Boston, Massachusetts — Kathryn Bigelow’s "The Hurt Locker" was voted the “Best Female Directed Feature Film” of the last 30 years in a 2009 online poll from
X-Factor Filmmakers ( www.xfactorfilm.com ). The online poll — the first of its kind — focused entirely on women directors. Over 1,000 people participated in three rounds of voting to select from 32 films in four genres: Thriller, Comedy, Drama, and Romance. The other finalist was Sofia Coppola’s "Lost In Translation."
"We are very excited that voters selected a film that may well go on to be nominated for an Academy Award this year," says Lauren Tracy, X-Factor Filmmakers co-founder and film director. "We hope the vote is an early predictor of the first Academy Award won by a woman director. X-Factor Filmmakers was founded to provide scholarship money for women filmmakers, and, more broadly, to help raise awareness of the contributions of women in the film industry."
Kathryn Bigelow graciously adds, “This is absolutely thrilling! To be honored among so many great filmmakers who came before me is something I never expected. X-Factor Filmmakers is fabulous for giving women filmmakers the confidence they need in this industry. I first met Ms. Tracy at the Harvard Film Archive where she congratulated me on my film with a wonderful
X-Factor Filmmakers t-shirt.”
X-Factor Filmmaker's next awareness and awards project will be an online short film contest to be announced in early 2010.
Participants submitted their predictions of the winning film online and The Grand Prize, an Unlimited One Year Netflix Subscription, is being awarded to Will Halas of Rochester, New York who most accurately predicted the voting results. Halas will also receive a shirt of his choice from the X-Factor Filmmakers online store at www.xfactorfilm.com . The contest was powered by Bracketeers (bracketeers.com)
For a complete list of the filmmakers and films selected for the online poll, visit
http://xfactorfilm.bracketeers.com
About X-Factor Filmmakers
X-Factor Filmmakers ( www.xfactorfilm.com ) is a fundraising organization for female filmmakers nationwide. Co-founded by Lauren Tracy as a student filmmaker, the organization's goal is to partner with non-profits to provide financial support for women to enter the world of film. X-Factor Filmmakers branded merchandise is sold to raise funds at xfactorfilm.com.
Find X-Factor Filmmakers on Twitter http://twitter.com/
For further information or interviews contact: Barbara Pflughaupt,
BP Media Relations
