The reelgrrls and New Media: Creating a Space for Young Women
The reelgrrls have been around since 2001, inspiring young women to make and showcase their films. Dedicated volunteers work with these young women and help them develop skills in all areas of filmmaking. I have to admit that I had heard of the reelgrrls and their efforts to motivate young women to become involved in filmmaking–Kathleen Sweeney even mentions this organization in her book Maiden USA: Girl Icons Come of Age. However, until I started to research them and search YouTube for films that had been made by the reelgrrls team, I had not realized how large their following was or how important their films were, and had become. These films that are produced by the reelgrrls are impressive. They not only demonstrate a working knowledge of contemporary filmmaking, but they are informative and appeal directly to their audience base, young women. I was pleasantly surprised to see that so many young girls were able to identify how and why the media objectifies women. Not only that, but they incorporated this knowledge into a cohesive media project, that will in turn influence or at the very least inform young women of the media’s involvement in sexist propaganda.
http://www.youtube.com/user/reelgrrls
I believe that it is organizations like the reelgrrls that offer young women the chance to use their voice in the world–which perhaps was not an option before the Internet (social networking). These young girls are not only voicing their opinions on the media they are making films that highlight social issues that are becoming prevalent in a young woman’s life, issues that directly affect them. Below is a short film that was made to educate young women about the violence that occurs in the teenage dating scene.
I believe the best way to educate young women is to teach them how to make a difference by using their voice. In a world where everything centers on visual media, teaching young women how to use a film camera to critique the world around them, can only lead to a better- informed world. I am positive that organizations like the reelgrrls are helping to create a new, confident female, one that learns from a young age that they don’t need to believe, listen to or even acknowledge much of what the media tells them about the role of women in society. They can of course counteract much of what the media promotes, by simply showing what women, (who no longer need the media to tell them who they are), are actually capable of.
video sources:
reelgrrls. “Girls, Sexuality and the Media.” Project: Report. YouTube. 16 July. 2007. Web. 13 May 2010.
reelgrrls. “Teen Dating Violence.” Project: Report. YouTube. 19 July. 2007. Web. 13 May 2010.
Coco Before Chanel
I decided to write about a film I saw recently entitled Coco Before Chanel. I cannot resist a film that has a premise that involves a young woman who decides she will make it on her own terms, without having to bend to society’s will, and Coco (Audrey Tautou) does just that. I thought it was interesting that many of the reviews about this film stated that it was “humorless,” “dull,” and/or took itself too seriously. Now, after spending a semester in this class and researching many topics related to women and girls in the media, I find that it seems to be a common thing to call a film “humorless” or “dull” when women are not being overtly exploited on-screen. Have we become so jaded that a film that visually demonstrates a woman’s power is now not considered entertainment by the masses?
http://www.sonyclassics.com/cocobeforechanel/
Coco Before Chanel is a film directed by a woman (Anne Fontaine) and it concentrates on Coco’s life before she became a designer. The era in which Coco lived was not free from sexism (is any era?), but this film graciously demonstrates how a strong willing woman, even in an overtly sexist, and classist society saw no need to conform to conventional norms, (that were just set up to exploit her anyway); Coco refuses to wear a corset, because she wants to be able “to breathe,” something that was unheard of at the beginning of the twentieth century. She refuses to wear the huge feathered hats that were considered a sign of wealth/status symbol in her day. Instead she dresses exactly how she wants, often in men’s clothes. She is confident and sure of herself, a trait that is (in my opinion) not seen enough (in women) on-screen.
I know nothing about the actress, Audrey Tautou, but when I was researching her I found a site that had all of the magazine covers that she had posed for, to date. It was interesting to see that in every single cover she was either fully dressed or the magazine cover used a picture of just her face. I often see American actresses that star in supposedly serious films, appear on the cover of a magazine, a week after the film’s release, half-naked ‘promoting’ the movie…but not Audrey!
http://www.magazine-covers.net/t282/audrey-tautou-magazine-covers.html
Photo Sources:
Canal+ Company & Sony Pictures Classics
“New Moon”…Same old Storyline?
With ticket sales being the highest ever recorded in film history (for the opening weekend), it is no secret that the “Twilight” series has made a huge impression on the younger generation–particularly young girls. Hollywood has been making vampire movies for decades, but it is “Twilight” that has made vampires fashionable.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1259571
I have to admit I have seen both films, and on a basic level they are entertaining and fun to watch. But I am also painfully aware of the messages that these films (“Twilight” and “New Moon”) are sending young girls. In the first film of the series–“Twilight,” Bella Swan, the film’s female protagonist spends most of the film being saved by her boyfriend Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson), who is her sworn protector, but he only ever protects her from other men, or dangerous situations that happen because of him–or because she is with him. In the second film “New Moon,” Edward ‘leaves’ Bella after he realizes that their relationship puts her constantly in danger, but Bella merely falls prey to another situation where another man, this time a werewolf, swears to protect her/claims to love her… and the cycle begins again.
Don’t get me wrong I like Bella and after reading the books written by Stephenie Meyer, I think Kristen Stewart is a perfect choice for the role of Bella. However, how much can a person be comforted by watching a female character constantly being counter-managed by the two main male characters, and knowing that young girls love these movies because they believe this storyline represents romance at its best.
In “New Moon” Bella is given the chance to step out of the role of “damsel in distress,” she starts to embrace her more daring side; she jumps from a cliff and rides a motorcycle, but in both situations she is told she is being reckless and is encouraged to stop “this behavior,” even though boys routinely jump from the same cliff and it is a boy that rides a motorcycle to get to her, only to tell her she should not ride anymore. Bella actually saves Edward towards the end of “New Moon,” yet her efforts are soon forgotten when Edward begins to fight for her–yet again. Does romance have to mean a storyline where a woman has to be protected (by a man) from the actions of men– What’s so romantic about that?
Photo Source: Summit Entertainment.
Video Clip: Clevver TV. “Twilight: New Moon Official Trailer # 3.”Project: Report. YouTube, 13 Sept. 2009. Web. 27 March. 2010.
And The Award Goes To…Women Behind the Camera/Shirley Clarke
After following the Academy Awards and watching the first woman (Kathryn Bigelow) to win an Oscar for Best Director, I realized that Bigelow’s win might have been somewhat significant, but it also became apparent that it is only a small victory. Why has only one woman won this award? And why is it that no African American has ever won the award for Best Director? In the 82 years that the academy has been recognizing talent in the film industry only two African American men have been nominated for the Best Director category. So, under the circumstances I decided to pay homage to a New York based, independent female director that produced some excellent and provocative films, one of which is entitled “Lover’s Quarrel With the Word,” a documentary on poet Robert Frost, which did win an Academy Award in 1962.
Shirley Clarke’s life (1919-1997) and career have not gone unnoticed but she certainly never achieved the type of fame that she deserved, this is partly due to the fact that her films are experimental, (but so are John Cassavetes’ films, and many have heard of him). Her films are difficult to come by these days, many of them are out of print, or are only available in Europe. But I heard recently that a film about her life might be going into production, so hopefully this will in turn make her films more assessable. You can access and watch one of Clarke’s films entitled “The Cool World,” (1963) online.
Here is the synopsis of “The Cool World”: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0056952/plotsummary
I have included the first ten minutes for your viewing pleasure.
Shirley Clarke’s films reflect the politics of the times in which they were made. She comments on the racism that is prevalent in American society by focusing on how society is seen and experienced by African Americans–a viewpoint that is not utilized often enough in mainstream (Hollywood) film narratives.
Even though Shirley Clarke was not considered a mainstream director, she has one thing in common with Kathryn Bigelow; neither woman makes films that are marketed exclusively to women. Bigelow’s recent win was for a war film, set in Iraq, not a subject matter normally associated with a female director. Clarke’s films may not have received the same sort of publicity that Bigelow’s “Hurt Locker” has gotten but that is probably a good thing, Shirley Clarke was not interested in producing mainstream films, which is why her work has the freedom to comment on the fragile state of the American social system.
I have included an article about her work/life:
http://www.hammertonail.com/genre/documentary/films-of-shirley-clarke-at-anthology/
Film Clip Source:
Jcowan1985. “Cool World 1” Project: Report. YouTube, December 1987. Web. March 2010.
Gallagher, Cullen. Films of Shirley Clarke-Anthology-The Rebel Without a Cause. Hammer to Nail Ambitious Film, 2009. Web. 11 March 2010.
Hitchcock/Men Behind the Camera–Great films at the expense of Women?
Anyone who has taken a film class will be told that Alfred Hitchcock is the master of the horror/thriller genre. This post will not dispute this statement. However I believe that Hitchcock’s film career seems to be, at least in part, at the expense of women. I actually like many of the films that Hitchcock has made, for years rope was one of my favorite movies. But as I got older and I started to really look into Hitchcock’s narratives I realized there was something very sinister going on, and I don’t mean murder! This first clip is an interview with the director himself. He talks to his host about how the camera can be used to portray an emotion or a character’s intent. Watch how he illustrates his example; he uses a woman, at first she is a mother and then she is a sex symbol.
The above example demonstrates the limited view that Hitchcock seems to have of women, and I believe that his films reflect such a view.
The film’s of Hitchcock mostly portray the female as either the victim, some helpless damsel in distress, or a love sick–over feminized “creature” that wants so desperately for the lead male character to love her. Now granted, I understand that many of his films were made around the 1940s and 1950s when the Women’s Lib Movement of the 1960s and 1970s hadn’t happened yet, but still that is no excuse. There are many actresses of Hitchcock’s era whose careers were not reduced to “victim” or “love sick female,” Rosalind Russell is one actress that springs to mind, but there are others. Hitchcock however, seemed perfectly comfortable in portraying the same “broken” female character over and over. Even his later films showed elements of the sexism that was present in his earlier work.
So, the first picture on this post is an example of “the victim,” Janet Leigh in Psycho is probably the most famous of Hitchcock’s female victims. Below is an example of the “love sick female,” who is trying desperately to win the affection of a man–watch how she reacts to the situation.
This scene is from Vertigo, Midge is Scotty’s oldest friend (Scotty is however in love with another woman) Midge wants to be more than just friends….
I realize the gender roles in Hitchcock films are considered slightly dated. But I am not sure that they are all together that different from movies that are made (by men) within the Hollywood system in the present day. If a director finds success, (and is later glorified) because he made a career out of presenting sexist stereotypes of women, what does that say about the culture we live in?
Photo source:
Scoop. diamond galleries; Janet Leigh, Psycho; (2002): 1; Print.
Film Clip source:
hippoeki. “Hitchcock loves Bikinis” Project: Report. YouTube, April 2007. Web. 20 Feb 2010.
Sbbarton. “Vertigo: Midge’s Painting” Project: Report. YouTube, Sep 2008. Web. 20 Feb 2010.
A Different Side to Megan Fox
OK, so you’ve read the title and now you’re worried; I guess I would be too. However, after reading everyone’s blogs last week I thought a lot about what women can do to change a system that is patriarchal in origin and will always objectify women, i.e, Hollywood. Megan Fox is clearly a part of the Hollywood system, and she is clearly objectified (and she understands what that entails), but she is also a little edgy and occasionally she has something fairly interesting to say, honestly that happens so rarely in Hollywood that when an actress of Fox’s “caliber” does it, I think it is worth documenting. The video below made me laugh when I first watched it, then I thought the literal message of the advertisement is obviously NOT the sort of behavior we want our teenage girls to be a part of, but, the overall message of “being yourself” was strongly defined, and I appreciated it. So, below is the promo for Jennifer’s Body, it shows a little “feminist” touch, that in the mainstream film industry you don’t very often get to see…oh, as a warning she says the f*** word.
I know Fox is a sex symbol, however all I am saying is that having a Hollywood insider/actress that challenges or comments on the status quo does not have to be a bad thing, it is, as they say a place to start. Young girls are going to want to be like Megan Fox, and part of who is she is objectified but we live in a society where that happens anyway. It will take a while before we see a change in all advertisements, where they don’t objectify models/women, but, in the mean time we can’t get rid of all the models, just because they are being exploited. The same principle applies here, Hollywood is an industry that has systematically objectified women, if Hollywood are going to continue to objectify their staff then maybe constantly showing footage of these women saying something useful will help balance or counteract the damage being done by the industry. I realize this is not a full proof plan, but while we are trying to make a significant difference we can be doing this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1WWEhewoB1M
Film Clip Credits:
ABC News. “Megan Fox: Are Men Afraid of Women?” Project: Report. Youtube, Sep 25, 2009. Web. Feb 4, 2010.
Ninasas. “Megan Fox: Peer Pressure PSA.”Project: Report. Youtube, Feb 2010. Web. Feb 4, 2010.
Witchcraft and The Power of Women
After spending much time looking through media images and film clips and visiting websites that feature women, their lives and their careers, I was struck at just how negatively women are portrayed in the popular media/the world of entertainment, and what limited roles in film and television are made available to them. I should make myself clear, I am not suggesting that all women or actresses are simply remembered for “what they are wearing that day,” or have never had roles that weren’t challenging and/or pushed the “feminine” stereotype further back into the 1950s where it belongs… but it is rare. However, I did find that many films or television shows that did celebrate the strength of women happened to also celebrate the theme of witchcraft. It is curious to me that witchcraft, a charge that if accused of six hundred years ago would have resulted in death for a woman, is now, a commercial and viable option for television shows and films to showcase independent women. But, I am thankful to be able to see strong, independent female characters in the entertainment industry.
One of the most famous witches in television history is Samantha in Bewitched. Samantha was domestic but crafty. Endora, her mother, the archetype of independence, was (besides Samantha) the most memorable character in the show. Bewitched perhaps paved the way for more modern shows that featured the fearless female as the witch; The Craft, The Witches of Eastwick, Practical Magic, Charmed, and of course Buffy the Vampire Slayer are all films/television programs that aired from the early 90s onwards. Each show or film had female leads, featured the theme of witchcraft, and presented their female characters as independent, loyal, powerful and protective of the community. All of these shows/films demonstrated the power of women by highlighting the fact that these on-screen witches were a part of a on-screen matriarchal line that had produced many strong and able women before them. The female leads in these types of shows were powerful, in a literal sense, and their power did not derive from, or was a result of, a man. Also, older women/characters that made on-screen appearances were revered and respected, because their age had enabled them to acquire more knowledge or wisdom than the younger witches. Female characters were usually not in competition with each other, and female solidarity as a theme often ran through many of these entertaining shows.
It seems that the entertainment industry has found a way to incorporate intelligent, independent female characters into our mainstream viewing pleasure; witchcraft seems to be an amicable way for these women to come into our homes and perhaps teach us that the power of women is in tact, and ready to be witnessed.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0158552/
Below is a clip from Practical Magic; this scene demonstrates the power of women through community and solidarity, something that is rarely seen in the world of entertainment.
Film clip credit:
liveonthescreen.”Practical Magic-My blood, your blood; our blood.” Project: Report. YouTube, Jan 2009. Web. 26 Jan 2010. (more…)
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