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"Strong Island" Essays

6 min read

I can’t understand

by Amy Wasney

February 25, 2019

Both willingly and unwillingly, Yance and so many others have done so much emotional labor to tell us their stories and relive their trauma, all to reveal to us the
"Strong Island" Essays

5 min read

The burden of heartbreak

by Atavia Reed

February 25, 2019

When the lights in “Strong Island” (2017) begin to dim and the credits start to roll, the viewer is left with an echo of a scream ringing intensely in their

"Strong Island" Essays, Trans Awareness Week

4 min read

‘Strong Island’: documentary filmmaking as a coming-of-age tale

by Jaylan Salah

February 25, 2019

It’s always the women, the queer, and the blacks. They are the ones who tell stories. They are the ones who dig deep into their families’ histories. They are the

"Strong Island" Essays, Trans Awareness Week

9 min read

The contours of fear: a documentary elegy

by Marjorie H. Morgan

February 25, 2019

It is a pessimistic view of life in America, and for Yance Ford and millions of people who look like him, it is a daily reality: living with the fear
Chicago, Documentaries, Interviews

1 min read

An interview with Docademia cofounder Nassim Abdi

by Rebecca Martin

February 25, 2019

We spoke with Nassim Abdi, Ph.D, on what inspired her to found Docademia and the power of using documentaries when teaching in classrooms. Docademia is a social initiative that uses
Chicago, Documentaries, Interviews

1 min read

An interview with documentary filmmakers Katy Osborn and Andrea Alberti

by Rebecca Martin

February 25, 2019

We interviewed filmmakers Katy Osborn and Andrea Alberti about their documentary “Head to Head.” “Head is Head” is about the hair industry, women who struggle with hair loss, and how

"Strong Island" Essays

4 min read

Cinema Femme Documentary Issue — Editor’s Letter

by Rebecca Martin

February 25, 2019

I’ve always loved how documentaries can connect with viewers by taking them through worlds that are not their own. And some documentaries, like Yance Ford’s “Strong Island” (2017), our Issue

Interviews

5 min read

A conversation between Cinema Femme founder Rebecca Martin and filmmaker Tiffany Addison

by Rebecca Martin

January 22, 2019

"My mentor (Mark Harris) was the director of this film, and I coproduced it with him and starred in the film. 'Nothing Like Thanksgiving' will air on Thanksgiving of this
Chicago, Interviews, Short Films

5 min read

A conversation between Cinema Femme founder Rebecca Martin and filmmaker/actor Clare Cooney

by Rebecca Martin

January 22, 2019

I first heard about filmmaker and actor Clare Cooney after her buzzworthy short film “Runner” (2017) showed at the Chicago Critics Film Festival in 2018. A few months later, I
Chicago International Film Festival, International Films, Interviews

6 min read

Filmmaker Michal Aviad talks with Pamela Powell about her film ‘Working Woman’

by Pamela Powell

January 22, 2019

Michal Aviad’s newest film, “Working Woman,” premiered at TIFF and recently screened at the Chicago International Film Festival. “Working Woman” (2018) tells a remarkably timely tale of sexual harassment in
"Black Panther" Essays

8 min read

Body, Heart, Soul

by Amy Wasney

January 22, 2019

General Okoye, Spy Nakia, Princess Shuri. The film might be “Black Panther” (2018), but without these women, there would be no T’Challa, no Black Panther, no Wakanda, no Earth. While
"Black Panther" Essays

6 min read

Third world as we do not know it: why we need more Black Panthers that defy white patriarchy

by Jaylan Salah

January 19, 2019

Watching “Black Panther” has given me a similar experience, being from a country that most privileged nations deem “third world,” “regressed,” and “developing.” I belong to the same continent, if