women behind the camera. And let's be honest, we need to do a lot better job at writing and producing stories by and about people of color, LGBTQ peoples, disabled people, etc., across the board. But tomorrow is a new day and there is still work to be done. Let's hope that the list for 2014 will look better! In the meantime, we can all do our part to help share films by women, go see them in theaters, rent them, and help fund them.