Film reminders why the programme shouldn't be male-centric

From The Star And Shadow Cinema Wiki

HERE ARE LOTS OF SUGGESTIONS OF FEMALE DIRECTORS THAT WE COULD PROGRAMME, AS started FROM THE PROGRAMMING CONVERSATION OF FEB 09 This list is a compilation of many different peoples suggestions

Clare Denis (had a retrospective at Rotterdam this year), Agnes Varda, Jane Campion, but not the Piano - Sweetie is better. Ida Lupino!, Sally Potter, Lynne Ramsay, Julie Delphy, Sofia Coppola, Andrea Arnold, Rebecca Miller, Katherine Bigalow, Asia Argento, Margaritte Duras, Catherine Breillat, Whoever made 'Under the Skin' and 'Kandahar', Sarah Polley, director of Away From Her (2006), and Marguerite Duras, it would be great to show some of the Miranda July-initiated Joanie4Jackie (aka Big Miss Moviola) shorts -- a video chainletter for films by women. Brigitte Rouan - a bit sexual and neurotic but interesting films - "post-coitum animal triste" is interesting, Laetitia Masson - some films are very good (A Vendre and En Avoir ou Pas), the more recent ones not good, Valeria Bruni-Tedesci, the sister of Mrs Sarkozy (!!) - she doesn't look as good as her sister but seems slightly more clever, which, admittedly, is not hard - mainly an actress - but her first film as a director is very good, the second one interesting but maybe a bit self-centered, Julie Delpy indeed as Rebecca says. Claire Denis indeed as Christo says - quite highly rated in france - Beau Travail is supposed to be amazing, and has 2 excellent actors in it I don't like C. Breillat's stuff Pascale Ferran - very highly rated in France - her last film won all the Cesars/French Baftas - Lady Chatterley - and "petits arrangements avec les morts" is supposed to be amazing. She is politically active as well Then there are some one-offs - Isabel Otero made quite an amazing autobiographical documentary about her family http://www.cineclubdecaen.com/realisat/otero/histoiredunsecret.htm

Sandrine Bonnaire who just made "elle s'appelle sabine" - an apparently amazing documentary about her sister who is mentally disabled/a survivor of the health system/service user (...)

Iranian one - of course you know Miss Makhmalbaf - what is her first name again?? The daughter of...

American - Sofia Coppola (am not a fan!!)

Australian - Jane Campion indeed [she's a Kiwi actually! We all look the same to you Northern Hemisphere types don't we?] - I really like In The Cut, very interesting genre thriller with a sexual/female hint to it - Meg Ryan surprisingly excellent in it Bette Gordon - Variety (1984) - well worth screening, written by Kathy Acker Valie Export 2 of my favourite films were from women last year - Water Lillies and XXY Lynne Ramsay - Morvern Callar / Ratcatcher Andrea Arnold - Red Road Under The Skin - I still haven't seen it but its billed as a great lost British film Lisa Gornick - an acquired taste, but I like her - hyper-middle-class lesbian filmmaker i could probably name gazillions of great UK short filmmakers At Rotterdam one of my fave features this year was Turistas (director's last film was called Play meant to be great) and of course Jane Campion - her shorts and early work rarely gets screened - but also i reckon In The Cut (2003) is massively underrated - would be well up for doing an intro to that one if I ever got asked! Alison Murray is pretty cool - Mouth to Mouth was flawed but well worth seeing, starring Ellen Page and Carol Morley's The Alcohol Years is one of my favourite all-time documentaries Astra Taylor, Canadian doc director made Zizek and Examined Life new director Lindy Heyman is well worth looking out for her debut Kicks is currently looking for distribution" here here to valie export

also worm showed a programme of abstract experimental films by a female director which sounded great. what was her name though? check worm. and there is also lynn hershman-leeson, who made the documentary 'strange culture' about the fbi investigation of steve kurtz (critical art ensemble) as a bio-terrorist, as well as many others the surrealist germaine dulac. to add to the unending list Just rememberd a good french female director who made 2 films that had excellent critical acclaim, one of which has an actor that I think is very good: Dir: Laurence Ferreira Barbosa Films: Normal people are nothing special (1993) and I hate love (1996) - with laurent Lucas, the very good actor.

Sean Kaye-Smith: I'm not sure if I should be 'discussing' or editing this page. Sorry if I'm messing it up. The Star and Shadow don't seem to have heard of the pioneering British film director Jane Arden (1927-82). In addition to acting and writing for theatre and television, Jane Arden wrote and starred in 'Separation' (Jack Bond 1968), wrote and directed 'The Otherside of the Underneath' (1972), the only British feature film of the 1970s directed by a woman, and wrote and co-directed 'Anti-Clock' (1979). Last year the British Film Institue found and remastered all three features and her 1974 short 'Vibration' and all are available on DVD with detailed accompanying booklets. All of Jane Arden's films, like her TV and theatre work, are radical and experimental and certainly not family viewing.

Jane Arden's Wikipedia page is 'Jane Arden (Director)' and more information can be found at www.myspace.com/janeardendotcom