Mary wrote: <<One thing I don't understand is why there is so little writing on violence against women and children from the feminist movement. For example, rape is not given much attention (there are few books about it) and neither is child abuse. I don't get it.>>
I thought this might be of interest to you, Mary. You might want to check out www.womensenes.com for more on this subject. -Julius Allison Anders, Filmmaker (WOMENSENEWS)--For her breakthrough movie for the Showtime Network, Allison Anders filmed a graphic rape of an pre-teen girl and for the first time was able to put to rest her own violation. At the same time, in "Things Behind the Sun," filmed in the same Florida town where she was raped, Anders provides a rare and vivid portrayal of how a single act of sexual violence can maim and twist a victim's--and even a witness's-- inner workings. "I had dealt with my childhood rape in therapy, through acting out sexually, through self-medication, through spiritual work, by talking about it, by making public confessions, by every means possible, but I was still in a dark place," she recalls. Somehow, by reliving her rape through creating a fictional version of it, she has now been able to move on, she says, putting the event behind her. Anders' previous films had been released to art houses and garnered her a MacArthur "genius" award in 1997, but this film she wanted to reach the widest possible audience. Her unflinching portrayal of sexual violence that debuted this fall shone a bright light on the dark place for all to see her pain and by inference the suffering of thousands of rape victims. It also produced a prize Anders did not expect: She was embraced by Generation Five, a new organization committed to ending child sexual abuse in five generations. In her teens, Anders fled her life with the stepfather who had raped her and her life in a succession of foster homes, to hitchhike across the country. She even managed to get to England. She was sustained by women of pop music such as Grace Slick of Jefferson Airplane and Joni Mitchell. Before the Showtime feature, Anders had made five well-received five films, most of them with strong women characters: "Gas, Food, Lodging," reflecting her own experience as a single mother; "Mi Vida Loca," (My Crazy Life) focusing on girl gangs in Southern California and a series of films set in the world of popular music. She mentors young women filmmakers who approach her and parents her two daughters in their 20s, Tiffany, pursuing a music career, and Devon, a childcare worker, as well as an 11-year-old son, Ruben, whom she adopted after the filming of "Mi Vida Loca." "One of the girls died when I was still filming, and her home girls talked me into taking her kid," she explains. "I've learned a lot about men," she says with a laugh. "You know what he said to me last week? I made some generalization about men, and he was like 'Oh, Mom, that's so sexist!'" Allison Anders, Filmmaker (WOMENSENEWS)--For her breakthrough movie for the Showtime Network, Allison Anders filmed a graphic rape of an pre-teen girl and for the first time was able to put to rest her own violation. At the same time, in "Things Behind the Sun," filmed in the same Florida town where she was raped, Anders provides a rare and vivid portrayal of how a single act of sexual violence can maim and twist a victim's--and even a witness's-- inner workings. "I had dealt with my childhood rape in therapy, through acting out sexually, through self-medication, through spiritual work, by talking about it, by making public confessions, by every means possible, but I was still in a dark place," she recalls. Somehow, by reliving her rape through creating a fictional version of it, she has now been able to move on, she says, putting the event behind her. Anders' previous films had been released to art houses and garnered her a MacArthur "genius" award in 1997, but this film she wanted to reach the widest possible audience. Her unflinching portrayal of sexual violence that debuted this fall shone a bright light on the dark place for all to see her pain and by inference the suffering of thousands of rape victims. It also produced a prize Anders did not expect: She was embraced by Generation Five, a new organization committed to ending child sexual abuse in five generations. In her teens, Anders fled her life with the stepfather who had raped her and her life in a succession of foster homes, to hitchhike across the country. She even managed to get to England. She was sustained by women of pop music such as Grace Slick of Jefferson Airplane and Joni Mitchell. Before the Showtime feature, Anders had made five well-received five films, most of them with strong women characters: "Gas, Food, Lodging," reflecting her own experience as a single mother; "Mi Vida Loca," (My Crazy Life) focusing on girl gangs in Southern California and a series of films set in the world of popular music. She mentors young women filmmakers who approach her and parents her two daughters in their 20s, Tiffany, pursuing a music career, and Devon, a childcare worker, as well as an 11-year-old son, Ruben, whom she adopted after the filming of "Mi Vida Loca." "One of the girls died when I was still filming, and her home girls talked me into taking her kid," she explains. "I've learned a lot about men," she says with a laugh. "You know what he said to me last week? I made some generalization about men, and he was like 'Oh, Mom, that's so sexist!'"
