Comedies Late Night and Booksmart showcase the power of women on both sides of the camera

Mindy Kaling'sheartwarming new comedy Late Nightis among a slate of films set to be released over the summer with women leading both on screen and behind the lens a rarity in Hollywood.

The coming-of-age comedy Booksmart, the mob wivescrime-drama The Kitchen and Amy Poehler's directorial debutWine Country are just some of thereleases with a strong female presence on both sides of the camera.

Late Night centres around Molly Patel (played by Kaling), a chemical plant worker who gets hired on atalk show with an all-male writers' room.

Director Nisha Ganatra, who was born in Vancouver and raised in the U.S., says she related to the story from the start.

"Even working in comedy now,I'm often the only womanon set some of the time.Almost always, I'm the only Indian-American on the set," said Ganatra. "Mindy and I could both relate to that feeling of walking into a room and seeing a table full of all men just sort of turn and stare at you."

A study published earlier this year by the University of Southern California's Annenberg Inclusion Initiative reported women accounted for just four per cent of directors on the top 1,200 films in North America from 2007 to 2018.

It prompted the Time's Up movement and others to issue the "4 per cent challenge," calling on industry groups to hire at least one female director in the next 18 months.

I finally broke into TV a couple of years ago and I've directed a lot of television since then, but it's really funny because if you look closely,those credits are within the last couple of years."- Nisha Ganatra, Canadian-American director of Late Night

Ganatra says Ghostbustersand A Simple Favourdirector Paul Feig, whose production companies focus on women-led projects,was pegged to direct Late Night before a scheduling delay gave her the opportunity to land the gig.

Feig's 2011 film Bridesmaids not only catapulted Melissa McCarthy's career but was also a rare example of a female comedic ensemble. He saysthe bestway to create more three-dimensional roles for womenis to break Hollywood's "default setting."

"To just go, 'Well you know, instead of it being about a man or a set of hiring men, could it be a woman?'"Feig told CBC News during the Banff World Media Festival last week. "We actually had that with a project I did recently that's now moving forward.... It changed the entire project and made it more relatable."

According to The Wrap, 18 per cent of films slated for release this year from Hollywood's six major studios are directed by women. While the number sounds small, it is still a record.

Among them is The Kitchen,directed by first-time filmmaker Andrea Berloff, who co-wrote Straight Outta Compton. Melissa McCarthy, Elisabeth Moss and Tiffany Haddish star as mob wives who take over their husbands' crime operations in 1970s New York City.

GurinderChadha, best known for directing the charming 2002 comedyBend It Like Beckham, returns to the big screen withBlinded by the Light, about a British-Pakistani teen introduced to the music of Bruce Springsteen for the first time. It premiered at the 2019 Sundance Festival, as did Late Night.

Netflix'sWine Country, about a group of friends celebrating a 50th birthday in Napa,is directed by and starsAmy Poehler. She reunites with some of her former Saturday Night Live co-stars, including Maya Rudolph and Tina Fey.

And Olivia Wilde madeherfeature directorial debut withBooksmart, about two academic-drivenbestieswanting to let loose before they leave high school.

"I've never seen a comedy led by a young woman who is clever and unapologetic and so deeply passionate, let alone two," said Beanie Feldstein, who stars in Booksmart. "Inthis, twogirls that, in another movie might be the same 'type', can exist in the same space and lead a comedy that is raucous and joyous but also really heartfelt."

'Whatever way you get in, get in'

Ganatra says doors are opening, albeit slowly. It took her nine years, she says, to nab a solidtelevision credit in Hollywood.

"I finally broke into TV a couple of years ago and I've directed a lot of television since then. But it's really funny because if you look closely,those credits are within the last couple of years."

Ganatra says showrunner Jill Soloway gave her a break on a then-little known project called Transparent, whicheventually scored the Canadian-Americana Golden Globe Award in 2015. It also led to more work on other acclaimed series including Dear White People, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Girls and Fresh Off The Boat.

Ganatra jokes that her friends call her the "opposite" of an "overnight sensation."

She broke ground in 1999 with the film Chutney Popcorn, about a gay woman from a South Asian familytrying to navigate her identity.Now20years after releasing that first feature and in the thick of movements trying to empower women in the industry, the indie filmmaker willdirect her first studio flick. Covers, an upcoming comedy starring Tracee Ellis Ross andDakota Johnson, will beset against the backdrop of the L.A.music scene.

Not bad for someone whowas a "diversity hire" herself. Ganatra says that's how she came to direct anepisode of Kaling's The Mindy Project.

"Whatever way you get in, get in," said Ganatra. "But then make sure you don't blow it once you're in there."