Last night, Kathryn Bigelow became the first woman to win the top honor at the Directors Guild of America Awards. She won Best Director of a Feature Film for her movie, The Hurt Locker. Now with the 2010 Oscars coming in March, could Bigelow be the first woman to win the Best Director Academy Award?

Call me an overzealous feminist (making it extra deadly with a film degree), but the mere fact that she’s a female breaking ground for women filmmakers makes me want to root for her at all these awards – regardless of whether the movie was good or not. But as it turns out, The Hurt Locker is good. It’s being heralded as one of the best of the year, receiving acclaim as a terrific film that shows war in a way that no other “war movie” really has.

Since the end of 2009, movie critics and feminist writers have been predicting that Bigelow would become a sort of “power to the women!” darling in the awards season of 2010. When James Cameron (who also happens to be Bigelow’s ex-husband) won Best Director for Avatar at the Golden Globes this year, those rooting for Bigelow began to feel discouraged in terms of her Oscar standing. But this big win at the DGA Awards re-cements her solid chance at getting the award from the Academy this year.

It would not only be a significant moment for Bigelow and all of her accomplishments; it would also be a landmark for women in the film industry. Because the main problem is not just that women don’t win these kinds of awards, but that – more distressingly – there are very few who “make it” and are widely recognized.

Sure, I could make an inclusive list of plenty of women filmmakers who have made brilliant, under-the-radar movies. But as for those I can name off the top of my head? Let’s see…Sofia Coppola (always first)…Um…Nancy Meyer? (Something’s Gotta Give and the like)…Nora Ephron, I guess (You’ve Got Mail, Julie & Julia)…and now, Kathryn Bigelow.

Notice that two of those names are known for their romantic comedies, unfortunately referred to as “chick flicks.” While this does not dismiss their talents and abilities, needless to say it would be glorious for a woman to win for a well-executed action film. It’s glorious enough that she’s being recognized. Maybe audiences will catch on that not all women filmmakers are magnets to sappy romantic comedies. And maybe Hollywood and the industry will eventually stop pigeonholing women directors’ success.

My (female) film history teacher once said (and I apologize for the language): “They call them ‘chick flicks,’ but do you realize that all the other movies are ‘dick flicks?’”

Yes, most of them are. But let’s hold out and hope that one day soon we will be able to count female directors on more than just the fingers of one hand. And recognizing Kathryn Bigelow wouldn’t be a bad start.