introduction

why women do(n't) make films

in the beginning there was...

evolutions

new century movements

an interesting question of gender

sponsorship & volunteers

WOMEN OF MOTION

PROGRAMMES

bibliography

links

evolutions page 1/2

Over the years Women in Motion has undergone a number of changes, both in format and content. Whilst each year's film festival reflected the variety of short films made by women during that period of time, there were a number of developments which were not simply a case of new material being available.

filmmaking demonstrations

"Fabulous - showed problems of filming, technicalities and gave students an awareness of the process."
(Ivanhoe Girls, Evaluation Summary, Activities and Finance Final Report, 1993)

Perhaps the most significant development occurred in the second year of the festival: the filmmaking demonstration. The opportunity to actually see a film scene being shot was not only a chance to have an insight into how filmmaking occurred, but also an opportunity to see women in control of the creative and technical processes. The decision to include a filmmaking demonstration in 1992 reflected the access to equipment at a secondary level during the period, as well as an indication of the differences between visual and media literacy in the early Nineties compared to today:

"...we're talking nearly ten years ago, unlike today where all students are very media literate and video literate and have probably got access to digital cameras and making their own movies. But back then by and large they probably wouldn't have had an experience of watching what actually is involved when a scene is filmed. So it was a really interesting process for them to realise that its not just a matter of setting up a few lights and the actors recounting their lines. To actually watch a director, first of all working with the actors and focusing on performance, and explaining what they are doing step by step, and then the same thing where you had the crew each going about their jobs and explaining what they were doing...it was a really fantastic opportunity and one that again, just illuminated for young women just precisely what goes into making up...the filmed or videoed image, and thinking about where there interest might lie within all that." (Sue Maslin 2000)

Marsha Emerman's decision to include a live filmmaking demonstration was an example of the way in which Women in Motion adjusted to the needs of the audience it was trying to reach. After the success of the first Women in Motion in 1990 the request for something a little more active for the students was solved by the incorporation of the afternoon filmmaking demonstrations in later years. Beginning in 1992 with a section from the Woody Allen film "Hannah and Her Sisters", in later years the film chosen for the demonstration was always a segment from an Australian film.

1992 Hannah and Her Sisters
1993 Father
1994 My Brilliant Career
1995 Only the Brave
1996 That Eye The Sky
1997 Muriel's Wedding
2000 Looking for Alibrandi

The filmmaking demonstrations were also an example of the variety of women practitioners connected with WIFT(victoria). Most of the women who were involved in the demonstrations were recruited from existing WIFT(victoria) members, although those that were contacted from outside of the organisation often went on to become members:

"...because WIFT was a large organisation it had a lot of members who were already involved in all these of these areas, obviously we mainly recruited from our own members...and we would have known who did what I mean that was part of our service as well, we had a job networking service and so we knew amongst the members who was involved. But sometimes we did have to go outside of our membership, actually sometimes we recruited new members that way as well because some of the women I asked to come didn't know about WIFT. Some of the people particularly who worked in sort of the more mainstream industry side of things as production designers, or costume designers, or something didn't even know about WIFT." (Marsha Emerman 2000)

The success of the filmmaking demonstration in 1992 meant that it became a permanent part of Women In Motion, and over the years the crews have included such well-known women as Ana Kokkinos (Head On), Sue Brooks (Road to Nhill), and actress Genevieve Picot (Proof), among many others.