Collaborative Assemblages EAST-BERLIN / DRESDEN / ERFURT
CORNELIA KLAUẞ / CHRISTINE SCHLEGEL / CORNELIA SCHLEIME / GABRIELE STÖTZER / FRAUENGRUPPE ERFURT
The final edition of Collaborative Assemblages is dedicated to experimental films by women* from the GDR in the 1980s. Despite scarce film materials and technology, censorship, repression of filmmaking outside authorised circles and difficulties in screening their work, people in the GDR were passionate about picking up a camera. Filming was mainly carried out in the Super 8 format. Filmmakers were active in various cities’ underground scenes, including East Berlin, Dresden, Karl-Marx-Stadt, Greifswald and Erfurt.
In the GDR, women* were also under-represented in experimental film. While many female filmmakers saw no need to form feminist collaborative assemblages, one group devoting itself to experimental film – the Erfurt Women’s Group – consisted exclusively of women*.
PROGRAMME
- Cornelia Schleime, In der Sanduhr [In the Hourglass], 1982, Super 8 (digitised), 9 mins
- Christine Schlegel, Strukturen II [Structures II], 1984, Super 8 (digitised), 8 mins
- Gabriele Stötzer/Frauengruppe Erfurt, Die Geister berühren [Touching the Spirits], 1987, Super 8 (digitised), 25 mins
- Cornelia Klauß, Samuel, 1984, Super 8 (digitised), 4 mins
- Cornelia Klauß, Halle – schwarz/weiß [Halle – Black/White], 1987, Super 8 (digitised), 7 mins
GUEST Cornelia Klauß
The discussion will be held in German, films with English subtitles.
VENUE
Künstlerhaus Bethanien
Kottbusser Str. 10
10999 Berlin
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Collaborative Assemblages is a four-part series of experimental film screenings that explores various facets of feminist, collaborative working methods in the 1970s and 1980s—working methods that were of vital importance to women* active in experimental film. The episodes focus on experimental film scenes in Vienna, Hamburg and Berlin.
Collaborative Assemblages delves into the networks of practices that enabled women* to appear with greater self-confidence, greater expertise and, most importantly, in ever-increasing numbers within the experimental film scenes of the 1980s. It centres on various initiatives, collectives, and both official and unofficial groups. Exchanging knowledge about technology, filmmaking methods, and aesthetic forms, as well as sharing access to equipment, were key concerns within these assemblages. However, it was also about motivating one another and assisting with filming. The initiatives also provided a platform for (queer)feminist activism and self-determined cultural production.
These collaborative assemblages, often characterised by a spirit of friendship, did not adopt a uniform shape and were organised to varying degrees. They took various guises, such as self-made guidebooks on how to use a particular camera, the sharing of equipment, supportive discussions, and joint film projects or workshops. In their unformed state, they had the effect of deconstructing the experimental film scene and opening up new spaces for women* to become involved. The individual assemblages had varying lifespans, and only a few documented their own activities. For the most part, knowledge of them has been passed down only orally by contemporary witnesses, which highlights the fragility of this information.
A selection of experimental films and videos created within such assemblages will be presented across four screenings. The examples come from Vienna, Hamburg and Berlin. Each evening will be dedicated to one city and will feature discussions with filmmakers.
The series is a collaboration between Künstlerhaus Bethanien and attaque[e]r le visible, curated by Lawinia Rate.
