Film Categories: Work by Women

  • Wheel, The

    A mother breastfeeds her child. A woman peels an orange. Originally created for installation, “The Wheel” has also screened as a single-channel video work.

  • Even Flowers Wake Up in the Morning

    “A powerful visual tribute to a lost loved one. Superimposing hand-processed film footage with home movie imagery, director Tara Khalili conveys an eloquent personal message of mourning. Funerary footage mixes with that of a quiet home, resulting in sensitive reflections on loss and remembrance.” – Alex Rogalski, Hot Docs Festival 2010 “Even Flowers Wake Up in the Morning” is a filmic expression of my feelings about the absence and death of my Iranian grandfather. Memories of him flicker in my head as if I were watching a projector shining old film clips in a dark theater. In this film, I…

  • Shutter

    “Shutter” tracks the rising sun, the lengthening shadows and the darkening day of a total solar eclipse. “Shutter” is a formal exploration of the phenomenon of the sun eclipsing objects in the natural world. Inspired by footage of friend and amateur astronomer Andreas Gada’s 16mm recording of the 1980 total solar eclipse, this work captures the beauty, complexity and terror of the shifting light that precedes and accompanies a solar eclipse. Shadow, focal variance and illumination of earth-bound nature conspire along the course to the incomparable moment of totality.

  • Trailing Arbutus

    It’s 1975 and Toronto horticulture enthusiasts are buzzing with excitement; Dr. Timothy Arbutus, the famous British flower arranger, makes his Canadian début at Toronto’s O’Keefe Centre. Onstage he thrills the audience with his colourful bouquets and delightful banter. But all is not as beautiful in Arbutus’ world as his bouquets would suggest. Backstage in his dressing room, a dark drama unfolds. His devoted manservant, Fitzrooy, has just learned that he has been replaced by Larry, the hot young stage manager – and Arbutus’ latest fling. Distraught, the straitlaced Fitzrooy secretly follows the two lovers into Toronto’s gay underworld, determined to…

  • Doll House

    In “Doll House”, Barbara Hammer captures an echo of the militant feminism that informed her earlier work. “Doll House” was released in the U.S. along with four of her other short films as a feature-length package, “Lesbian Humor: The Films of Barbara Hammer, Volume I” (Planet Out).

  • Letters

    “Letters” is a poetic, reflective expression of the filmmaker’s rediscovery of her roots and coming out later in life as a Jewish lesbian. Although this is one person’s story, it poignantly touches the heart of what it means to be Jewish and gay. “Letters” was created as part of the Legacy Video Project, a special multi-generational mentoring program in celebration of the 20th Anniversary of the Inside Out Toronto LGBT Film and Video Festival. Three seniors and four youth journeyed together for five months, learning the skills to create short videos that would both challenge and touch us. Selected Screenings:…

  • Chute

    A hypnotic mass self-portrait from within the runners’ chute at the end of the 2009 Ottawa Marathon. The dramatic enactment of an endless final reward cycle in our inevitable tumble, together and alone, towards the unknown: connect, release, repeat.

  • Olivia

    Two girls, four strings and a bathroom are all it takes for a seduction. Official Selection Frameline LGBT Film Festival (2010)

  • Main Event, The

    A macho man romance, “The Main Event” is a dramatic short about two pro wrestlers, Righteous Ted and The Axe, who fall in love inside the ring.

  • Coda

    This tiny film is a poem which recapitulates many of the ideas presented in the earlier films and serves as a tiny song/verse to remind the viewer of the things that have come before and the things which will continue in the future.