Born In Flames
EPFC | October 28th, 2015
MARVELOUS MOVIE MONDAYS!!
Guest curator: KELLY GALLAGHER
Hello friends! Kelly here, for what is sadly my last Marvelous Movie Monday! For today’s NO COP ZONE film, I decided to come full circle while reflecting on my own artistic practice and major filmmaker influences. I have chosen to share a favorite of mine, Lizzie Borden’s cult classic, BORN IN FLAMES. BORN IN FLAMES fits our NO COP ZONE theme in many ways- major political activist in the film, Adelaide Norris, “suspiciously” dies in police custody (sound horribly familiar?) and her death sparks a violent and powerful revolution against white supremacy, patriarchy, and heteronormativity. From my own artist statement which highlights why I think films like these are absolutely necessary: “By creating visualizations of resistance in my films, I seek to align myself specifically with politically left audiences and offer visual sparks of encouragement and hope, while also actively practicing and perpetuating the basic human need to connect with others. When I first saw radical feminist filmmaker Lizzie Borden’s beautiful film “Born in Flames,” I felt encouraged by the women on screen fighting back against sexual harassers. I felt connected to them through their confrontations and struggles. I felt hope that I could gain the strength to fight back in the ways that I saw women on screen fighting back. Film as confrontation and visualized resistance is imperative for me in my work because by creating visualized representations of a world in which our impact actually ruptures capitalism and systemic patriarchy and racism, we are given the realization that such a world can even exist and that our political efforts are not in vain, but are in fact imperative.” Cheers to Lizzie Borden and her unforgettable, “BORN IN FLAMES.”