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This Often-Forgotten Group of Female Filmmakers Revolutionized an Entire Industry

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This Often-Forgotten Group of Female Filmmakers Revolutionized an Entire Industry This often-forgotten group of female filmmakers revolutionized an entire industry. Through their cinematic contributions, these women continue to provide inspiration for following generations of filmmakers and artists. Alice Guy Blache: - Involved in over 1000 films between 1895 and 1920, Alice Guy Blache learned everything she could about the motion picture camera from photographer Leon Gaumont and the Lumiere Brothers. Over the years, Blache’s natural feel for cinematic narratives truly made her one of the most powerful figures in the industry, regardless of gender. She was the first woman to start a film production company of her own, Solax Studios, in 1910. She was one of the first to experiment with color, special effects, and synchronized sound technology. It’s safe to say that every other great director in film history owes a lot to Alice Guy Blache; Martin Scorsese once called her “a filmmaker of rare sensitivity, with a remarkable poetic eye.” Mabel Normand: - Mabel Normand’s identification as Mack Sennett’s girlfriend, and appearances in Charlie Chaplin’s earliest motion pictures, would overshadow the memory of her being America’s first major film comedienne. Having begun her film career in 1909 at the age of sixteen, she was directing Charlie Chaplin in motion pictures like Mabel at the Wheel just 5 years later. Mabel Normand had her own studio by 1916, and she appeared in over 215 films during her career. Equally comfortable with drama or comedy of manners, Mabel Normand was a charismatic filmmaker particularly adept at slapstick. Lois Weber: - Beginning her career in 1907, Lois Weber felt strongly about using film as a medium for kickstarting political change. With films portraying abortion, poverty, the wage gap, and so many other topics that are controversial even today, Weber was one of the early auteurs. She was a pioneer in using technical innovation to further screen narrative, as seen in the dramatic use of a split screen in her 1913 film, Suspense. Cementing her place in the industry as an undeniable force for social issues, Weber also made sure she used her position at the studios to help more women learn the craft of filmmaking. “I grew up in the business when everybody was so busy learning their particular branch of the new industry, no one had time to notice whether or not a woman was gaining a foothold.” Lita Lawrence: - Lita Lawrence is believed to be the very first female African American director of narrative feature films. Her most well-known work was Motherhood: Life’s Greatest Miracle in 1925, a film which was thought to be lost until 2015, when it was rediscovered and acquired by the Library of Congress. This landmark film addresses the issues of abortion and birth control for women in the 1920s. Marion E. Wong: - As the first Asian American film-maker, Marion E Wong started the Mandarin Film Company in Oakland, CA, in 1917. The Curse of Quon Gwon, which she wrote, directed, and edited in 1916 and 1917, makes the earliest example of Chinese American independent film known to exist today. Wong also casts herself as a complex villain as the traditional mother-in-law of the immigrant family torn between past and present. Wong seems to be enthusiastic to present Chinese culture to Westerners. In a July 1917 edition of The Motion Picture World, describing the plot of The Curse of Quon Gwon, Marion said, "I decided to introduce them to the world. I at first wrote a love story; then I decided that people who are interested in my people and my country would like to see some of the customs and manners of China." Zora Neale Hurston: - Born in 1891, Zora Neale Hurston had an idyllic childhood, growing up in a culturally affirming community in Eatonville, Florida: the first incorporated black township in the U.S. Seeing the evidence of black achievement all around her, Hurston was never indoctrinated by false claims relating to racial inferiority. Besides her better-known work as a novelist, During her work as a student of anthropology, Hurston captured a variety of short talks of African American life. Hurston’s films include Children’s Games and Lodging in 1928, and Baptism in 1929. Angela Murray Gibson: - Known for her range of capabilities, writer, director, and actress Angela Murray Gibson was a trailblazer for women in the film industry. Gibson studied film at Columbia University, learning skills that she would later utilize in her 1923 film, That Ice Ticket. On top of Gibson’s struggle as a woman within the film industry, she was also at a geographical disadvantage in the opening of Gibson Studios, the first motion picture studio in North Dakota. Gibson’s primary interest lied in documentary filmmaking, utilizing and highlighting elements of her home town that were second nature in her life. Helen Holmes: - Helen Holmes started her career in 1912 with Keystone, until she signed with Kalem Company. Holmes appeared in more than 30 short films, and her athletic ability to do stunts led her to a big break in show business. In 1914 she performed all of her own stunts in the series The Hazards of Helen, which include leaping onto runaway trains in pursuit of robbers. In a few instances, she was supposed to be rescued by the handsome hero, but ends up saving herself. Still passionate about the arts after her popularity declined in the 1920s, Helen Holmes went back to acting on the stage, working ten years on Broadway. "I don't mind hanging over bridges and jumping from horses' backs to runaway engines. It's rather fun… What I hate is wearing these greasy old overalls." Nell Shipman: - Nell Shipman was a fearless woman who took on challenges with live animals on set, and made her mark as The Girl from God’s Country. Starting acting at the age of 18 she travelled in Vaudeville acts before gaining her big break in the motion pictures. Shipman as a director would then transform her sets by using various locations and showcased how animals should be treated. Shipman hated to see the cruelty of animals on set. She vowed that there would be no guns, no whips, no lassoes, and no drugs to use on the animals-- going as far as having the largest owned private zoo. Alla Nazimova: - Beginning her career in the theatre before embracing motion pictures, Russian-born Alla Nazimova first found fame starring as an empowering suffragist in 1916’s “War Brides.” She was a well-known early LGBTQIA+ icon in the film industry and fulfilled nearly every role behind the scenes at her production company, Nazimova Productions. Nazimova, like many other women at the time, faced great hardship in the industry due to her gender and sexual orientation; at one time in her career, she even wrote her screenplays under a male pseudonym. .
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