Black women’s oppositional gaze making images

Michelle Sales,Bruno Muniz

doi:10.21814/vista.3061

Abstract

In this article, we consider the audio-visual production carried out by black women in Brazil since the second decade of the 21st century. Our objective is to propose a reflection, adopting an intersectional approach, on how an oppositional gaze creates images that break with racist stereotypes and challenge whiteness (hooks, 1992). We argue that the production of black women in Brazil questions the reproduction of institutional racism and digs deeper into the issue of colonial past. They create a narrative dispute that the oppositional feminine gaze imposes on the film industry.

Highlights

Figura 1: Kbela, Yasmin Thainá, 2015 @yasminthaina
The filmmaker Glenda Nicácio is the founder of Rosza Filmes, in the Recôncavo Baiano, and a graduate of the film course that was recently created by the Federal University of Recôncavo da Bahia in the emblematic city of Cachoeira, where an important Brazilian film festival is transforming the national cultural scene
In assuming the concept of an oppositional gaze as a formative paradigm for North American black cinema, but for the many waves of black cinema around the world, we propose to reflect about the way in which black women have produced cinema in Brazil, upholding, in many ways, an oppositional gaze towards whiteness, racism and sexism, while pointing out the continuity of colonial dynamics

Summary

Introduction

Figura 1: Kbela, Yasmin Thainá, 2015 @yasminthaina. Fonte: https://www.vice.com/pt_br/article/78zqbq/kbela-quando-o-cabelo-da-mulher-negra-vira-filmeIn audiovisual productions that depict racialized populations, the white gaze over black bodies usually reinforces racist stereotypes.

Objectives

Results

Conclusion