Gillian Armstrong: Popular, Sensual & Ethical Cinema

Gillian Armstrong's films re-work conventions about literary adaptation, biography, and realist storytelling, situating her achievements in the context of Australian film policies and history. This book explores her work in light of new media scholarship and philosophies, including feminist cinematic ethics, and provides an examination of never-before-studied elements, including her short films. It also includes an oral history project with Armstrong, making it a valuable contribution to the literature on women screen practitioners.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 200 pages
Publication date: 30 November 2020
Publisher: Edinburgh University Press

Gillian Armstrong, an Australian director of over eighteen feature films and documentaries, including My Brilliant Career (1979), is a notable example of a woman director connecting with mass audiences. Her films are unique in their aesthetic expression and in the ethical relationships that they depict, framed through the language of gender inclusivity and due in part to her foregrounding of original, complex, and nuanced female characters. This important book fills a gap in the literature on women screen practitioners and is a long overdue response to demands for new insight into the work of this significant director.

Armstrong's films re-work conventions about literary adaptation, biography, and realist storytelling. She examines her work in light of new media scholarship and philosophies, including feminist cinematic ethics. Situates Armstrong's achievements in the context of Australian film policies and history. Provides an examination of never-before-studied elements, including Armstrong's short films. Includes an never-before-utilised oral history project with Armstrong.

Armstrong's films are commercially successful, and she is an early, notable example of a woman director connecting with mass audiences. Her films are unique in their aesthetic expression and in the ethical relationships that they depict, framed through the language of gender inclusivity and due in part to her foregrounding of original, complex, and nuanced female characters. This important book fills a gap in the literature on women screen practitioners and is a long overdue response to demands for new insight into the work of this significant director.

Weight: 258g
Dimension: 139 x 215 x 18 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781474434324