Turner Classic Movies (TCM) will premiere the lauded 14-part documentary Women Make Film, introducing weekly episodes from the series beginning on the television channel TCM September 1, 2020, at 8 pm EST and subsequent Tuesdays through December 1, 2020. The documentary series, written and directed by Mark Cousins, garnered world-wide attention at the 2019 Toronto International Film Festival. Narrated by Tilda Swinton, Jane Fonda, Thandie Newton, and more ask pertinent filmmaking questions about how stories evolve, finding the right shot, and editing, “all through the compelling lens of some of the world’s greatest directors—all of them women.”
According to Charles Tabesh, Senior Vice President of Programming, Production, and Content Strategy, Director Cousins is no stranger to TCM. He shared, “We’ve worked with Mark since 2013 when we featured his 15-part documentary, The Story of Film.” Tabesh who admires Cousins’ body of work continued, “…[Cousins] takes a very strong editorial position; he respects the intelligence of his audience; his knowledge of film history is greater than anyone I know. He’s an absolute pleasure to work with…so when the distributor for this project, Dogwoof, approached us about licensing it for TCM, I was immediately interested.”
Initially, Tabesh planned to play the film and augment it with the movies featured in the documentary. However, he stated, “I soon realized that there was no reason to be limited to only those titles—Mark had reasons for including certain films, but we didn’t need to be so rigid. Ultimately, I decided that it would make sense to accompany the documentary with many titles that weren’t necessarily included in Mark’s film, but that would still enhance his goal of celebrating the rich history of women filmmakers from around the world.” 
Thanks to this broad approach, TCM will now feature films from 12 decades—and representing 44 countries—totaling 100 classic and current titles all created by women. Films that inspired today’s best filmmakers include Barbara Kopple’s Harlan County U.S.A. (1976), and other bold filmmakers like Dorothy Arzner’s Merrily We Go To Hell (1932), Leontine Sagan’s Madchen in Uniform (1931), and current titles such as director Laurie Anderson’s Heart of a Dog (2015) are all a part of the series. Tabesh added, “… there are so many filmmakers that deserve to be known and appreciated, including many that most of us know nothing about. And I really wanted to represent as many countries and cultures as possible.”
Cinema has evolved over the last century, and many women—whose names are all but forgotten— are at the core of these changes. Revolutionary film techniques developed by women are now universally employed in the art form. As Tabesh stated, “They aren’t for ‘women’s films’ or ‘women’s stories,’ they’re just for great storytelling through film.”
The series is much like a film class. Each week’s topic is categorized into learnable bites: For example, “Night One: Openings and Tone” and “Night Twelve: Reveal, Memory, and Time” are all supplemented by featuring classic films supporting these topics making viewing not only entertaining but educational. Licensing many of these films proved to be challenging, but agreements were ultimately obtained from studios, independent distributors, and “our friends at Criterion.” Interestingly, many of the films were never or rarely seen in the United States, and the TCM team had to create their subtitles for some of these films. Viewers will better understand the process of filmmaking and the talent behind the scenes to produce our favorite films, or perhaps you’ll find a new favorite after seeing this series.
Special guests showcased in the series include Nicole Holofcener (Can You Ever Forgive Me?), Barbara Kopple (Desert One), Kirsten Johnson (Dick Johnson Is Dead), Wanuri Kahiu (Rafiki), Lizzie Borden (Born in Flames), Mira Nair (Queen of Katwe), and—of course—the writer and director of Women Make Film, Mark Cousins. These directors will be sharing their knowledge and insight about filmmaking and the impact of seeing the world through the female lens.
Tabesh hopes that ultimately viewers not only learn about women in the history of film but also get a glimpse “… into other cultures and get a feel for how different people live or lived in other times and places.” However, Tabesh accentuated the fact that “…there is and there has been sexism in the film industry, and barriers have [been] in place for women throughout much of film history, especially once it became big business and the Hollywood studios took control. But despite those barriers, there’s a rich and wonderful history of great films made by women that we should all know about and celebrate.”
Finding ways to help level the playing field in the future, “TCM is partnering with re: Imagine/ATL to host a contest for burgeoning female filmmakers. Entrants from the nonprofit’s No Comment program will have the chance to have their narrative or documentary featured on the TCM YouTube page, along with a filmmaking equipment package and cash prize.”
For more information about the series, go to https://womenmakefilm.tcm.com.
Photo Credits: Turner Classic Movies (TCM)
© Pamela Powell (08/28/20) FF2 Media
***
Here are the movies that will be screened on TCM in alphabetical order:
(We will be reviewing each of the movies, so please click on the links to read our reviews!)
10 to 11 (2009) directed by Pelin Esmer
27 Missing Kisses (2000) directed by Nana Dzhordzhadze
Adoption (1975) directed by Márta Mészáros
An Angel at My Table (1990) directed by Jane Campion
Angry Inuk (2016) directed by Alethea Arnaquq-Baril
Antonia’s Line (1995) directed by Marleen Gorris
Araya (1959) directed by Margot Benacerraf
Beau Travail (1999) directed by Claire Denis
Boat People (1982) directed by Ann Hui
Born in Flames (1983) directed by Lizzie Borden
Cameraperson (2016) directed by Kirsten Johnson
Children of a Lesser God (1986) directed by Randa Haines
Corpo Celeste (2011) directed by Alice Rohrwacher
Crime Thief (1969) directed by Nadine Trintignant
Crossing Delancey (1988) directed by Joan Micklin Silver
Daisies (1966) directed by Věra Chytilová
Danzón (1991) directed by Maria Novaro
Daughters of the Dust (1991) directed by Julie Dash
Dogfight (1991) directed by Nancy Savoca
El Camino (1963) directed by Ana Mariscal
Entre Nous (1983) directed by Diane Kurys
First Love (1977) directed by Joan Darling
Fools in the Mountains (1957) directed by Edith Carlmar
Foreign Letters (2012) directed by Ela Thier
Found Memories (2011) directed by Julia Murat
Gas Food Lodging (1991) directed by Allison Anders
Girlfriends (1978) directed by Claudia Weill
Hannah Arendt (2012) directed by Margarethe von Trotta
Harlan County U.S.A. (1976) directed by Barbara Kopple
Heart of a Dog (2015) directed by Laurie Anderson
In the Empty City/Hollow City (2004) directed by Maria João Ganga
Je tu il elle (1974) directed by Chantal Akerman
Krane’s Confectionery (1951) directed by Astrid Henning-Jensen
La Ciénaga (2001) directed by Lucrecia Martel
La Cigarette (1919) directed by Germaine Dulac
Le Bonheur (1965) directed by Agnès Varda
Losing Ground (1982) directed by Kathleen Collins
Lost in Yonkers (1993)directed by Martha Coolidge
Lourdes (2009) directed by Jessica Hausner
Lovely & Amazing (2001) directed by Nicole Holofcener
Loving Couples (1964) directed by Mai Zetterling
Mabel’s Strange Predicament (1914) directed by Mabel Normand
Mädchen in Uniform (1931) directed by Leontine Sagan
Madeinusa (2006) directed by Claudia Llosa
Meek’s Cutoff (2010) directed by Kelly Reichardt
Merrily We Go To Hell (1932) directed by Dorothy Arzner
Meshes of the Afternoon (1943) directed by Maya Deren
Middle of Nowhere (2012) directed by Ava DuVernay
Mikey and Nicky (1976) directed by Elaine May
My American Cousin (1985) directed by Sandy Wilson
My Brilliant Career (1979) directed by Gillian Armstrong
O Ébrio (1946) directed by Gilda de Abreu
Olivia (1951) directed by Jacqueline Audry
Orlando (1992) directed by Sally Potter
Outrage (1950) directed by Ida Lupino
Party Girl (1995) directed by Daisy von Sherler Mayer
Rachida (2002) directed by Yamina Bachir
Rafiki (2018) directed by Wanuri Kahiu
Salaam Bombay! (1988) directed by Mira Nair
Seven Beauties (1975) directed by Lina Wertmüller
Shag (1989) directed by Zelda Barron
Shoes (1916) directed by Lois Weber
Silent Waters (2003) directed by Sabiha Sumar
Sleepwalking Land (2007) directed by Teresa Prata
Smithereens (1982) directed by Susan Seidelman
Stolen Life (2005) directed by Shaohong Li
Stop-Loss (2008) directed by Kimberly Peirce
Stories We Tell (2012) directed by Sarah Polley
Strangers in Good Company (1990) directed by Cynthia Scott
Sweet Bean (2015) directed by Naomi Kawase
The Adventures of Prince Achmed (1926) directed by Lotte Reiniger
The Ascent (1977) directed by Larisa Shepitko
The Birth, the Life and the Death of Christ (1906) directed by Alice Guy-Blaché
The Cave of the Yellow Dog (2005) directed by Byambasuren Davaa
The Connection (1961) directed by Shirley Clarke
The Day I Became a Woman (2000) directed by Marzieh Makhmalbaf
The Day I Will Never Forget (2002) directed by Kim Longinotto
The Decline of Western Civilization (1981) directed by Penelope Spheeris
The Erl King (1931) directed by Marie-Louise Iribe
The House is Black (1963) directed by Forough Farrokhzad
The Hurt Locker (2008) directed by Kathryn Bigelow
The Juniper Tree (1990) directed by Nietzchka Keene
The Kite (2003) directed by Randa Chahal Sabag
The Lure (2015) directed by Agnieszka Smoczyńska
The Night of Truth (2004) directed by Fanta Regina Nacro
The Night Porter (1974) directed by Liliana Cavani
The Photograph (2007) directed by Nan Triveni Achnas
The Teckman Mystery (1954) directed by Wendy Toye
The Virgin Suicides (1999) directed by Sofia Coppola
The Watermelon Woman (1995) directed by Cheryl Dunye
The Women Who Loved Cinema (1 & 2) (2002) directed by Marianne Khoury
This is the Sea (1997) directed by Mary McGuckian
Tomka and His Friends (1977) directed by Xhanfize Keko
Very Annie Mary (2001) directed by Sara Sugarman
Wanda (1970) directed by Barbara Loden
Wasp (2003) directed by Andrea Arnold
We Need to Talk About Kevin (2011) directed by Lynne Ramsay
XXY (2007) directed by Lucía Puenzo
Yentl (1983) directed by Barbra Streisand
Zero Motivation (2014) directed by Talya Lavie
