The Learning Curve (2014)

This list was made with the intention of celebrating the craft. I love seeing more women of colour on this list than before and more newcomers on the scene as well!

A group of criminal animals tries their best to reform themselves into good citizens to avoid serving time in prison.

This surprisingly clever romantic comedy perfectly balances genuine heart with wild reality television chaos. It is an uplifting and funny reminder that second chances and real community can show up exactly when you stop looking for them.

In this coming-of-age movie centered around senior prom, Mandy is anxious about her acceptance into Harvard while she realizes she's missing other opportunities.

An aspect of She-Ra that I find refreshing is even though a large portion of the cast is on the LGBTQ+ Spectrum, being gay is never mentioned. While this might initially sound like a negative thing, in the show’s land of Etheria being on the gay spectrum is shown to be so common and normalized that straight isn’t the default. As much as there is to appreciate about narratives revolving around the obstacles that may come from being non-heteronormative, it’s nice to get immersed in a world where no one bats an eye at all to any sort of differing identity.

Praising Black representation and condemning the power structures that suppress it, a mother delivers an impassioned speech to her distant son.