Freedom Over Fear: Susan Stein’s Feminist Avant-Garde CinemaCurated by Mónica Savirón Presented by the UC Center for Film and Media Studies

At age 17, artist Susan Stein was the workshop coordinator at the London Filmmakers’ Co-operative. In 1979, with Lis Rhodes, Felicity Sparrow, Annabel Nicolson, Tina Keane, Mary-Pat Leece, and Joana Davis, she cofounded Circles, the first feminist distribution network for film, video, and performance. Her 16mm films are driven by a female voice, her own, that speaks up against forced, abusive, fear-based structures. In her work, she examines language in the context of the femme-led writings and political movements of the time, and in contrast with the grainy imagery of her sensitive cinematography.