WGST 402(S) Chickflicks: The Women's Movement and Cinefeminism+
This seminar for juniors and seniors is designed to enable advanced Women's and Gender Studies students to engage in joint and independent research on a vital interdisciplinary topic. In this year's seminar we will explore the relationship between the women's movement and the emergence of a feminist cinema. Representations of women in Hollywood-produced movies came under attack by feminists in the early 1970s. Over the next two decades, there was a proliferation of film festivals, journals, and conferences devoted to films by and for women. Do women directors create a different cinema? What characterizes a feminist filmmaking practice? The feminist films produced in the 70s and 80s reflect varied, often conflicting responses to these questions. In turn, these issues mirror conflicts within the women's movement. We will look at films by directors such as Michelle Citron, Chantal Akerman, Yvonne Rainer, Julie Dash, and Trinh T. Minh-ha, and readings form both the women's movement and feminist film critics such as B. Ruby Rich, Laura Mulvey, Julia Lesage, and Annette Kuhn. Requirements: short weekly essays and one 15- to 20-page paper or a substantial project (video, artwork, etc.). Students will present work in progress, read and discuss one another's work, and be asked to submit at least two drafts of their work. Prerequisites: Women's and Gender Studies 101 and two electives (one of which may be taken during the spring term in which the seminar is held), or permission of the instructor. Enrollment is limited to 20.