13 women who received Oscars not as actresses, but as directors and screenwriters (14 photos)

What do these legendary ladies look like, breaking into the world of cinema, which is mainly created by men, and winning major awards for their directing and screenwriting work.





From the very beginning of the history of cinema, women have participated in the creation of films not only as actresses, but their names have not been so well known. The introduction of film awards, and especially the Oscars, contributed to their wider recognition. However, they were in no hurry to reward women. The first woman to be awarded for direct production of a film, namely for its adapted screenplay, was Ruth Jhabvala, who received her Oscar in 1987. And in 2010, for the first time, a woman was given a statuette for “Best Director.”

Emma Thompson - screenplay



Emma became the second woman to win an Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay. The film Sense and Sensibility (1995), based on the novel by Jane Austen, received a total of 7 award nominations. In addition, Emma has an Oscar as an actress for Best Actress in the film Howards End (1992).

Kathryn Bigelow - Directing





Katherine is the first woman to win an Oscar for directing. In 2010, her film The Hurt Locker (2008) won six awards: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, Best Editing, Best Sound, Best Sound Editing.

Susanne Bier - for directing



The first female director from Denmark to win an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film was Revenge (2010).

Sofia Coppola - screenplay



The film Lost in Translation (2003) is only Sofia’s second full-length directorial work, which immediately received four Oscar nominations, one of which was for Best Original Screenplay.

Shan Hader - screenplay



Sian Hader won her first Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay for CODA: Child of Deaf Parents (2021), which was also named Best Picture that year.

Caroline Link - for directing



German Caroline Link received an Oscar for best foreign language film (Nowhere in Africa, 2001) and one nomination in the same category (Beyond Silence, 1996).

Ruth Prawer Jhabvala - screenplay



Ruth became the first woman to win an Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay. The melodrama A Room with a View (1985) received three awards out of eight nominations.

Emerald Fennell - screenplay



Emerald is a fairly successful actress, in addition to this, she worked as the showrunner of the series “Killing Eve” (2019), but the main award went to her for the script of the film, which she herself directed, “Promising Young Woman” (2020).

Chloe Zhao - Directing



Chloe has only four directorial works, the third of which, Nomadland (2020), won three Oscars: best picture, director and best actress (Frances McDormand).

Sarah Polley - screenplay



At the last Oscar ceremony, the Canadian won the award for Best Adapted Screenplay for the film Women Speak (2022).

Marlene Gorris - for directing



Marlene is a screenwriter and director from the Netherlands, the first woman to win an Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film, Antonia (1995).

Callie Houry - screenplay



The American won the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay for Thelma & Louise (1991). She became the first female screenwriter to receive this award without co-writing.

Jane Campion - for directing andscenario



Jane Campion is the only woman to win an Oscar for two different films: for writing the drama “The Piano” (1993) and for directing the dramatic western “Power of the Dog” (2021).