I run radical film and audio courses under the banner of Hyenas in Petticoats. 

 

The first 12-week course took place at the recently restored Newington Green Meeting House in Hackney, London, and was funded via the National Heritage Lottery Fund. I co-led the course with documentary filmmaker Mizgin Arslan and the resulting wonderfully eclectic short films were showcased to the public on Friday 1st December 2023 at Newington Green Meeting House.

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The feminist writer, philosopher, educator and advocate for human rights, Mary Wollstonecraft (1759-1797), was closely associated with Newington Green Meeting House and is commemorated by a sculpture in the adjacent Newington Green. When her famous feminist treatise, "A Vindication of the Rights of Women", in which she dared to argue that women are rational beings and should have the right to self-determination, was published in 1792, she became the target of much criticism from some conservative quarters. Iin particular the writer and Whig politician, Horace Walpole, took offence,  describing her as a ‘hyena in a petticoat’. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

   Drawing by Ian Ward

 

The course comprised twelve 2-3 hours Monday evening workshops. It was very much an introductory course and most of the participants had little or no prior experience of filmmaking.  We spent the first half of each session viewing a range of experimental and/or documentary films that were radical, whether in form or subject-matter.

 

We encouraged participants to work with themes that are personal to them and find their own voice as opposed to trying to adhere to industry tropes. 

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This first iteration of the Hyenas in Petticoats course was a wonderful experience for me in so many different ways. The thing I found most satisfying was how well the women worked as a group. They were very mutually supportive and always offered each other well thought through constructive feedback. We also had a lot of fun!

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We showcased the films that were made as part of the course at the Newington Green. It was so moving to see such a diverse and accomplished set of short films on the big screen. There were also some audio works and illustrated lectures in the mix. 

 

See here for more information about the screening 

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 Testimonials

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"...it was completely brilliant, inspiring and impactful in so many ways. I really loved the group, such brilliant and diverse women. I loved the exchange between us all, which was really facilitated by you.

 

I especially loved the first six sessions, learning about the different genres of film. That was really fascinating and totally expanded my horizons of what film making could be, the selections and ways they were presented were brilliant. So it felt like there was a real breadth of work, with enough context and also the questions for discussion that we had afterwards were great. I really liked your style of facilitation, which was not overly didactic but let us discover things through the dialogue and questions you brought. Without this bit, I would never have thought about animation, which is what I ended up doing and loved" 

Angela Byrne

 

 

"It was a very good course, affordable with an incredible women's energy and very interesting subjects. Thank you so much for having me on board.

I am constantly thinking of new projects" 

Noemi Menendez

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​"This was a brilliant course. It was aimed at women who may or may not have made a film before
to express our voices about issues that concerned us. The course created an incubator
environment for us to think about what we wanted to make the film about and in what genre. Katy
McGahan showed us examples of different styles of radical film to show us that we didn’t need
expensive and high tech film making equipment to get our voices across. We were a very diverse
group both ethnically and range of ages. Katy and Mizgin created a wonderfully non-judgemental
atmosphere where we all were able to share our diverse experiences. As an older lesbian who had
just lost my partner of 35 years who wanted to do a film about bereavement I found the groups
understanding and compassion helped me process my loss. Most of us used our phones. We showed our preliminary footage and discussed our projects
within the group which helped us formulate our ideas. The Mizgin and Katy then provided us with
advice and equipment and showed us how to use it depending on our individual project needs.
We had sessions with an editor and voice recording technician. We all made brilliant films on a
great variety of subjects and genres. I was very proud of our achievements and feel very
privileged to be in the first group of this ground breaking course"

Catherine Phillips

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​"This course taught me the history of documentary and furthered my fascination with film. It brought together

a community of women from all different backgrounds, cultures and age groups. I felt very supported by both the tutors and women I worked with. I enjoyed sharing and discussing as a group. I found there was a diverse set of interests and perspectives, and I was constantly inspired by women’s words and work.

 

It was empowering to see my work screened for friends and family. The event was a wonderful celebration of all the work we had done, and the event further strengthened the bonds made over the weeks of the course. After the course I toured my film around a few film festivals and even set up my own mini film festival called London Nature Films with Clive Ardagh. My film helped the Time to Grow organisation apply for funding and also connected them with more volunteers.  I also went on to host Equinox Film Festival - a small environmental film festival in Vermont. This course gave me the motivation and confidence to make a film, and am grateful for all it offered me"

Madeleine Hartly Salim

 

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