2016 Bluestocking Film Series Highlights Women in Film
Posted by Leah on
7/11/2016 12:52:07 PM
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In the world of film festivals there is truly something for everyone. There are Jewish festivals, African American festivals, children’s festivals, independent festivals, horror festivals; I could go on and on! The number and types of film festivals out there are as diverse and plentiful as the films they showcase, and the upcoming 2016 Bluestocking Film Series is no different.
The Bluestocking Film Series is the brain child of Kate Kaminski, and showcases only films that have female protagonists and main characters who don’t spend all of their time talking about men. If you’re wondering why Kate, or anyone else for that matter, would consider having a female centric film festival, consider this: According to recent research by the New York Film Academy, who looked at the top 500 films from 2007-2012, only 10.7% of movies have gender equal casting. Only 30.8% of speaking roles in films are women. In 2013 the highest paid actress, Angelina Jolie, made $33 million, which is roughly equivalent to the two lowest paid men. Roughly a third of female speaking characters in films are shown in sexually revealing attire, or are partially naked. And then there’s my role in all of this. According to a study by The Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film, only roughly 27% of film critics are women. Given all of these statistics it’s a wonder that there aren’t more female centric film festivals!
Kate Kaminski, Founder and Artistic Director of Bluestocking Film Series
I spoke to Bluestocking Film Series’ founder and Artistic Director Kate Kaminski to find out more about the festival in general, and the films selected. She told me that as far as the films themselves are concerned, they have chosen to showcase only short films for now, in order to keep operating costs, ticket prices and entry fees low and accessible. Each film, upon being entered, must pass the Bechdel-Wallace Test, which states that a given film must have at least two women with names, who talk to each other for more than a few seconds about something other than men. Other criteria considered include a female protagonist who has her own thoughts, needs, and desires. While these criteria may seem rather strict, Kate told me that there is certainly not a lack of entries. “We received 135 entries this year, which made it very hard to decide which films to fill our 22 slots with. The submissions came from all over the world, including Croatia, Spain, New Zealand, The UK, Argentina, and Australia, to name a few. We try to include films from as large a variety of countries, genres and ethnic backgrounds as possible. Diversity in film is very important to us,” she said.
Photo courtesy of Bluestocking.com
The mission of the Bluestocking Film Series is to show people that nothing is missing from female centric films, and it’s a mission that has rung true for an ever growing audience throughout the years. Kate started the festival on her own six years ago, when she received the news that the beloved Women and Girls Film Festival in Portland, ME would no longer be put on. She was inspired to create her own festival because there was no longer one in Maine showcasing women’s talent in film, so she started Bluestocking. Bluestocking has continued to grow, and is quickly becoming a destination festival for Portland. Kate expects attendance to grow by at least 20% this year.
22 films will be shown over the course of the three day festival, and they run the gamut from comedy, to horror, to drama, to sci-fi and everything in between. Many of the filmmakers will be in attendance, and numerous special panels will be held, focusing on women in film. There will also be festival parties and networking events held on each day of the festival. Female or male, Bluestocking promises to have something for everyone!
The Bluestocking Film Series will take place Thursday July 14-Saturday July 16 in Portland, ME. For more information, including exact addresses of events, a schedule of the films to be shown and for tickets, please go to BluestockingFilms.com