Visual Visionaries: Power of Film and Feminism, Teaching and Technology
CSW67 virtual parallel event
Friday, March 10, 9 – 11 am ET via Zoom
Register: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZEkc-iqqj8pGNGUcLsXe2F_FrUYFdFYtIMy
Film is a powerful tool for social justice. Its central visual quality stimulates human’s most developed sense. Women’s stories in cinema are necessary to advance women and girls’ lives. Yet, a global study (a) conducted five years ago shows that on average only 3% of women directed films are exhibited on main screens throughout the globe. Feminists, like Laura Mulvey (b), who were part of the rebirth of feminist filmmaking in the early 1970s, now over fifty years ago, are alarmed that the progress has been way too slow.
This session is designed to show successful strides women filmmakers have made, yet underscore significant major hurdles that remain. Three filmmakers/advocates – from different continents – will speak about their experiences to bring the cinematic stories of women to a large public audience. They will highlight their work, their teaching, the successes they have achieved and obstacles they have faced. In conclusion, each woman will map next steps that she thinks need to be taken within her immediate sphere as well on a larger political scale. Representatives from two other continents will add their experiences and comments upon the filmmakers’ presentations to deepen and enlarge the discussion. The five women will have a brief exchange among themselves.The last half hour will be Q&A, with a five minute wrap up at the end. A goal of the presentation is to design and direct policy changes. The session will be recorded.
Presenters:
Ariel Dougherty, New Mexico, USA: filmmaker, teacher, co-founder, Women Make Movies, Inc
Aseye Tamakloe, Accra, Ghana: director, WHEN WOMEN SPEAK, Nvida Women’s Film Festival organiser
Paromita Vohra, Mumbai, India: filmmaker, teacher Girls Media Group & founder, Agents of Ishq
with Edel Brosnan, Director of Strategy, European Women’s Audio-Visual Network
& a Representative from Latin America, TBA
(a) https://kinomatics.com/redistributing-gender/
(b) Laura Mulvey and Ariel Dougherty both spoke about this at a 2016 film festival in separate presentations. Laura again states this in the remarkable, must-see documentary, BRAINWASHED: Sex, Camera, Power (1:47 min, 2022) by Nina Menkes
