 Finally, in 2015 after four years of activism in the Directors Guild of America, Giese became the person who instigated the biggest industry-wide Federal investigation for women directors in Hollywood history, going on now.In "The New York Times", Manohla Dargis referred to her work as “a veritable crusade.” And in 2016, "Philadelphia Inquirer" writer, Carrie Rickey, wrote, "So allow me to introduce real-life female crusader Maria Giese, whose fact-finding led to the ACLU findings that prompted the current EEOC investigation.” According to "The Los Angeles Times" in October 2016, the EEOC ”is now widening its circle of interview subjects to include studio executives, producers, agents, actors and male directors, according to multiple sources familiar with the investigation who declined to be identified because they were not authorized to speak publicly.