In this talk Bernadette Wegenstein will engage with contemporary global feminist cinema practice to ask several questions: “what is a feminist film-practice?”, “how is it expressed differently in a global context?”, and “how can a feminist film practice generally contribute to ideas of radical equality.” The films she discusses tell us about a female experience either by expressively countering male domination in the story-lines and visual strategies--such as in the Chilean film Princesita (2017) by Marialy Rivas, about a dangerous religious cult--or they overtly problematize the struggle with race and its intersections with female sexuality, as addressed by Wanuri Kahiu in Kenya with her film Rafiki (2018), which tells the story of a lesbian love within the context of the enslaved experience. They also show how the search for belonging is wrapped up in complex notions of motherhood, as most recently showcased in Japanese auteur Naomi Kawase’s latest adoption drama, True Mothers (2020).
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Bernadette Wegenstein is an Austrian-born linguist, media theorist and documentary filmmaker. Her work brings together her feminist thought and her interest in human-centric storytelling. She is a professor of Media Study at The Johns Hopkins University, where she directs the Center of Advanced Media Study. Her books include Getting Under the Skin: Body and Media Theory, The Cosmetic Gaze: Body Modification and the Construction of Beauty. She is currently writing the anthology, Radical Equality and Global Feminist Filmmaking, and a monograph about the filmmaker Jane Campion. Her documentaries include Made Over in America, See You Soon Again, The Good Breast, The Conductor, The Great Reset, and Devoti tutti, currently in post-production.
Participation requires REGISTRATION.
Registration deadline: December 6, 2020