Films for Girls: Bechdel-Inspired Girl Positive Test

Films for Girls: Bechdel-Inspired Girl Positive Test

Last month after Kathryn Bigelow's Oscar victory, I cited a 2008 statistic from Melissa Silverstein's Women and Hollywood blog, indicating that only 6 of that year's 50 highest grossing films were focused on women. I had a few people ask me what I meant by "focus." Yes, the majority of box office hits probably feature women, but who do these films revolve around? A few weeks later, I came across a great test via GABblog to determine whether there is a focus on women in a film.

The Bechdel test, developed by artist and scholar Allison Bechdel (although she credits Liz Wallace for the test), involves three simple questions.

The Bechdel Test
1. Are there at least two women with names in the film?
2. Do they talk to each other?
3. Do they talk about something other than a man?

If you answered yes to the those three questions then you have a film with a focus on women. And you might be surprised to learn that the following films, which are favourites among young girls, failed the test: Shrek, Wall-E, Pirates of the Caribbean 1, 2 and 3, the Princess Bride, Up, Indiana Jones and Lord of the Rings 1, 2 and 3--all films that I have watched with my 7-year-old daughter. No wonder she thinks it would be cool to be a boy. For a more complete list of blockbusters that flunk the Bechdel test, watch this 2-minute video by Feminist Frequency.

Another blogsite, Angry Black Woman, posted this test for people of colour (POC) in media. This test and subsequent analysis caused a stir, generating 159 comments.


1. There has to be two POCs with names.
2. They have to talk to each other.
3. They have to talk about someone other than the white person.

If you still need some more compelling evidence of just how underrepresented women in film are, I suggest that you read this article by Jennifer Kesler, a former screenwriter in Hollywood. Kessler states that although she moved to California from a state that still held Klu Klux Klan rallies, she found a more insidious form of bigotry there in the film industry.

I have to admit that I was taken aback when I saw the list of films that didn't feature at least two women talking about someone other than a white guy. But I am more concerned about the impact this will have on my daughter. I decided we needed a test for young girls and came up with this:


The Girl-Positive test

1) There has to be two girls with names.
2) Two girls discuss their hopes and dreams.
3) These hopes and dreams do not ultimately lead to the attention of a boy.

I think that it's time to start compiling a list of movies for young girls and adolescents that reflect the rich lives of girls and women.

Here's the start of my list:
Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind
Princess Monoke
Kiki's Delivery
Coraline

Parents, please help me build my list. Can you think of any other films that pass the Girl Positive test?

Mexican doll artist Norma Andreu created Frida Kahlo- and Remedios Varo-inspired dolls currently on display at Artistri, 5319 Park Avenue, Montreal. My next post will be on this artist and two of her other collections.


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Participatory Video: Wapikonimobile

Participatory Video: Wapikonimobile

As many of us already know, the people we see in mainstream media are generally not representative of the public at large. Although efforts have been made in recent decades to make our media more reflective of our population, some groups are still sadly under-represented. In Canada, the First Nations, or natives, are unfortunately nearly absent from both our big and small screens.

After discovering photo-voice last April, I learned of another wonderful project here in Quebec that uses participatory video (PV), another means of giving a voice to marginalized peoples. PV gives communities the opportunity to tell their stories, explore issues and be proactive in finding their own solutions, while the end product, the video itself, serves to show their lives to the outside world.

After the extraordinary experience of making films with youth in the First Nations community of Wemotaci and with homeless youth in Quebec City, Manon Barbeau drew on her inspiration to create Wapikonimobile, a traveling film-making and music-recording outfit, which has been crisscrossing the province since 2004. Barbeau wanted to offer native youth a type of forum where they could exchange among peers, develop an appreciation for their culture, learn some technical skills and fulfill their dreams in a substance-free environment.

The National Film Board of Canada and other partners provided the necessary support to make the project possible. The Wapikonimobile has since traveled more than 16,000 km to First Nations communities throughout the province. The team of instructors arrives in a community and teaches a group of 12 youth the art of film making, editing and music recording. After the project is completed, there is an area presentation.

Last October 13, there was the annual mini-festival in Montreal featuring 13 of the best shorts to come out of the Wapikonimobile project in 2009. In addition, the first permanent studio was inaugurated in Wemotaci in 2006, and there are plans for more permanent studios in other communities. Barbeau's long term goal is to set up a series of studios to form the first Aboriginal audiovisual production co-operative in North America.

A short to come out of this project, "War of Life," is a 7-minute short about a young woman who questions her Mohawk identity. NB: You will hear the narrator speak of Native Americans. Please bear in mind that the Mohawks live in Quebec, Ontario and New York State.

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Photo-voice: girl behind the camera
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