Doris Wishman Video | Clips from Films Directed and Interviews

Doris Wishman (June 1, 1912, New York City – August 10, 2002, Miami, Florida) was an American film director, screenwriter and independent film producer. Self-taught as a filmmaker, Wishman was noteworthy for her paracinematic, camp aesthetic and is often referred to as "the female Ed Wood." The majority of her work was designed to be released in the American sexploitation film market of the 1960s and '70s. Wishman is also one of the most prolific women film directors in the history of the cinema and in recent years has become the object of a cult following. After her first husband (Jack... MORE

Doris Wishman (June 1, 1912, New York City – August 10, 2002, Miami, Florida) was an American film director, screenwriter and independent film producer. Self-taught as a filmmaker, Wishman was noteworthy for her paracinematic, camp aesthetic and is often referred to as "the female Ed Wood." The majority of her work was designed to be released in the American sexploitation film market of the 1960s and '70s. Wishman is also one of the most prolific women film directors in the history of the cinema and in recent years has become the object of a cult following. After her first husband (Jack Abrams)'s death, she was looking for a way to distract herself and make some money, so she wrote a screenplay, borrowed $10,000 from her sister, Pearl, and started producing and directing her first film. Through her previous experience working for a movie distributor, Joseph E. Levine, she knew how even a low budget film could earn revenue if only it was advertised well. A recent change in legislature allowed the portrayal of nudity in a documentary context, which allowed Wishman to incorporate nudity into her story by letting the villains hide out in a nudist camp. Wishman produced eight nudist LESS