Brenda Chapman

         The animated fairy tales of Disney is renowned and unrivaled. Reconstructed from the dark and twisted folktales of early storytellers such as the Grimm Brothers, Disney transformed these fairy tales into global phenomenons. Instilling ideologies and lessons onto children, these stories demonstrate the power and influence of media. Although Disney has strayed away from the gruesome methods of early storytellers, their method of storytelling has become outdated until recent years. The sexualized role of females within fairy tales have been constantly reinforced, from Cinderella (1950) to Hercules (1997), as a damsel in distressed. These princesses await for a prince, who serves as a "deus ex machina" for their problems. Although films as Mulan (1998) address this image of women, it does not fully break away from early storytellings of Disney. Until the arrival of Brave (2012), various Disney movies were constructed until the same mold. Although not as popularly received as other films, Brenda Chapman's storytelling indubitably demonstrates a break from the original mold of Disney storytelling.

Brenda Chapman

        Brave tells a story of a princess who is coming of age to be married off to a potential suitor. After seeking help from a witch, who twists her wishes around, Merida endangers her family and ventures to mend her mistakes. One of the most defining feature of Brave (2012) is the absence of a prince-like character. Although suitors to Merida were introduced, they played an insignificant role in the story. However, Merida's character is not unique in any way. Much like Belle from Beauty and the Beast (1991), Tiana from The Princess and the Frog (2009), or Rapunzel from Tangled (2010), Merida is wild and "untamed." Like her hair, she wishes to be free to do what she wants without gender restrictions. In a scene with her suitors, Merida showcases her skills, such as archery, that exceed that of her suitors. Yet by the end of the story, Merida is not "tamed," but rather, achieves her freedom through her own means.

Merida and her "wild" hair!

         Although Chapman worked on various stories such as Beauty and the Beast (1991), The Little Mermaid (1989), and The Lion King (1994), she did not fully gain creative freedom until Brave where she was announced as Pixar's first female director. However, after a creative dispute, she was replaced by Mark Andrews. Although devastated, she states that her "'vision' remained in the film" and that she was "very proud of the movie" and "ultimately stood up for [herself]." Despite leaving Pixar for the incident, I believe that Chapman has propelled a new era of storytelling. Evidenced by Anna and Elsa's particular demeanor in Disney's Frozen (2013). 

Trailer

Works Cited:

Chapman, Brenda (August 14, 2012). "Stand Up for Yourself, and Mentor Others". New York Times. (http://www.nytimes.com/roomfordebate/2012/08/14/how-can-women-gain-influence-in-hollywood/stand-up-for-yourself-and-mentor-others)

Extra Credit Post - Amy Heckerling, Clueless

            Some feminist art is hidden within films and tv shows without us even realizing it.  Amy Heckerling brought us a film in the mid-90s that shaped my childhood.  Clueless was one of my favorite movies growing up.  I was extremely drawn to the character of Cher, without realizing exactly why.  It is arguable that Clueless is not a feminist work and just a fun movie, but I see it differently.  It technically does not pass the Bechdel test because although the main characters are 3 women, they almost entirely talk about men throughout the film.  However, the ways in which the film uses this Bechdel test failure is to show just how ridiculous it is for women to be constantly seeking the acceptance of men.  In this way I see Clueless as a satire, or parody. 

Amy Heckerling

            While seeking the validation of men throughout the movie, Cher is in total control of how she is perceived.  She knows exactly what men want to see from women and in that way is hyper-aware of the role that women play in society as the gaze of men.  In one scene she describes how to get a man’s attention by sending herself love letters and flowers to “show how desirable she is”, or by drawing attention to her mouth.  The best one is when says, “sometimes you have to show a little skin, this reminds guys of being naked and then they think of sex”.  This, to me, just shows how simple-minded men can be and Cher takes advantage of that. 

Cher proving she knows exactly how to get a man's attention

            The end of the film is what really drives this theory home.  Cher goes through major self-reflection to realize what is really important in life.  Throughout the movie she displays a million ways of how women are constantly trying to seek acceptance from men.  However, by the end of the film she discovers how truly stupid that is.  Heckerling describes her works as exploring the teenage psyche.  This makes total sense in Clueless because as teenagers boys, parties, and popularity might seem like the most important things but we need to step back and analyze society as well as ourselves.

Claudia Weill

After doing some research about feminist filmmakers, I have decided to focus on Claudia Weill, a filmmaker whom I have never heard about before. I found out that she has directed many films while in her career, although she is well known for her film Girlfriends, 1978. 

By directing the film Girlfriends, Claudia Weill inspired a generation of feminist filmmakers. The film was made in a time where women were discriminated against, which is why the actual director of the film, instead of just being considered as a director, was considered as a feminist one and also had to deal with the fact of being categorized and not just a simple film director. 

As mentioned in one of the articles, "this is a story of two girls, each of whom suspected the other of a more passionate connection with life."Both girls would bound and build an inseparably friendship, which will eventually be separated by a man causing for Susan, the main character, to find a way to survive to life by herself, dealing with family and her marriage, as well as financially and socially, learning how to build new relationships with friends and lovers.

By directing Girlfriends, Susan Weill believed on being remembered later on for being a pioneer on expressing herself in a feminist manner. Although, even twenty years after the film was done, her work wouldn't be valued and she would have to find a different way to survive financially. 

Post 5 Lucinda Coxon

Lucinda Coxon is mostly a playwright, but she has written for a few movies. One movie she wrote the screenplay for was “The Danish Girl”, which you may have seen at the last Oscars. Basically, the movie is based on an old book about a man in the 1920s who identifies as a female, and as a result goes through identity and psychological dramas with himself and the government. Eventually he and his friend meet a doctor who gives him the first gender reassignment surgery which he, or she at this point, dies from. This movie both passes the Bechdel test and is important for the trans-gendered community because now there is a mainstream movie about their cause and historical prosecution. At one point the main character actually gets admitted to an asylum for his identification.

Lucinda Coxon is mostly a playwright and approaches the few movies she does write for in similar manner as she would a play. In an interview with Awards Daily about “The Danish Girl”, she states “… I think that the theater was really quite a big part of my writing process with this project.”. And as for her play-writing, she finds her talent in practice. In an interview with Script Magazine she was asked if she had advice for aspiring writers, to which she replied “Well, I just wrote and wrote… little plays that were produced in rooms above pubs in London. And eventually, I got better at it. And got noticed.”. Practice does make perfect. She is an very prolific writer having written at least 17 plays. It can be assumed that her work is generally liked because she has won a fair amount of screenplay awards.

Final Project Proposal

The conception of my project occurred a long time ago in the form of fuzzy home videos, in the corner of my room.  From a young age, I was obsessed with making videos of myself discussing some topic that intrigued me, or recording interviews with my family members about things that intrigued them.  My mom would watch the videos and laugh because of the ridiculous amount of time I would spend doing it and because of unkempt attempts at being a news reporter.  As I got older and as I got busy with work and other tedious things, I stopped making these videos.  However, with the rise of vloggers and popular YouTube channels, I gained inspiration once again. 
The premise of my project is to create a vast media space that represents Muslim women the way Muslim women want to be represented.  The best method for me to do so, is to create a widely accessible YouTube channel. Muslim women are famously deemed as oppressed, subdued, silenced, and in dire need of saving.  During the Iraq war, Laura Bush publicly proclaimed her desire to save the oppressed Muslim women there.  And the only way to save women is obviously, war, right? 
Being a Muslim American woman, I feel highly under-represented.  People speak for me and defend me where I don't feel like I need to be defended or supported.  I'm not alone with this sentiment.  Muslim women all over the world feel insulted that their decision to wear hijab is immediately associated with male force and their desire to shield themselves again the over sexualized Muslim man.  That form of feminism, that condemns women who cover as simply playing into a largely patriarchal system, is, frankly speaking, bullshit.  How dare someone claim that my decision to wear hijab has nothing to do with my own spirituality and my own regard for something I value greater than what a man thinks of me or tells me to do.  I'm sick of people coming up to me, pulling out random verses from the Quran, trying to prove to me that my religion oppresses me.  I know my religion well enough to detect whether it's oppressing me or not.  I like to believe that us Muslim women have enough intelligence and intellect to make these decisions on our own.  Identifying Muslim women as oppressed and in need of saving, is a highly problematic rhetoric.  Which is why, I would like to save Western women, the devastatingly oppressed and the shockingly unaware.  
This goes into my first video which inspired me to create this channel.  In this video, which I will present in class, I will discuss some banal things such as makeup, shoes, clothing, social media, etc., that oppress women.  I will also touch upon why this discussion is essentially problematic in understanding feminism and how it works.  
Beyond this video, I plan on featuring various Muslim women that do what they love to do.  I want to present Muslim women as just women who are talented, opinionated, funny, that have personalities beyond their hijab and their religiosity.  Some videos will discuss various stories of how some women became hijabis.  Some will discuss how some took off their hijab.  Some videos will just be DYI crafts and homemade care products by Muslim women.  This YouTube channel will take the microphone away from Western media, and put it in the hands of Muslim women themselves.  
The channel handle will be "MuslimahTube."  Please let me know what you think!  

Some inspiration for this channel:
http://muslimgirl.com/
http://muslima.globalfundforwomen.org/
http://www.wisemuslimwomen.org/
         

Extra Credit Post 5 - Shonda Rhimes

Shonda Rhimes is not only a female director and screenwriter- she’s a widely successful feminist female director and screenwriter. She has revolutionized the way black woman are portrayed on television and in the roles they play. She has changed the stereotypical ‘angry black woman’ role, to one of a woman who is strong and successful.

Rhimes has produced several shows with female protagonists, which not only pass the Bechdel Test but also serve as strong feminist works. Focusing on the show Scandal, it is clear how the show propels positive representations of women in the media. The main character, Olivia Pope, is the epitome of what women should be on television. She is strong, independent, and doesn’t shy away from challenging her male counterparts. It is apparent that Rhimes does more than successfully portray gender and racial equality. The show is most productive at breaking down the societal barriers for womankind, and liberating women. Bell Hook argues that feminism is “a movement to end sexism, sexist exploitation, and oppression.” Equality is not synonymous with liberation.

Rhime’s approach to portrayals of women on television shows is one that should be reoccurring on all of the shows we watch. However, Rhimes does more than chip away at the negative representations of women in the media, she also challenges racial stereotypes in Scandal and other works. Her approach to directing and producing her shows stems from a place of personal experience, in an interview with O Magazine she says, “Most of the women I saw on TV didn’t seem like people I actually knew. They felt like ideas of what women are.” She speaks about her process, as a way of breaking the glass ceiling that “exists in the face of being a woman and being black in this very male, very white town." Her shows are received extensively well by viewers, Scandal in particular has upwards to 8 millions viewers per episode. The popularity of her shows alone discredits the argument that we don’t have feminist works in media more often because people don’t want to see them. Men and women alike enjoy Scandal and are frankly obsessed.  

“I’m a black woman every day, and I’m not confused about that. I’m not worried about that. I don’t need to have a discussion with you about how I feel as a black woman, because I don’t feel disempowered as a black woman.”

Olivia Pope’s sense of self-empowerment emanates from Rhime’s personal writing and directing styles. She is a workaholic and her efforts have paid off well in the successes of her television shows. The positive messages for women and women of color transcend those in most other television shows that pass the Bechdel Test, which is why I consider Scandal to be a feminist work. The importance of the story line behind Scandal lie in the way Shonda has written Olivia Pope to be a successful black woman in a place of power. She has eliminated the one-dimensional black female character on television and made Olivia as a more realistic representation of women- as strong, independent and most importantly unique.

*Update* on Project Proposal: Kozmohs.

Not so long ago I got the small tiny idea to perhaps, maybe one day, start my own online magazine. The thought was so sudden, but it made sense to me. For my final project, I have decided to create a tumblr blog dedicated to young teens, primarily girls starting high school and providing them with content that not only is enjoyable, but also educational.

It will be on kozmohs.tumblr.com (there really isn't anything there yet, as it is a work in progress) but I got the word, cosmos, because according to the dictionary it means, "the world or universe regarded as an orderly, harmonious system." Something about the definition made me think of this ideal society where we were all somehow equal to each other and just lived in harmony. I'm not sure if it makes a lot of sense, but it made sense to me. Truthfully, I also just liked the word and the spelling of it sort of stripped it away from its own definition and can now be associated with other things. I also wanted something that was unique and one-worded so it rolls off the tongue and can be easily branded/recognizable. But the name of it is not as important as the content of the blog.

I have been thinking about how I can continue with this project after this class is over. This project was inspired by Rookie Mag created by Tavi Gevinson who is actually my age. She got tired of not finding content that really appealed to teenagers the way she thought they should, and who knows the mind of a teenager better than a teenager? She started the magazine when she was just 13 years old! Her motivation and creative mind really inspires me to do the same, or at least something similar and unique to me. I'm starting small. I'm starting with a blog.

The blog I have decided will have a different topic each month (this is probably subject to change, but for now, it'll be a monthly topic) I have decided that I'll be presenting to the class this month's topic of body image and how the media can really mess a young girls' mind. They twist and contort the idea of "beauty" and make it the most important thing in their life. I want young girls on tumblr to find my blog and read that it's okay to be chubby and fat. It's okay to not be curvy in the right places. It's okay to be "flat" and not have any curves at all! I want them to read about my own personal story about my body insecurities (that have not disappeared and that this is still a journey for me). I want the teen girls to find this blog and look at the different type of posts that are similar to the ones I read when I started entering the world of feminism.

I want to include videos, photographs, writings, artwork, anything really, that spread the message that it's okay to not look like the constant images we see in the media. I want to give them my definition of beauty and that, as cliche as this sounds, it all comes from within.

This blog will be a space where I can share my thoughts on what I have learned so far being a feminist and to reiterate, this months topic will be the one I have the most to say about, body image and the word "Beautiful". I will try to get other people to write and share their own thoughts on being a woman (or a man) and their views on body image, if not for this month's topic, than hopefully some other time in the future.

I was even thinking about making a small video of me interviewing my sister and asking her questions around this topic as well, not only would that be interesting to watch, considering the fact she's 9 years old, but it's so we can see how young girls start to feel insecure about themselves, or if they have some skewed idea of beauty. This is just to get different types of content flowing out of the blog, sort of like the way buzzfeed does it (another inspiration but purely for the structure of their site and brand, if that makes sense.)

This is my small stepping stone to what I hope (*fingers crossed*) will become something bigger someday. Any feedback is GREATLY appreciated!

**Updated** Final Project

     Originally, I wanted to focus on the way media is playing a role on Sex Trafficking, but then I

realize I’m not honoring the victims that way. So, my final project will be on Sex Trafficking I will be writing an article that will be published in Kingsborough Community College newspaper, talked about on my nieces YouTube channel with a link to my Facebook page with the complete article, published on my brothers tumbler and on my Facebook page. In the process of trying to locate information and getting a better understanding on sex trafficking, I realize there has been a great push to eradicate sex trafficking in countries abroad, but no mention or attention has been made or even exposed in the media of the problems we are having right here in the United States.

     I started and still continue to work with the organizations that assist girls getting off the streets and back home to their family, but I was introduced to an attorney that is working on changing the laws in our country on the matters of sex trafficking victims. They are not just saving lies, but exposing corruption in police stations and the blindness that this country continue to do amongst sex violence. These attorneys have been successful with getting girls and boys records expunged, because of what they were exposed too. Even though it is not in the forefront and in the media there are people that are making great change in this matter. Despite the silence on sex crimes in this country, women are taking their voices back and making their stances to be heard.

     Most of my project thus far has been mostly footwork, I’m a foot solider, and I like to get in the mix of things to have a better understanding of what is going on. This past Friday I was in Washington D.C. where the attorneys were working on cases they were preparing to bring before the Supreme court and prep some of the girls that I’ve been working so closely with to testify before the Supreme court judges. This is no longer a silent epidemic, but now becoming one of the most important ones in sex crime.

     My final note on this is I chose Kingsborough Community College for publication, because one of my closest friends who was a valedictorian at KBCC was also a sex trafficked violence from China. Once she told me that and I asked her can I use her story to get published she agreed and KBCC jumped onboard. Also, she will be one of the women that will be testifying at the Supreme Court; no one is abstained from sex violence, because if it is not personally affecting you it is affecting someone you know. Society has always played a blind eye to sex crimes, now is the time to force sex crimes to the forefront of societies priorities and see people not just victims. Sex trafficking of girls and boys must no longer be this thing that’s happening over there, especially when it is happening two houses from you.

WFP- Women For Palestine *Updated Project Proposal*

For my project, I will be creating the first podcast episode of my series, which I have yet to name- So far I've been thinking Women for Palestine, WFP. My podcast will feature interviews and conversations with Palestinian women and other women who support issues that we face in society. The point of my project is to give Palestinian women a voice in media, and to strengthen the support for women in need. Being a female Palestinian, I have access to women like myself- who are active in the Palestinian American community and care about making a difference in how they are represented in the media. The main goal is to change the way people view the Palestinian struggle by providing a space to discuss real issues from real women.  

For my podcast, I plan to use a simple recording application which I will further edit and finalize in Adobe Audition. I have experience editing audio and using this software so I am capable of creating a professional recording for my podcast. I have also started working with a templates online on tumblr, playing around with different layouts for the 'website' page of my podcast. I plan to post photos on the page, information about the podcast, a transcription of the podcast, have supplemental information, a comment section and more. Of course, I will also have the recording uploaded to the page to listen to. 

I plan to share my podcast with my family and friends, as well as use social media as a way to get people on. I will also share it with other organizations and pages online, which discuss similar issues. A large amount of women in my family are a part of the Arab Association of NY, and I am related to many prominent female Palestinian activists in NYC, I'm hoping to use them as a resource.

So far the what seems most challenging for me is choosing who to interview, a typical NPR podcast lasts about 20 minutes, I believe I can fit 1-2 interviews in. I'm hoping to grow my project outside of this classroom and build a community of women like myself. I think that once I get the first podcast done for this class and get some feedback, I'll be able to produce another and more each month. 

Timeline: Over this upcoming week I plan to have recorded at least one interview, depending on whether or not I choose to ask Linda Sarsour to participate. Otherwise I will use the voice of another Palestinian women who is passionate about getting her voice out there to speak on issues of representations of Palestinian women in the media. 

Once I have my first interview recorded, I will create an introduction for my podcast and an ending as well. I will discuss the purpose of my podcast and provide information about what the interviews will be about. I will then introduce my participating guest. I plan to do this over the course of the next 3 weeks. Ideally, I will have most of my tumblr page done over spring break, and have recorded raw audio of an interview.

Once I am done with a finalized recording, I am hoping the podcast will take on a life of its own through people sharing it and getting excited about having a different perspective. 

Here are some resources providing more information: (will be added to)

http://palsolidarity.org/2011/03/interviews-with-palestinian-women-activists-in-honor-of-international-womens-day/

http://www.deliberation.info/women-activism-in-palestine/


UPDATE: 4/26 
I was able to contact some feminists activists from Palestine who are going to participate in my first podcast, I am super excited to speak with them!