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In an industry that has been traditionally male-driven, women are breaking out and gaining respect.
Today at 7 p.m. the Women’s Center will host the Lunafest Women’s Film Festival, a festival that highlights women in film at the Kenworthy Performing Arts Centre.
The national touring festival is made up of nine short films by, for and about women selected from more than 200 submissions from all around the world.
Sharon Trautwein, a University of Idaho theatre lecturer, will host the Q-and-A after the event.
Trautwein said that women working in film see the world through different eyes.
“What people don’t understand is that, whether it is biological or social structure, women approach things differently,” Trautwein said. “It’s not good or bad, just different.”
In the past, people have been getting one perspective in film, which has been male.
Today, women are building their reputations in most fields.
“The lines are becoming thinner and thinner. We’re translucent,” Trautwein said.
Trautwein said the older she gets, the more she understands the importance of a woman’s perspective.
“We need to get this voice out there and show how powerful it is,” Trautwein said.
Lunafest works to do just that.
Lysa Salsbury, program coordinator of the Women’s Center, said that the festival is a good opportunity for people to view films like these.
“It’s still a man’s world and women are struggling to find a place in that world,” Salsbury said.
As for women’s place in film, Salsbury said it is more of a general matter of gender equality.
“Women are becoming more and more visible in all facets of life,” Salsbury said. “(This festival) will spread greater awareness about the artistic work of women and support the artistic expression of women.”
This is the third year the Women’s Center has hosted
the festival.
“Our work here is to support women,” Salsbury said. “We aim to host events that highlight
women.”
Lunafest not only supports the artistic expression of women, but also raises awareness about breast cancer research. Women’s health is among the many equity issues that the Women’s Center works to support.
The proceeds from the festival are part of what make everything worthwhile with 15 percent going to breast cancer research and the other 85 percent going to fund scholarships.
“Its dual role is to raise money for breast cancer research and our scholarship fund,” Salsbury said.
The proceeds aren’t the only thing that make this a worthwhile event. The primary function of the festival is to showcase the work of independent and emerging women filmmakers, Salsbury said.
As for the future of women in film, Trautwein said the scales will even out and differences, gender or cultural, will be accepted and celebrated.
“It’s wide open,” Trautwein said.
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