Female helmers seem a foreign concept here

January 12, 2007 Of the 61 films submitted for the foreign-language Oscar, 12 were directed by women. Around the world, somehow, women find it a lot easier to make movies than they do here in the U.S. The feminist movement in this country has come and gone, leaving many women striving to make their way in the workplace, yet in Hollywood the state of support for women directors remains woeful. Even when someone brilliant comes along like Karen Moncrieff, who wrote and directed the 2002 Sundance hit "Blue Car" and this year's just-released "The Dead Girl," it's hard to summon up much optimism for her future.

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