Women’s contributions to cinema have gone unacknowledged for far too long. “Women Make Film: A New Road Movie Through Cinema” aims to educate and enlighten audiences, illustrating how women behind the camera have made a huge impact on the medium — even if they haven’t been properly recognized for their art and innovations. A trailer just dropped for the doc, which boasts an epic running time of 14 hours.
“Most films have been directed by men. Most of the so-called movie classics were directed by men. For 13 decades and on all six filmmaking continents women have been making films too. Some of the best films,” says Tilda Swinton in the spot. “What movies did they make? What techniques did they use? What can be learned about cinema from them?”
Swinton narrates “Women Make Film” along with Jane Fonda, Sharmila Tagor, Adjoa Andoh, Kerry Fox, Thandie Newton, and Debra Winger. Featuring more than 700 clips from 183 female filmmakers, the doc is described as “film school through the eyes of women.”
Director Mark Cousins divided “Women Make Film” into five parts for its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival next month. Four hours of the doc screened at Venice last year, when Jennifer Kent was the only woman director with a film selected for Competition.