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Sex Sells Feminism: Stephanie Rothman
Season 1, Ep. 3
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They say sex sells, but can sex also sell feminist ideas? That's what director Stephanie Rothman did in the 60s and 70s. European movies and groovy new ideas inspired the bold director to make low-budget movies with big impacts. She began working for the great B-movie director Roger Corman, who trusted her to direct her first independent films.
She directed The Student Nurses, launching a wave of "sexy nurse" movies in the 70s. However, it was so much more than a sexploitation film playing at drive-in movies to teen boys. The film followed its young female protagonists through a variety of dramas that touched on issues that were affecting real women in the outside world. From pregnancy to addiction to revolution, The Student Nurses was about a lot more than sex. Don't get me wrong - there IS sex in the movie, but there's more than that.
Rothman cleverly "snuck" feminist ideas into raunchy movies. She also infused her sexy vampire film, The Velvet Vampire, with plenty of dreamy visuals that inspired later horror films such as The Love Witch. Her films touched on politics, sex, and love, and even included a sex-work film starring a young Cassandra Peterson (that's Elvira!). She did all of this while working within the exploitation genre, simply because it was the only avenue that she was offered. As a result, she fought against notions that her films were silly genre movies or filth. Rothman is still disregarded in feminist film studies for that reason. Let's change that! It's time to recognize Rothman's work as valuable for feminist filmmaking and female directors as a whole.
Thank you for listening! This episode was originally published with Grab Bag Collab. Special thanks to them! Thanks to Brock Alter for the podcast art and tech help. Directora is researched, written, edited, and hosted by Stephanie Weber.
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01:02:50||Season 2, Ep. 8It’s easy to take Barbra Streisand for granted because she really is good at everything. From singer and actress to director and producer, Barbra is a perfectionist who fought against discrimination and stereotypes in order to make unapologetic work that made her a star. She has been labeled difficult, while also fighting through a lot to make it to the top. Is she difficult? Does it matter when you're as talented as she is? This episode initially aired on the Grab Bag Collab network. Thank you to Amber Hunt, Daisy Eagan, and Amanda Rossman. Thank you to Brock Alter for Directora's artwork. Directora is researched, written, recorded, edited, and hosted by Stephanie Weber. Email directorapodcast@gmail.com and follow Directora on Instagram and TikTok. Sources: Mojo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gzv1DlQU8KUHow Barbra Streisand Fought Hollywood to Make Yentlhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0r1FhIT8efwA Star is Born - You Must Remember ThisPierson, John. My Battles with Barbra and John. New West Magazine. November 20, 1976.https://web.archive.org/web/20150716005847/http://barbra-archives.com/bjs_library/70s/new_west_battles_barbra_jon.htmlhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PoNdQxkI-0w1991 Barbra Streisand on 60 Minuteshttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xw5dQBZavUwMann, William J. Hello Gorgeous. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. October 2012. Streisand, Barbra. My Name is Barbra. Viking. November 7, 2023.
7. Debbie Allen: From Fame to Famous Director & Producer
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