Remake. Frankfurter Frauen Film Tage: A Rousing Success By Christina Schultz The first edition of Remake. Frankfurter Frauen Film Tage organized by the Kinothek Asta Nielsen was a perfect example of Frauenpower (girl power) at its finest. The curators, Gaby Babic, Karola Gramann and Heide Schlüpmann, and the fabulous team members I was able to meet over the past 10 days (like the fabulous ladies Tina and Romina), worked tirelessly to make the festival a success, and a rousing one at that.
The program was so rich, spanning the entire history of women’s cinema (from Germaine Dulac to Amandine Gay) and intersecting with several movements within the women’s movement (women’s suffrage, women’s right to abortion, the students’ and workers’ movements, the struggle of women of color, etc.). The films screened were also of various lengths, genres and countries. And among the rather thick program (an impressive 53 pages), there were so many hidden gems to be discovered. And discover them I did. That was one of the most impressive parts of the festival: the fact that so many movies were shown that had been forgotten (until now). The quality of the films might not have been the greatest - but the curators always explained, almost apologetically, the reason behind the lack of quality, and the audiences naturally didn’t mind because the content and the images made up for the old, grainy, discolored filmstock. The films in the Recha Jungmann retrospective are being restored, remastered and digitized (one of the many great things the Kinothek Asta Nielsen does), but even in “lesser” quality, the images were still so powerful. Another example was the film Für Frauen, 1. Kapitel. Ein Film für Frauen, von Frauen gemacht (For Women, Chapter 1. A Movie for Women, Made by Women; Cristina Perincioli, 1971). The 28-minute “docu-fiction” was bathed in a reddish tone, but it charmed and tickled the audience with its lay actors (all except for one trained actress), realistic working class premise and satisfying conclusion when the four main female characters go on strike, which almost turns the film into a 70s music video. The guests who introduced the films were of local and international renown and everything in between. This is no easy task, but I think the right balance was struck. To name drop a bit, the speakers included British feminist film theorist Laura Mulvey of the “male gaze” fame, German filmmaker and professor Jutta Brückner, feminist activist Tatjana Turanskyj and co-founder of Pro Quote film (Germany’s version of Time’s Up), women’s rights activist Helen Pankhurst (yes, that Pankhurst family, as in Emmeline and Sylvia, the OGs of women’s suffrage), firey speaker and feminist politician Rosemarie Heilig (Green Party, Head of the Department for Environment and Women’s Affair in Frankfurt), the Filmlöwin feminist film critic Sophie Rieger and so many others.
The main festival locations - the Deutsches Filmmuseum and the Pupille - Kino in der Uni - were well decorated, inviting and spacious enough to hold post-screening receptions that offered ample opportunities to discuss and network. And I can personally say that the events I attended were thought-provoking and inspiring, empowering and uplifting, and perhaps more importantly, made me feel like I am part of something greater. One of the post-film discussions (following the double-bill with the Perincioli film I described above) gave audience members the chance to compare the women’s movement of the late 1960s-early 1970s with the Time’s Up/MeToo movements of the 2010s. We are essentially fighting for the same issues (sadly) but in different ways. We, the younger generation, generally do not take to the streets and demonstrate - we take out our frustration on the Internet. This might lead us to feel more isolated, despite the ease of connectivity. In the 1970s, the Frankfurt Women’s Center, for example, organized bus trips to Holland for women who wanted an abortion, took part in demonstrations on the street and dedicated so much time to discussing women’s issues together as a community. And that is, among all the other things I mention above, what the Remake. Frankfurter Frauen Film Tage provided: a chance for so many people (because, it should be noted that there were men among the festival attendees) to come together to discuss women’s issues, and of course feminist film. I can already say I’m looking forward to next year’s festival!
1 Comment
Mark your calendars, Femfilmfans! From November 2-11, 2018, the Kinothek Asta Nielsen proudly presents Remake. Frankfurter Frauen Film Tage (Remake. Frankfurt Women’s Film Days) in fabulous Frankfurt, Germany. It will be a celebration of women's rights and feminist filmmaking. We couldn't think of a more exciting time to be a Femfilmfan!  Remake poster courtesy of Kinothek Asta Nielsen Below is some information about the Frankfurt Women's Film Days in English (the full text in German and in English can be found here; Christina edited the version you see below) What's in a name? The Kinothek Asta Nielsen has promoted film work by women for nearly twenty years, facilitating the discussion of gender relations in film. The Remake festival integrates a new event format into the Kinothek's previous work: a program focusing on film history, women's suffrage, female filmmakers and feminist film will unfold in a mixture of festival and symposium. The name “Remake” refers to the connection with history that characterizes all the Kinothek’s work: films spanning more than a hundred years emerge anew in the perception of viewers when they are shown today. In other words, the presentation of the films, old and new, at this year's festival is in itself a form of film-making, that is, a re-make. What awaits attendees? The Remake festival program, taking place from 2-11 November 2018, will focus on the theme “100 Years of Women’s Suffrage – 50 Years of Feminist Film Making.” Plans include films, introductory lectures, discussions, and supporting events. The festival will consist of several parts, including films on the suffragette movement and on general 1910s and 1920s legal topics such as sexual offenses, matrimony and abortion. In addition, there will be films depicting the conflict-ridden transformation of women’s roles, and the change in their status vis-à-vis work and love. All these topics pervade feminist film work up to now, each perhaps weighted and perceived differently. Our program will extend from the early 20th century to the present; at the same time, we intend to raise awareness that women’s emancipation movements have existed not only in Western nations, but also in other parts of the world. Remake also contains a program section that is dedicated to a female filmmaker whose work is threatened by oblivion and disappearance: Frankfurt filmmaker Recha Jungmann. The festival will screen her three feature films and a number of shorts, all produced between 1967 and 1981. Recha Jungmann will participate in discussions at the screenings.
History of Feminist Film Festivals The festival program pays tribute not only to film history, but also to the history of feminist film festivals. The first of these, which took place in 1972 in New York and Edinburgh, were largely dedicated to the (re-) discovery of women filmmakers. Many of their works, which saw the light of projectors in the early 70s, have disappeared again, and copies can only be found with difficulty, if at all. Through revivals of past programs and conversations with their organizers, we will remember this history, from which our work has also emerged. This year’s festival will therefore appropriately kick off with a retrospective featuring the “Women’s Event” of the 1972 Edinburgh International Film Festival. As a special treat, the women who brought the festival to life - Laura Mulvey and Lynda Myles (together with Claire Johnston (1940-1987)) - will be attending the festival as special guests.
Femfilmfans at the Frankfurter Frauen Film Tage Our editor Christina will be attending many of the festival's events and film screenings. Over the coming weeks, she will be posting more information about the festival - feel free to send us an email or leave a question in the comments section below if you want to know more! Once the festival is underway, Christina will then be posting updates and short reviews of the films and events on the Femfilmfans.com site, on Instagram and on Facebook. Click on the various links below to follow the action! You might also like to visit the --> Remake. Frankfurter Frauen Film Tage <-- official website. This link will take you to the festival's program (in German): remake-festival.de/programm.html By Christina Schultz Come celebrate love of all kinds at Berlin’s fabulous and world famous Gay Pride Parade and Festival: Christopher Street Day (CSD)! The PRIDE PARADE takes place tomorrow, on SATURDAY, 28 JULY 2018 at 12:00.  The motto of this year's Berlin Pride is “MY BODY, MY IDENTITY, MY LIFE!” (photo: CSD Berlin) Hundreds of thousands of lesbians, gays, bisexuals, trans*sexuals, trans*gender, intersexuals, other queers (LGBTTIQ*) and allies will be hitting the streets on 28 July 2018. What started out as a small, but impressive march with 400 participants decades ago has developed into a forceful political mass rally and a mighty beacon for freedom and human rights. According to the CSD website, there are 59 trucks and 49 walking groups in the parade this year who will pass out information, play great music, give away goodies and spread the love! Don't miss this chance to show your support for the LGBTTIQ* community and to have a great time! The parade route begins at Kurfürstendamm/Joachimsthaler Straße and ends up on Straße des 17. Juni between 15:00 and 17:00 in time for the rally at the main stage at the iconic Brandenburg Gate.  The official parade route (photo: CSD Berlin) For more information about CSD: csd-berlin.de/
To purchase CSD merch: shop.spreadshirt.de/berlin-pride/ To donate to CSD: csd-berlin.de/spenden/ Here are some of trucks 59 participating in the parade with their numbers - click on the names below to find out more information about these LGBTQ* organizations and companies promoting diversity and inclusion! (most of the sites are in Deutsch and in English) 1 Berliner CSD e.V. 3 Berliner Aids-Hilfe e.V. 4 Schwulenberatung Berlin 5 BMW Group DIVERSE 11 queer*human (LGBTTIQ*-AG im Humanistischen Verband Berlin-Brandenburg KdöR) 15 Deutsche Bank AG | dbPride 16 Lesben und Schwule in der BVG 17 OUT tv 23 PRIDE@SIEMENS Berlin 27 Ikea diversity 40 Jugend gegen Aids e.V. 41 USA Botschaft Berlin / GLIFAA 43 Pride@SAP 48 United in Pride, Diversity Group der eBay GmbH 53 PayPal Pride 56 Gemeinsam mehr e.V. / Radio QueerLive / die Busche So...who's joining us in Berlin tomorrow? If you're there, don't forget to look for yours truly on the Deutsche Bank truck!
NORTH AMERICA
Canada Fairy Tales Intl. Queer Film & Video Festival Female Eye Film Festival (Toronto) herland Feminist Film and Video Workshop (Calgary) HTMlles (Quebec) Image+Nation, Montreal's Queer Film Festival Inside Out Film Festival (Toronto) London Lesbian Film Festival (London, Ontario) St. John's International Women's Film Festival The Future of Film Showcase The Fairy Tales International Gay & Lesbian Film Festival (Alberta) Vancouver Women in Film Festival Vancouver Queer Film Festival Women in Film & Television (Vancouver) USA African American Women in Cinema (AAWIC) Film Festival (New York) Adam Baran Honolulu Gay And Lesbian Film Festival Austin Gay & Lesbian International Film Festival AXW Film Festival Baltimore Women's Film Festival Bluestockings Film Series (Portland, Maine) Censored Women’s Film Festival Central Illinois Feminist Film Festival Eastern Illinois University Chi Feminist Film Festival Davis Feminist Film Festival (Davis, California) Etheria Film Festival (Boston) Everett Women's Film Festival (Washington) Girl Fest (Hawaii) International Black Women's Film Festival (San Francisco) LA Femme International Film Festival Lady Filmmaker's Festival (California) Les Femmes Underground Feminist Film Festival Lunafest (a US touring festival) Madcat Film Festival (San Francisco) New York City Feminist Film Festival Pan-African Women's Film Festival (Minneapolis) Portland Women's Film Festival (Portland, Oregon) Queer Women of Color Film Festival (San Francisco) Reel Sisters of the Diaspora (Long Island) Rocky Mountain Women's Film Festival, (Colorado) San Diego Women’s Film Festival San Francisco Transgender Film Festival (San Francisco) San Francisco Women's Film Festival San Francisco International Lesbian/Gay Film Festival Seattle Lesbian & Gay Film Festival The Athena Centre Film Festival (New York) University of Buffalo's Annual Women's Film Festival (New York) Women's Film Festival (Battleboro, Vermont) Women's Film Festival at McHenry College (Illinois) Women's International Film Festival Worldwide Women’s Film Festival Women of African Descent Film Festival Women in Horror Film Festival (Georgia)
ASIA
Afghanistan Afghanistan International Women Film Festival Armenia Kin International Film Festival (Yerevan) China Beijing Queer Film FestivalChina Women*s Film Festival Hong Kong Lesbian and Gay Film Festival Shanghai Pride Film Festival Shanghai Queer Film Festival India Chennai International Queer Film Festival IAWRT Asia Kashish - Mumbai International Queer Film Festival Mumbai Women’s International Film Festival Israel International Women's Film Festival (Rheovot) The Tel Aviv International LGBT Film Festival Japan Asian Queer Film Festival Rainbow Reek Tokyo Lebanon Beirut International Women's Film Festival (BWFF) Myanmar &PROUD Yangon LGBT Film Festival Palestine Shashat Palestine Women's Film Festival South Korea International Women's Film Festival Seoul Queer Culture Festival Sri Lanka Abhimani - Queer Film Festival Sri Lanka Taiwan Taiwan International Queer Film Festival Women Make Waves Film Festival (Taipei)
AFRICA
Burkina Faso Ouagadougou Journées cinématographique de la femme africaine de l’image Cameroon Mis me Binga (Eyes of Women) International Women's Film Festival Egypt Cairo International Women's Film Festival Kenya Mama Afrika Film Festival Malawi Malawi International Short Film Festival Morocco Sale International Women's Film Festival Nigeria African Women Film Festival 2018 Rwanda Urusaro International Women Film Festival Senegal Films Femmes Afrique South Africa Skirts Film Festival Zimbabwe The International Images Film Festival for Women
It’s that time again. We need your help compiling our list of film festivals from all over the world with a focus on women, feminism, or the LGBTQ+ community! This week, we have a list of festivals from Oceania. It's pretty short so please help us expand this list by sending us the names of any festivals not on our list, including a link to the festival's website if possible. You can do so in the comments below, on Instagram or on Facebook.
OCEANIA
Philippines Purple Pixels: Women in the Indie Film Frontier TasmaniaStranger With My Face (Hobart) Australia For Film’s Sake (FFS) Festival Seen and Heard Film Festival (Sydney) Mardi Gras Film Festival Melbourne Queer Film Festival Queerdoc New Zealand New Zealand International Film Festival
EUROPE
Austria Tricky Women Belgium Elles Tournent / Dames Draien Festival Du Film Gay Et Lesbien De Bruxelles Finland Season Film Festival France Cineffable Cineffable- Paris Lesbian Film Festival Films de Femmes Germany Berlin Feminist Film Week Female Filmmakers Festival Berlin (read our interview with the festival's founder here) Frankfurter Frauen Filmtage (organized by the Kinothek Asta Nielsen) Frauen Film Festival Freiburger Lesbenfilmtage E.V. Lesben Film Festival Berlin Lesbisch Schwule Filmtage Hamburg TransFormations - Trans Film Festival Berlin The Xposed International Queer Film Festival Ireland Dublin Feminist Film Festival Italy Broad Humor (Venice) Donne-Sguardi Altrove Immaginaria International Lesbian Film Festival L'Origine Del Mondo Women and Cinema Festival of Florence (Florence) Lithuania Serseliafam Women’s Film Festival (Vilnius) Norway Femmina International Film Festival Portugal Porto Femme International Film Festival Spain Fem Tour Truck Mostra Internacional de Films de Dones/ International Women's Film Festival, Barcelona Mujeres en Direccion/ Women Directing International Film Festival mujerDOC III INTERNATIONAL DOCUMENTARY FESTIVAL Sweden International Female Film Festival (Malmo) LadyBug Festival (Gothenburg) The Netherlands Arab Women's Film Festival Film Mor International Film Festival International Festival Turkey Filmmor Women's Film Festival on Wheels Flying Broom International Women's Film Festival UK Birds-Eye View Festival (London) Images of Black Women Festival (London) London Feminist Film Festival London Les Underwire (London) |
.jpg)
.jpg)
RSS Feed
