Feminist Film Club - Stories of Courageous Girls

This course is designed for preteens interested in film and television, particularly stories that centre the experiences of girls and women. This is a 6 week course and club- think of it as a mix of learning about feminist onscreen representations AND a place where you can meet friends with similar interests as you!

Why take this class with me? I am Ph.D. student in Gender, Feminist, and Women’s studies, with a specialization in Feminist Film Theory and I love film! I especially love stories that centre girls and women, their friendships with each other, experiences with their families, and the challenges they face and overcome. I have been teaching children and teens for over 8 years. 

In this 10 week club we will look at 9 onscreen representations of heartwarming, uplifting, and encouraging stories of girls. Students should come to class prepared to talk about the weekly movie. I will lead a group conversation and we will talk about the films' themes including family, friendship, overcoming fear, achieving our goals, and solving problems.

Below is a week by week outline of the course:

Week 1: Introduction - We will introduce ourselves to each other and talk about what it means to be courageous and brave. We will talk about some examples of real-life girls who are doing courageous things (such as Greta Thunberg, Malala Yousafzai, and Autumn Peltier). We will discuss how we feel when we watch movies that depict strong and courageous girls. Students will be encouraged to share a time when they felt brave. I will introduce the students to each of the movies we will be discussing in the coming weeks.

Week 2: 
STARGIRL (2020 film; available on Disney+) 
Rating: Rated PG 
Themes: This week we will talk about the hit new Disney+ movie STARGIRL. The conversation will focus on bravery, kindness, and confidence. We will discuss what it means to be true to ourselves.
Brief synopsis: A boy becomes intrigued by a mysterious and quirky student named Stargirl and spends his time trying to know more about her.

Week 3: 
Mulan (1998, available on Disney+) 
Rating: G suitable for all audiences 
Themes: We will build on our conversations from the week before. This week we will talk about standing up for what we believe in and supporting our families through difficult times.
Brief Synopsis: To save her father from death in the army, a young maiden secretly goes in his place and becomes one of China's greatest heroines in the process.

Week 4:
A League of Their Own (1992 - available to rent on YouTube; available on Prime depending on your location)  
Rating: PG (some brief swearing; one scene of girls in their underwear; some smoking and drinking; please watch with parents) 
Themes: One of the most powerful films of the 1990s, A League of Their Own inspired a generation of girls to accomplish their dreams. This week we will discuss our ambitions and goals and what we can do to work towards our dreams. 
Synopsis: Two sisters join the first female professional baseball league and struggle to help it succeed amidst their own growing rivalry.

Week 5: 
A Wrinkle in Time (2018, Available on Disney+)
Rating: PG
Themes: This week we will talk about the power of love and the value of individuality. We will talk about classical story structures of good vs. evil and how to be brave in the face of darkness. 
Synopsis: After the disappearance of her scientist father, three peculiar beings send Meg, her brother, and her friend to space in order to find him.

Week 6: The Mitchels Vs, the Machines (2021, Available Netflix)
Rating: PG
Themes: We'll look at the different animation techniques used in this film and explore how the filmmakers used non-traditional approaches to their work. We'll talk about technology and how we might view the world differently than our parents. 
Synopsis: A quirky, dysfunctional family's road trip is upended when they find themselves in the middle of the robot apocalypse and suddenly become humanity's unlikeliest last hope.

Week 7: Kiki's Delivery Service (1989, Available on Netflix)
Themes: This week we're going to make a craft related to the film! All you'll need to bring to the class is some paper, pencil crayons, markers, or whatever you want to create with!
Synopsis: A young witch, on her mandatory year of independent life, finds fitting into a new community difficult while she supports herself by running an air courier service.

Week 8: Howl's Moving Castle (2004, Available on Netflix)
Rating: PG
Themes: This week we'll do a comparative analysis of Kiki's Delivery Service, from the late 90s, and Howl's Moving Castle, from the early 2000s. We'll take a look at which elements of Studio Ghibli have stayed and the same, and which have changed. We'll talk about how the characters face unique challenges and how they each overcome them. We'll also look at how magic is used in both stories. 
Synopsis: When an unconfident young woman is cursed with an old body by a spiteful witch, her only chance of breaking the spell lies with a self-indulgent yet insecure young wizard and his companions in his legged, walking castle.

Week 9: The Blind Flyers (German name: Die Blindgänger, 2004, Available to stream on YouTube)
Themes: This week we'll discuss the award winning film from German, the Blind Flyers. We'll talk about representations of disability onscreen and the importance of watching films that come from outside of Hollywood.
Synopsis: Marie is a 13 year old girl and blind. When she meets Herbert something wonderful begins.

Week 10: Wrap-up week: Jane (documentary, 2017, Available on Disney+)
Themes: This week we will learn about Jane Goodall and we will explore the documentary genre. We'll talk about how feminism connects to environmental justice.
Synopsis: The life and work of the renowned primatology scientist, Jane Goodall, especially on her research about chimpanzees.
This week we will circle back to the past four weeks and look at the lessons we learned from the movies. We will discuss what it means to us to be brave and to see stories of brave girls onscreen. We will talk about times when we were courageous and what it would look and feel like to see our stories in the movies. 

This class is great for:
- young feminists
- youth interested in learning and talking about film
- kids who love discussion or who need more conversation-based learning and encouragement 
- pre-teens who want to make new friends