How significant is the gender of a filmmaker? Do women make films differently? What are the barriers and constraints that women face, and how do they differ from place to place? Which critical perspectives and scholarly strategies enhance our understanding and analysis of women's filmmaking? This module explores the different types of films that women filmmakers make, from the avant-garde and experimental to the mainstream. We will look at the roles of women in the film industry internationally, past and present, and how women filmmakers have attempted to reinvent cinematic form or worked within existing conventions and industry structures. On the one hand, our concerns will be theoretical: we will investigate the intersections between feminist film theory and women's filmmaking practice, raising questions of the cinematic gaze, voice and touch, the articulation of female subjectivity and resistance against conventional ways of making films. On the other hand, we will be considering the practical conditions and implications for women in the industry, including sources of support, circuits and forums in which films by women are shown and debated, and the institutional means through which women's creative achievements are acknowledged and remembered.
- Module Supervisor: Sarah Smyth