FILMING LAB
Anthropological Research on Gender in Filmmaking Processes
Research Institute for Women's and Gender Studies (University of Granada)
This project highlights the main feminist anthropological contributions to film production, exploring the "anthropological," experimental, and collaborative practices of women filmmakers in the Spanish film industry.
The recent proliferation of ethnographies on cinema challenges and questions one of the most urgent issues in film studies: the decolonization of methodologies and narratives of Western ethnocentric practices (the ideology of cultural superiority over other societies), which has dominated production until the 21st century. The Filming Lab Project responds to previous professional collaborations with well-known Spanish women filmmakers, with whom the following needs have been discussed and identified in different spaces:
1.
It is imperative to propose creative and production processes that demonstrate a profound respect for the environments and individuals involved, both in terms of narrative and filmmaking methodologies.
2.
Furthermore, it is essential to incorporate social diversity in a manner that is both precise and respectful.
3.
The unequal role of women in the industry must be continually questioned.
4.
The systematisation of anthropological practices among filmmakers is recommended, with a view to highlighting their work processes when fictionalising "social realities."
The aforementioned issues are directly related to the role that ethnography (as an anthropological methodology) plays when analysing and engaging with the processes of filmmaking, which is one of the main pillars of the project.
HOW, WHERE AND WHEN?
The project's methodology combines qualitative ethnographic methods (audiovisual, multimodal and sensory) with cinema and visual arts (e.g. art-based methods, photo-elicitation, screenwriting, AI and storytelling) due to its innovative approach. It breaks down disciplinary boundaries through experimentation, adaptability, lived experience (living labs) and methodological solutions to understand contemporary social and cultural scenarios in relation to film production. The research is mainly conducted in Spain through three cinematic productions. An additional ethnographic encounter has been scheduled for a UK production and there will be co-creation labs and seminars at the University of Oslo, University of Edinburgh and the University of Lisbon.
The four-year project (2025-2029) is with the Department of Social Anthropology and the Institute for Women's and Gender Studies at the University of Granada (Spain).
Principal Investigator: Marian del Moral
Funding: Emergia Program. The Ministry of University, Research, and Innovation of the Regional Government of Andalusia.
FILMING LAB
Anthropological Research on Gender in Filmmaking Processes
Research Institute for Women's and Gender Studies (University of Granada)
This project highlights the main feminist anthropological contributions to film production, exploring the "anthropological," experimental, and collaborative practices of women filmmakers in the Spanish film industry.
The recent proliferation of ethnographies on cinema challenges and questions one of the most urgent issues in film studies: the decolonization of methodologies and narratives of Western ethnocentric practices (the ideology of cultural superiority over other societies), which has dominated production until the 21st century. The Filming Lab Project responds to previous professional collaborations with well-known Spanish women filmmakers, with whom the following needs have been discussed and identified in different spaces:
1.
It is imperative to propose creative and production processes that demonstrate a profound respect for the environments and individuals involved, both in terms of narrative and filmmaking methodologies.
2.
Furthermore, it is essential to incorporate social diversity in a manner that is both precise and respectful.
3.
The unequal role of women in the industry must be continually questioned.
4.
The systematisation of anthropological practices among filmmakers is recommended, with a view to highlighting their work processes when fictionalising "social realities."
The aforementioned issues are directly related to the role that ethnography (as an anthropological methodology) plays when analysing and engaging with the processes of filmmaking, which is one of the main pillars of the project.
HOW, WHERE AND WHEN?
The project's methodology combines qualitative ethnographic methods (audiovisual, multimodal and sensory) with cinema and visual arts (e.g. art-based methods, photo-elicitation, screenwriting, AI and storytelling) due to its innovative approach. It breaks down disciplinary boundaries through experimentation, adaptability, lived experience (living labs) and methodological solutions to understand contemporary social and cultural scenarios in relation to film production. The research is mainly conducted in Spain through three cinematic productions. An additional ethnographic encounter has been scheduled for a UK production and there will be co-creation labs and seminars at the University of Oslo, University of Edinburgh and the University of Lisbon.
The four-year project (2025-2029) is with the Department of Social Anthropology and the Institute for Women's and Gender Studies at the University of Granada (Spain).
Principal Investigator: Marian del Moral
Funding: Emergia Program. The Ministry of University, Research, and Innovation of the Regional Government of Andalusia.
