Feminist Philosophy and Performance-based Media

This is an advanced production/theory class for philosophy and film/video students. Through readings, screenings, and discussion we will question the visual and performative epistemologies of a range of filmmakers in the context of feminist philosophical writings by among others, Kristeva, Irigaray, Spivak, Braidotti, Butler, Lugones, and Ahmed. We will consider the works of Mona Hatoum, Ximena Cuevas, Apichatpong Weerasethakul, Florence Ayisi, Kim Longinotto and Marguerite Duras among others, and examine the diverse performative strategies these video and filmmakers use to confront questions of gender, race, class, sexuality and transnationality. We will examine how these films cut across performative codes in moves that question the act and meaning of performance in relation to media; how they reflect the artists' drive to create visual and physical languages that embody the questions and ideas that inspire them; and how these films speak with and/or against the feminisms envisaged in the philosophical literature. Students will complete a paper, two short collaborative videos and one longer performance-based project on film or video. Prerequisites: Video I, Film I, or another 100 or 200 level production/theory class or a 100 or 200 level class in philosophy, Literature, feminist theory, or postcolonial theory. Instructor permission required.