Earlier this summer, L’Oréal made headlines when the company sought out the five best women-led digital start-ups to receive awards from the cosmetics behemoth’s newly-created innovation fund.  Now Gucci is the next big global brand to step up for women’s entrepreneurship.  At this week’s Venice Film Festival, the luxury brand will host the second installment of the Award for Women in Cinema.

Salma Hayek will present Gucci’s award for women in film, created by Frida Giannini (left).

The award, which was created by Gucci’s head designer, Frida Giannini, seeks to get more women behind the camera.  Those nominated this year represent a range of professions in film, from Colleen Atwood, the costume designer for Snow White and the Huntsman, to Thelma Schoonmaker, who edited Hugo.  The winner will be announced, by Salma Hayek, at a ceremony tomorrow.

Gucci’s Award for Women in Cinema is part of a broader push to associate the brand’s name with the film industry in general — the label also presents a formerly underfunded film series at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, supports scholarships for film students at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, and donates substantial funding (in the neighborhood of $2 million) to Martin Scorcese’s historical film restoration efforts.  For us, though, the award specifically recognizing women’s achievement behind the lens is definitely our favorite of the brand’s efforts.  We can’t even say anything snarky about it being presented by Hayek, who happens to be married to François-Henri Pinault, owner of PPR, Gucci’s parent company.