Pic: The team, Natalie Petrou, Corrina Antrobus, Nia Childs and Simran Hans at Suffragette screening at Picturehouse Central.
(Article originally published by Huffington Post)
This February, The Bechdel Test Fest celebrates its 1st birthday. It's been a tremendous journey and has somehow reached a level of interest that has surpassed the most arrogant of dreams. It has force-fed me lessons not only in the business of cinema but of my own life.
I've done numerous interviews explaining how and why I set up a film festival to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Bechdel Test and I've been humbled by these opportunities to reflect on its progress. I'm often asked questions I didn't realise needed answering; things like 'why does representation matter?' And 'why do we need more women making movies?' I'm also asked questions that back me into a hole where no diplomatic answer is available. How does one politely say; 'this army of old white guys is everything that's wrong with Hollywood?'
As we celebrate our first anniversary I'm feeling reflective, and by combining my love of lists, writing, and because I'm often asked 'how do you do this alongside your full time job?', I'm sharing the things I learnt in the year gone by.
People Are Amazingly Helpful
The idea of slinging on a DVD and riffing on how good Thelma and Louise is in Pub On The Park was hardly going to be a huge chore but I knew I'd need a hand. I'd hoped a few people might like the idea (once they learned how to pronounce 'Bechdel') and through Twitter and chatting people up at networking parties found a wealth of enthusiasm.
My presumption of putting on yet another film festival in an already bustling calendar, and with feminism as a theme, struck me as a hard sell. However I was bowled over by seeing how many people; young, old, men, women, professional and aspiring people, were willing to muck in.
At the first volunteers meeting I arranged, I sat wondering if anyone would turn up and anxiously envisioned having to eat the entire bag of donuts I'd bought everyone. It was needlessly nerve-wracking.
Now, with three lead programmers, 30 volunteers, a PR executive and sponsorship manager, I feel privileged to have such talented, passionate and professional people who want to see Bechdel Test Fest be a thing for the love not the money (but maybe the donuts).