The Politics of Screens: Women-Practice-Representation

This module explores the place of women in the film and television industries in terms of both practice and representation. To do so, after first examining landmark early models of feminist film analysis, the module is organised around a series of case studies and themes. These pursue an awareness of intersectional feminism (including attention to sexuality, race, and ageing, for example), gender and genre, and the import of postfeminism in more recent times, while exploring the work of women practitioners in a range of contexts (for example, Dunye, Sciamma, Bigelow, Meyers, Rae). Importantly, ‘Women-Practice-Representation’ provides a dedicated module on the programme which is driven by interrogating issues in representation and screen media, while also crucially examining some of the particular challenges that have met women working in these industries. It considers the changing political and cultural landscapes surrounding such issues, which students will engage with during their everyday lives, but also to encourage awareness of these issues in terms of their own future professional relationships and practice.