Skip to main content

International Women's Day screening

International Women's Day screening brought to you by Women in Film and Television Victoria and Deakin University.

"I need to have my hands on the DNA of a film". Kathryn Bigalow

A special evening for staff and students of Deakin University who work hard in bringing stories to life was staged on Thursday the 12th of March, 2015 at Deakin Edge, Federation Square as part of International Women's Day.  Ten female filmmakers from Deakin University who have graduated were showcased in collaboration with WIFT Vic to showcase the talent of women in the film and television industry and to celebrate the achievements of these women.  A Wiftvic is a membership based non-profit organisation made up of women who are either working or wanting to work in the film and television industry.
 WIFT's aim is to encourage and support women already working in the industry and to also assist more women get into the industry, in particular areas where women are under-represented.

To have a voice on screen that touches audiences, locally, nationally and Internationally is a unique feat in itself.  'Make it Happen' is the overall 2015 theme for International Women's day, encouraging effective action for advancing and recognising women around the globe at a time when women are still questioning why wages are not equal, or domestic violence is still an occurance...and closer to home why female directors are not equally represented. Events, such as this one,  send a powerful message to all women, that together and with appropriate support, women can generate confidence to make the changes they so desire. 


When this idea was first suggested to Deakin University there was nothing but enthusiasm for this event, clearly indicating that their graduates are an important extension to their philosophical and nurturing outlook on learning.  Having studied at Deakin University there are a few words that I always use to describe the general feel of the University, innovative, diverse, and all-inclusive.  Testament then, as to the high calibre of films that were showcased on Thursday night by filmmakers that had the opportunity to be supported whilst at Deakin to create films that are timeless in quality.  Nadia Tass, esteemed filmmaker and new Adjunct Professor at Deakin University was one of the key note speakers alongside Professor Brenda Cherednichenko, Pro Vice- Chancellor, Faculty of Arts and Education.  I moderated the panel discussion and I noted that the one important theme that was raised throughout the discussion was the opportunity that Deakin University has provided for women to make films, but also to help forge the professional networks and relationships that have been imperative for their future careers in the film and television industry.



The filmmakers that showed their films were as follows: Sandi Austin, Mr Wasinski's Song, 2001, Rachel Wilson, Trapped II, Quiche, Escapes, 1992, Emma Sullivan, The Beginning of the End, 2014, Fiona Eagger & Elisa Argenzio, The Gorilla of Africa, 1994,  Fiona Eagger, The Seal, 1994, Cristina Pozzan, Miles of Music, 1985, Message to my girl, 1984, Taryn Logan, Microwave Minute, 2014, Sheersha Perera, She, 2008, Jessica Batsas, How to Desexualise a Woman's Image on the Screen, 2014, Maria Theodorakis, Car Lady and Bike Girl, 2006.

I want to congratulate all the Deakin Alumni filmmakers, Deakin University staff, WIFT board members and WIFT members alike who all collaborated in making this screening a success.  I can't imagine a world without film, and for someone who also makes films,  I can't imagine not having my hands on the DNA of a film, constantly and daily.










Stella Dimadis
March 2015.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Writer's block

Writer's block The Writer's responsibility is to his art.  He will be completely ruthless if he is a good one.  He has a dream.  It anguishes him so much he must get rid of it.  He has no peace until then... William Faulkner  Having written films, articles, essays, reports, it has always, at one stage or another, plagued me when I have had writer's block.  That moment when I sit staring at the computer screen as if it is an alien standing it's ground in a duel for battle with me.  Eyeing me, daring me to drop my weapons of my imagination.  The frustration builds up and chocolate beckons, serenading the virtues of itself.  It is all too familiar, this battle, and I may have thrown my writing in all together had it not been for my editor in the late 90's when I completed some articles for Who Weekly. I remember grizzling into the phone line with him that my writing was not perfect...there was something missing...I couldn't pinpoint it....
2 comments
Read more

Memories are the key not to the past, but to the future.

"Memories are the key not to the past, but to the future. "   Corrie Ten Boom Corrie Ten Boom was a Dutch watchmaker, who had helped many Jews escape during the Holocaust, was a prisoner and then a writer.  She held many memories, no doubt, fears; images that would stay forever and haunt her, but they were able to unlock a future for her that she would never have imagined.  Her writing and her boldness initiated her knighthood by the Queen of the Netherlands, The King's College in New York City named a new women's house in her honour, her book "The Hiding Place", was  made into a feature film, twice. Locked away in our computer hard drives are examples of our work and lives that we lock away when our computer sleeps, forgetting about their importance because we are always told to focus on the now, forgetting about our past.  Well, perhaps it is time that we also learn to love our past, regardless of what it was like, so that we can understand what our...
Post a Comment
Read more

25.12

25.12   "To discover our reality we must explore our illusion" Stella Dimadis 25.12 is based on the short story, 'Christmas' written by Thanasis Papastergiou. It has been adapted into a screenplay by me with production on the short film  having  started in 2014, and completed in 2015. The short film revolves around an older man who faces loneliness on Christmas Day and the actions and repercussions that he goes through, in trying to experience the festivities of Christmas. When most people share Christmas day with their families, organising gifts and feasting on wonderful food, what becomes of those people who don't have anyone to experience Christmas, Easter or associated milestones throughout the year? I explore the foundations of the emotional rollercoaster of such an experience through the use of colour, the landscape, music and the art of film to exemplify this mental state. It was easy for me to see the film before production as I ...
Post a Comment
Read more