Trailblazing Through the Decades: Jessie Maple (1980s)
Jessie Maple is the first black woman to join the union of International Photographers of Motion Picture & Television (IATSE) in New York. Her book, How to Become a Union Camerawoman , is an instructional guide illustrating the obstacles that she endured to get into the union. It details the court case she initiated to fight discrimination after she became a member.
READ MORETrailblazing Through the Decades: Ida Lupino (1950s)
British-American actress and producer Ida Lupino, got her start directing when the director of the 1949 film Not Wanted suffered a heart attack during pre-production. Lupino stepped in and shot the film guerilla style to keep the movie on budget and on schedule. Budgeted at just over $150,000, the film grossed $1 million, and Lupino’s reputation spread through Hollywood studios even though the original director retained credit.
READ MOREThe Brookside Women’s Club of Harlan County
In 1973 the 13-month Brookside Strike brought almost 200 workers to battle Eastover Coal Company’s Brookside Mine and Prep Plant, a company owned by Duke Power. When filmmaker Barbara Kopple traveled to Harlan County, Kentucky, the resulting Academy award-winning documentary, Harlan County, U.S.A. (1976) captured a historic story. We look back on the film, which screens this Sunday, February 25th at UnionDocs.
READ MOREOne Big Union: A History of the Wobblies
Many have never heard of “Wobblies” or the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), but in the early 1900s, The Wobblies were laborers working in a variety of fields, who joined the movement which became known as “industrial unionism” under the IWW organization and they made headlines. 70 plus years following the founding of IWW, filmmakers Deborah Shaffer and Stewart Bird came together to bring the story of early American industrial radical labor reform back into the spotlight. Their documentary, The Wobblies (1979), shows the relevance of this history that still holds true today. The WFPF will screen the film at UNDO on January 28.
READ MOREStorytelling in the Wake of Disaster – Buffalo Creek Flood: An Act of Man
On December 3rd the NYWIFT Women’s Film Preservation Fund and UnionDocs will host a screening of Buffalo Creek Flood: An Act of Man, followed with a panel discussion with filmmaker Mimi Pickering (via Skype) and fellow artist/activist Sylvia Ryerson, moderated by labor rights activist, Michelle Miller. WFPF co-chair Kirsten Larvick describes the harrowing story of disaster, heartbreak, and government and corporate neglect that inspired the film.
READ MOREIntroducing the New WFPF Series From the Vault: Women’s Advocacy on Film
History is perfectly capable of repeating itself. Issues from the past that seem dated have a way of rearing their ugly heads once more to become present-day concerns. In an age when our collective memory can be short, and in the era of “disposable media,” the NYWIFT Women’s Film Preservation Fund (WFPF) and UnionDocs (UNDO) present FROM THE VAULT: WOMEN’S ADVOCACY ON FILM, a series of nine programs of preserved documentary films, screened monthly. The series considers the relationship of these films to contemporary nonfiction storytelling and makes a strong case for their preservation and continued study.
READ MOREAn Invitation from the Women’s Film Preservation Fund – WE WANT YOU!
The NYWIFT Women's Film Preservation Fund (WFPF) is currently seeking volunteers for significant positions within its committee: Head of our Fundraising Subcommittee, additional Fundraising Subcommittee members, and post-production professionals, especially with film experience, to serve on our Preservation Subcommittee. These positions are essential to strengthening our ongoing work to SAVE WOMEN’S FILM LEGACY. The WFPF, since its inception in 1995, has saved over 100 women-made movies, from silent to contemporary eras, in all genres. The films are on all subjects and represent women makers of all colors and a wide range of ethnic backgrounds. WFPF is the only fund in the world that focuses solely on preserving women’s cinematic heritage.
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