REEL EMPOWERED: “We’ve never directed, and we all have different personalities and different approaches,” a Catherine Malandrino-clad Demi Moore said of her directing debut, along with actress Courteney Cox and screenwriter Kirsten Smith, for Glamour magazine’s fourth annual “Reel Moments” screening. “But our producers were saints, helping us deliver both a good product and a great experience so that we might see more female directors out there.” Glamour’s gala, sponsored by Suave, lauded fresh opportunities for women to express themselves creatively by letting actresses and writers claim the director’s seat for one of three short films. Past “Reel Moments” directors Rita Wilson, Jennifer Aniston and Kirsten Dunst also came to celebrate, as did Moore’s husband, Ashton Kutcher.

“I want to impart to women that they should just be undaunted in the way they live their lives, not letting rejection get them down,” said Smith, director of the short “The Spleenectomy,” starring Anna Faris as a ditzy mom who takes an unexpected route to becoming an actress.

Moore’s “Streak,” starring Brittany Snow and Rumer Willis, likewise focused on overcoming obstacles by tenderly tackling female body image issues. Cox’s “The Monday Before Thanksgiving” rounded out the theme of empowerment with its tale of a woman who, distraught over the death of her mother, learns how to let go. Featuring a performance by Laura Dern, the movie’s optimism seemed to rub off on its star: “The time is here when there is no stigma about women directing,” Dern affirmed. “Make movies, make movies, make movies.”

— Jeremy Allen