Mira Nair

It's a shame to see that in this day and age, the world of filmmaking is still so male-orientated. Apart from the likes of Kathryn Bigelow, Ava DuVernay and Sofia Coppola, women are still struggling to find their places among the legendary men of cinema.

However, here are five incredible movies by women from the last year that you must see:

Amma Asante directed 'A United Kingdom'

Continue reading: Five Female Directed Movies From The Past Year Well Worth Watching

Lupita jumped at a chance to work with her longtime friend, filmmaker Mira Nair, shooting Queen of Katwe in Uganda, next door to Kenya, where she grew up. Most films set in Africa, she says, are about "wars or political dictators or what-have-you. But this is a view of Africa told with Africans front and centre. It's their narrative, and that means that you have layered characters. Yes, you have struggle, but it is also a story about perseverance, vision and the magic of realising your dream."

In the film, Nyong'o is Harriet, the mother of child chess prodigy Phiona, played by newcomer Madina Nalwanga. Nyong'o loved working with the young actors. "Children remind you what the heart of the matter is," she says. "They work from a truthfulness. I mean, I watched Madina develop her craft as we went along. She was always so curious about what we were doing and why we were doing it. I would be warming up and she would ask me what I was doing, and the next thing I knew she was doing it. With every take, I'd see she would have a deeper understanding of what the dynamics were, what was at stake, what the subtext was. And she may not even be able to articulate that. But I could see her growing as an actor."

Continue reading: Lupita Nyong'o Thinks Queen Of Katwe Is A Normal Story