Record Details
Inspiring and Educating GDR Women: Iris Gusner, Feminism, and the Film Kaskade Rückwärts
ScholarsArchive at Oregon State University
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Title | Inspiring and Educating GDR Women: Iris Gusner, Feminism, and the Film Kaskade Rückwärts |
| Names |
Heiduschke, Sebastian
(creator) |
| Date Issued | 2015-01 (iso8601) |
| Note | This is an author's peer-reviewed final manuscript, as accepted by the publisher. The published article is copyrighted by the University of Nebraska Press and can be found at: http://www.nebraskapress.unl.edu/product/Women-in-German-Yearbook,673912.aspx |
| Abstract | Directing feature films in the GDR was largely a male-dominated profession. One of the few female directors was Iris Gusner, whose films explored issues working GDR women faced in their everyday lives. A close reading of her 1984 feature film Kaskade Rückwärts, in particular the focus on sound and on camera angles, exemplifies clandestine strategies Gusner used to create a feminist film. Gusner reveals the hypocrisy prevalent in GDR society pertaining to achieving gender equality as she sets up her heroine embarking on a quest for love in a patriarchal GDR. A narrative that initially appears to confirm patriarchal structures gradually turns into a cinematic feminist manifesto that successfully challenges GDR gender ideology. As a result Kaskade offered female GDR viewers a motivating experience and simultaneously challenged the male-dominated GDR film industry. |
| Genre | Article |
| Access Condition | http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/us/ |
| Topic | East Germany |
| Identifier | Heiduschke, S. (2014). Inspiring and Educating GDR Women: Iris Gusner, Feminism, and the Film Kaskade Rückwärts. [Article in Press]. Women in German Yearbook, 30. |
