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Digest entry: 02/27/2023 @ 10:13 AM

Wednesday, March 1 | Demystifying the Male Gaze: A Discussion with Filmmaker Nina Menkes (Laurie Holland)

Wednesday, March 1, 2023 at 7:00 PM
Webinar link: https://bowdoin.zoom.us/j/97246481356
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In this virtual talk, independent filmmaker Nina Menkes will discuss the “male gaze” through her film Brainwashed: Sex-Camera-Power (2022), and ongoing calls for greater inclusivity and diversity within the entertainment industry. For more than 30 years, Menkes has worked to create feature films that subvert Hollywood storytelling conventions and patriarchal norms. In Brainwashed, Menkes turns to feature-length documentary to deconstruct the gendered nature of film language. Inspired by Laura Mulvey’s well-known concept of “the male gaze,” Menkes analyzes famous film clips from the 1890s to the present to argue that shot design is inherently sexist. This visual language, Menkes argues, contributes to the industry’s permissive culture of sexual violence and employment discrimination, pervasive issues that the #MeToo movement has only recently brought to light.  The film, featuring interviews with Mulvey and prominent directors including Julie Dash and Jill Soloway, is a valuable conversation starter about visual culture, gender politics, and ongoing calls for more equitable and inclusive work environments. The event will be moderated by Cinema Studies visiting professor Tanya Goldman.

Presented by the Cinema Studies Program with support from Lectures and Concerts, the Gender, Sexuality, and Women’s Studies Program, and the English Department.