Saoirse Ronan

Greta Gerwig makes her solo-directorial debut with ‘Lady Bird,’ a hilarious and bittersweet story about growing up starring Saoirse Ronan.

Greta Gerwig’s directorial debut casts the Oscar nominee as a rebellious Catholic school student.

Put Saoirse Ronan in your period piece and you can count me in. The Irish-American actress has a face from another era, and from Atonement to the fantastic Brooklyn, she’s proven that she’s more of the most talented young actresses working today. She’s currently got a number of period pieces on the way, including Loving Vincent, an adaptation of Chekov’s The Seagull, and Dominic Cooke’s directorial debut On Chesil Beach. But one of the most intriguing (and possible eventual awards contender) is her lead role in Mary, Queen of Scots.

Loving Vincent, about the complicated life and tragic death of Vincent van Gogh, has been in production for more than six years. Not only did the production team meticulously research his life and incorporate his work, his subjects, and around 800 personal letters for the film, but also they created every frame of the movie by hand. It’s not a stretch to say that every frame of this movie is a work of art — because they are! Each of Loving Vincent’s 65,000 frames is itself an oil painting.

John Crowley immigrant drama Brooklyn still has hurdles to clear after some stellar reviews, including a bid for Best Picture at the coming Academy Awards, but why wait for that sweet, sweet TV money? The period drama is already getting a TV tie-in on The BBC, even shuffling Julie Walters over to reprise her role from the film.

Saoirse Ronan has quickly evolved from a young, interesting actor with breakout roles in Atonement and Hanna, into a full-fledged star, recently picking up a Best Actress nomination from the Academy for her role in last year’s subdued drama Brooklyn. Ronan will continue to keep things interesting with her next role, teaming up with Greta Gerwig for her directorial debut project, Lady Bird.

Sorry Spotlight and Mad Max: Fury Road, this seat’s taken by Carol.

At a time when movie theaters are filled with superhero franchises, remakes, CG-heavy sci-fi adventures and historical dramas, it’s Brooklyn’s simple coming-of-age story that shines the brightest.

The first trailer for 1950s period drama Brooklyn is here, boasting Saiorse Ronan in what may be an Oscar buzz-worthy role as an immigrant from Ireland who finds herself torn between the man she loves in America and her home country. The film was a standout at the Sundance film festival earlier this year, and now you can get a peek at what all the fuss was about.

The last time we heard from the Harry Potter sort-of-prequel Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, newly minted Oscar winner Eddie Redmayne had been cast as “magic-zoologist” Newt Scamander. Now, the J.K. Rowling-written, David Yates-directed production is seeking out its female leads and a batch of surprising names have emerged as potential candidates.