Kathleen Collins's 'Losing Ground' (1982)

For decades, the work of Kathleen Collins languished in obscurity. She was a writer, filmmaker, and professor who is considered one of the first black women to direct a feature-length film. That film is 'Losing Ground,' an extraordinary portrait of a marriage in turmoil and a complex representation of a deeply intellectual woman in search of ecstasy and magic. In this episode, I explore Collins's life, discuss the barriers that have made it difficult for black women to make films both in the past and today, and I provide an in-depth analysis of 'Losing Ground.'

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Original artwork by Dhiyanah Hassan

Show Notes:

• Listen to more episodes from my debut feature films by women directors series: Unrelated and A Brand New Life


• Watch 'Losing Ground' on Filmstruck until July 2018


• Listen to my episode on Barbara Loden's 'Wanda'


• Listen to my episode about Larisa Shepitko


• Read Sight and Sound magazine's article on 'Losing Ground'


• Read Nina Collins's essay in Vogue Magazine


• DVD of 'Losing Ground' on the Milestone Films website


• Flicker Alley's Early Women Filmmakers: An International Anthology


• More information about Lincoln Center's "Tell It Like It Is: Black Independents in New York, 1968 – 1986"


• Kathleen Collins's short story collection, Whatever Happened to Interracial Love?


• Jeff Nichols's 2016 film, 'Loving'


• Nancy Buirski's 2011 documentary, 'The Loving Story'


• More information on Alice Guy-Blache


• More on Lois Weber


• More on Frances Marion


• Article on women who hand-tinted silent films


• Watch 'Birth of a Movement' on Netflix


• Listen to my episode on Abbas Kiarostami's 'Taste of Cherry'


• Listen to my episode on Barry Jenkins's 'Moonlight'


• Listen to my episode on Jennie Livingston's 'Paris is Burning'


• Diego Echeverria's 1984 documentary, 'Los Sures'


• Read Angelica Jade Bastien's review of 'Losing Ground'


• Read Richard Brody's review of 'Losing Ground'