documentary film
A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional film, motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". Bill Nichols (film critic), Bil ...
about the history of lesbian and queer cinema from the women who made it happen. The documentary is the first feature-length film of New York City based director and editor,
Caroline Berler
Caroline may refer to:
People
*Caroline (given name), a feminine given name
* J. C. Caroline (born 1933), American college and National Football League player
* Jordan Caroline (born 1996), American (men's) basketball player
Places Antarctica
*Ca ...
.
Synopsis
The film is the exploration of lesbian cinema from the 1970s to now. Filmmakers
Barbara Hammer
Barbara Jean Hammer (May 15, 1939 – March 16, 2019) was an American feminist film director, producer, writer, and cinematographer. She is known for being one of the pioneers of the lesbian film genre, and her career spanned over 50 years. Hamm ...
,
Su Friedrich
Su Friedrich (born December 12, 1954) is an American avant-garde film director, producer, writer, and cinematographer.
Early life
Su Friedrich was born in 1954 in New Haven, Connecticut. Her mother was German and came to the US with Friedric ...
,
Rose Troche
Rose Troche (born 1964) is an American film and television director, television producer, and screenwriter.
Early life and education
Troche was born to Puerto Rican parents and grew up on the north side of Chicago. In an interview she stated, "M ...
,
Cheryl Dunye
Cheryl Dunye (; born May 13, 1966) is a Liberian-American film director, producer, screenwriter, editor and actress. Dunye's work often concerns themes of race, sexuality, and gender, particularly issues relating to black lesbians. She is known ...
,
Yoruba Richen
Yoruba Richen (born 1972, in New York City, New York) is an American film director, screenwriter and producer. Her work has been featured on PBS, New York Times Op Doc, Frontline Digital, New York Magazine’s website -The Cut, The Atlantic and ...
,
Desiree Akhavan
Desiree Akhavan (born December 27, 1984) is an American filmmaker, writer and actress. She is best known for her 2014 feature film debut '' Appropriate Behavior'',Vicky Du, film critic
B. Ruby Rich
B. Ruby Rich is an American scholar; critic of independent, Latin American, documentary, feminist, and queer films; and a professor emerita of Film & Digital Media and Social Documentation at UC Santa Cruz. Among her many contributions, she is ...
,
Jenni Olson
Jenni Olson (born October 6, 1962) is a writer, archivist, historian, consultant, and non-fiction filmmaker based in Berkeley, California. She co-founded the pioneering LGBT website PlanetOut.com. Her two feature-length essay films — ''The Joy ...
, and others share from their lives and discuss how they've expressed lesbian and queer identity through film.
Cast reflects on and gives tribute to many influential films and television series:
* ''
Appropriate Behavior
''Appropriate Behavior'' is a British-produced comedy film set in New York City, which premiered on 18 January 2014 at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival. Written and directed by Desiree Akhavan, the film—Akhavan's feature directorial debut—stars ...
Before Stonewall
''Before Stonewall: The Making of a Gay and Lesbian Community '' is a 1984 American documentary film about the LGBT community prior to the 1969 Stonewall riots. It was narrated by author Rita Mae Brown, directed by Greta Schiller, co-directed by ...
'' (1984)
* ''
Bound
Bound or bounds may refer to:
Mathematics
* Bound variable
* Upper and lower bounds, observed limits of mathematical functions
Physics
* Bound state, a particle that has a tendency to remain localized in one or more regions of space
Geography
*B ...
The Celluloid Closet
''The Celluloid Closet'' is a 1995 American documentary film directed and written by Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman. The film is based on Vito Russo's 1981 book ''The Celluloid Closet: Homosexuality in the Movies'', and on lecture and film clip ...
'' (1995)
* ''
Desert Hearts
''Desert Hearts'' is a 1985 American romantic drama film directed by Donna Deitch. The screenplay, written by Natalie Cooper, is an adaptation of the 1964 lesbian novel '' Desert of the Heart'' by Jane Rule. Set in Reno, Nevada in 1959, it te ...
'' (1985)
* ''
This Film Is Not Yet Rated
''This Film Is Not Yet Rated'' is a 2006 American documentary film about the Motion Picture Association of America's rating system and its effect on American culture, directed by Kirby Dick and produced by Eddie Schmidt. It premiered at the 200 ...
'' (2006)
* ''
Go Fish
Go Fish or Fish is a card game usually played by two to five players, although it can be played wi ...
'' (1994)
* ''
High Art
High culture is a subculture that emphasizes and encompasses the cultural objects of aesthetic value, which a society collectively esteem as exemplary art, and the intellectual works of philosophy, history, art, and literature that a society con ...
'' (1998)
* ''
The Joy of Life
''The Joy of Life'' is a 2005 experimental landscape documentary film by filmmaker Jenni Olson about the history of suicide at the Golden Gate Bridge, and the adventures of a butch lesbian in San Francisco, California. Following its January 2005 ...
'' (2005)
* ''
The L Word
''The L Word'' is a television drama that aired on Showtime from January 18, 2004 to March 8, 2009. The series follows the lives of a group of lesbian and bisexual women who live in West Hollywood, California. The premise originated with Ilene Ch ...
'' television series (2004–2009)
* ''
The Watermelon Woman
''The Watermelon Woman'' is a 1996 American romantic comedy-drama film written, directed, and edited by Cheryl Dunye. It stars Dunye as Cheryl, a young black lesbian working a day job in a video store while trying to make a film about a black act ...
'' (1996)
Accolades
Caroline Berler received the
Outfest
Outfest is an LGBTQ-oriented nonprofit that produces two film festivals, operates a movie streaming platform, and runs educational services for filmmakers in Los Angeles. Outfest is one of the key partners, alongside the Frameline Film Festival ...