Polbroth
Stunt Coordinator
- Joined
- Oct 2, 2022
- Messages
- 171
- Real Name
- Taylor
The recent cable showing of one of many savaged and despised masterpieces of cinema helmed by a woman reminds me of the endless ways in which women have either been excluded or obliterated - deliberately or by allowing their contributions to fall into ruinous obscurity - from the history of world cinema.
The cynical and dubious choice of an Akerman film to top the latest SSP does little to address the still common sidelining of women in cinema, from pioneers like Dulac, Guy-Blache and Weber in the earliest days of narrative film to the current failure to acknowledge the extraordinary contributions of masters like Sarah Polley clearly signal that we have a very long way to go.
But rather than curse the darkness of systemic misogyny - both overt and passive - the intention of this thread is a celebration of the unique contribution of the female sensibility to the history of flickers.
Here's an excellent article from The Atlantic to help get the conversation going:
https://www.theatlantic.com/culture...all-jones-wrong-kind-of-women-excerpt/606277/
Given the dearth of women among this year’s Oscar nominees for writing and directing, not to mention behind the camera in Hollywood at all, you may be surprised to learn that before 1925, during the silent-film era, women wrote the outlines for roughly half of all films. In fact, a great many women were behind the camera in those days—producing and directing films, and running studios. Women also pioneered much of the film technology that still exists today—only to be pushed out of the burgeoning industry once its influence and moneymaking potential had become more widely recognized.
The cynical and dubious choice of an Akerman film to top the latest SSP does little to address the still common sidelining of women in cinema, from pioneers like Dulac, Guy-Blache and Weber in the earliest days of narrative film to the current failure to acknowledge the extraordinary contributions of masters like Sarah Polley clearly signal that we have a very long way to go.
But rather than curse the darkness of systemic misogyny - both overt and passive - the intention of this thread is a celebration of the unique contribution of the female sensibility to the history of flickers.
Here's an excellent article from The Atlantic to help get the conversation going:
https://www.theatlantic.com/culture...all-jones-wrong-kind-of-women-excerpt/606277/
Given the dearth of women among this year’s Oscar nominees for writing and directing, not to mention behind the camera in Hollywood at all, you may be surprised to learn that before 1925, during the silent-film era, women wrote the outlines for roughly half of all films. In fact, a great many women were behind the camera in those days—producing and directing films, and running studios. Women also pioneered much of the film technology that still exists today—only to be pushed out of the burgeoning industry once its influence and moneymaking potential had become more widely recognized.
