Isabel Sadurni's work focuses on international women's issues as a document of women's history and contributions to the international community. Before entering the Masters program at Stanford University, she recvived her B.A. from the Philosophy Department at University of California at Berkeley. She has also written for film and arts journals such as Variety, Art in America, ArtForum, ArtNews, Filmmaker and The Independent Film and Video Monthly.
Red God, Black Devils
digital video
20 min.
In Rashomon style, three Chinese women
tell the story of life growing up during Mao's Cultural Revolution. The
multi-perspective approach invites complexity and contradiction and questions
the nature of reconstructing history. The layering of images, memories
and sound suggest a shared responsibility for a nations cultural inheritance.
The film also invites the viewer into the territory of reconciliation,
tolerance and understanding for a country whose US relations have been
marred with controversy and mutual animosity.
Marian Falls for Joe
16mm, color film
6 min.
In 1940's Ohio, Marian, a young German
Protestant nurse falls for Joe, a romantic, Sicialian Catholic. In the
face of estrangement and condemnation, Marian elopes with Joe to Niagra
Falls to begin a new life away from a father who mistreated her. Joe's
sudden heartfailure leaves Marian alone with 15 month old child, a mortage
and no income. This true story of the filmmakers grandmother shows the
gutsy independence of a young woman from Mid-Western America to follow
heart.
Making Contact
digital video
7 min.
Mi Tierra
16mm, black and white film
3 min.
Mi Tierra tells the story of
Maria Inez Catalan, the first Latina in America to run her own organic
farm. Defying the conventions of a machismo, Latino culture , Maria proudly
carries on her family's agricultural tradition in following her dream
of farming her own piece of land in America. In the fields, Maria and
her team produce over 40 varieties of organic vegetables each year, while
at home, Maria supports four children as a single mother. This poetic
portrait shows the strength of a Latina campesina whose determination
in making her dream a reality wins out over the obstacle of cultural stigma.
FESTIVALS:
Marin Latino Film Fest 2000,
International Voladero Festival 2000