The Female Gaze

Overview

We're all used to seeing movies from the male perspective, even if we don't know it. The enormous gender imbalance in the film industry means that that's the status quo, and it shows few signs of changing. Thankfully, nestled within the mass of man-centric content are a few gems with a difference. Sometimes they're made by female filmmakers. Sometimes they're about atypical female characters.

In a program called The Female Gaze, Brisbane Festival shines the spotlight on cinema that challenges the status quo when it comes to gender. Opening with the Queensland premiere of The Diary of a Teenage Girl starring Bel Powley, Kristen Wiig and Alexander Skarsgård, and cycling through six other old and new titles — such as Cannes Film Festival 2014 camera d'Or winner Party Girl, the exploration of Albanian customs that is Sworn Virgin, and Gena Rowlands in John Cassavetes’ legendary Opening Night — it's a much-needed blast of femme-fuelled sunshine in an otherwise blokey filmscape.