8mm Forum: Women and film

This is topic Women and film in forum General Yak at 8mm Forum.

To visit this topic, use this URL:
https://8mmforum.film-tech.com/cgi-bin/ubb/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=8;t=000369

Posted by Hans van der Sloot (Member # 494) on August 07, 2006, 03:55 PM:

Why aren't there any women on this forum?
Is collecting 8mm and 16mm just a men's thing?

Posted by Steve Klare (Member # 12) on August 07, 2006, 04:44 PM:

Hmmmm...

While there is no reason it absolutely has to be a Man's thing, it would appear from the sampling of people that show up here it certainly tends to be one.

Why might this be?

While both women and men love movies, men get more wrapped up in the other dimension of the film collecting hobby, as in the mechanics and electronics of projection.

I can't exactly explain this. Perhaps somewhere long ago the males that were adept at making better slingshots, bows, arrows and clubs ate more often and were therefore more likely to become Daddies of future generations, so the technological knack is more pronounced in our Operating Systems by evolution.

You would think that being technological would be soley a matter of being skilled at math and science, but it is more than that. I knew any number of girls in high school were very bright in these subjects, and as much as their guidance councillors steered them towards Engineering School, they tended towards other fields like medicine and business. The passion for technology wasn't as common among them. I've been an Engineer 20 years now, and while I've known some very bright women who are fine Engineers, I doubt they were as many as 2% of the total number of Engineers I've known.

(It's a good thing I didn't have time to date when I was in College, because the selection of women was mighty thin!)

In terms of film collecting what this means is while my wife may enjoy the experience of seeing a projected film, it only means a great deal to me how it came to appear on the screen.

[ August 07, 2006, 06:26 PM: Message edited by: Steve Klare ]

Posted by Joe Taffis (Member # 4) on August 07, 2006, 04:45 PM:

hi Hans, the answer is yes....never mind though, that may be a very GOOD thing. Way back when I was married, my ex used to thread up some films to show friends and relatives while I was at work...I ended up dealing with shredded leaders, ripped films, AND WORSE!...bits & pieces of film and frames turning up in the bowels of the projector. Some others on the Forum will agree; i'm quite sure! The way they treat projectors is very similar to the way they treat cars. [Big Grin]

Posted by Steve Klare (Member # 12) on August 07, 2006, 05:51 PM:

True, true...

I've often suspected that extremely evil people bypass Hell and are instead reincarnated as my wife's car.

Posted by Adrian Winchester (Member # 248) on August 07, 2006, 09:00 PM:

It would be difficult to think of ANY interest that attracts such a low proportion of women. Even the miniscule number of women I've heard of buying films have probably all been partners of keen collectors. It would be interesting to know if any of the dealers on this Forum actually send lists direct to any women.

I wouldn't be surprised if it's pretty much the same situation with regard to video projector ownership.

Posted by Steve Klare (Member # 12) on August 07, 2006, 09:11 PM:

Along similar lines:

I know plenty of women that love music and have many recordings, however I've never met any I'd consider to be an "audiophile".

My brother-in-law has an Edison wind-up phonograph and a ton of old records. My sister hates the thing with a passion! (It's been banished to his workshop!)

Let's face it: this is a hobby for the kind of people that feel a slight twinge of joy when they hear that something doesn't work. However this is not the case with most women.

I just found a string of Christmas lights in the garbage which my wife threw away. What's wrong with them? They were tangled !!

This is not somebody prone to nursing a 30 year old projector back to health!

Posted by Jan Bister (Member # 332) on August 07, 2006, 10:07 PM:

Steve, that's twice now you've made me chuckle within one thread. [Smile]

You just have a way with words...! And I couldn't agree more with everything you say! [Big Grin]

Posted by John Clancy (Member # 49) on August 08, 2006, 04:21 AM:

Does anyone know any female car mechanics? There are some out there but not many. Similar sort of thing really, it's just not something women get into. They're generally better off sticking to their usual passtimes (watching game shows and soap operas for example) rather than getting into real hobbies.

Posted by Steve Klare (Member # 12) on August 08, 2006, 05:59 AM:

Sure there are, but it's pretty rare.

I know a woman who was trained as a Jet Engine Mechanic by the US Air Force. She had no real passion for it and never pursued it further once she left the service. (...thought of it as a career move to cash in on affirmative action, but never really wanted to do it 40 hours per week.)

Thanks Jan! (It's only funny because it's true!)

Posted by Kevin Faulkner (Member # 6) on August 08, 2006, 07:52 AM:

Think this is all very evident at the film conventions where it's mainly men.
Who knows maybe out of all the near 600 members on this forum there might just be a few women here somehwere not actively taking part [Frown]

Kev.

Posted by Barry Johnson (Member # 84) on August 08, 2006, 07:57 AM:

Nah! Kev. My missus still thinks all my cameras use videotape.Nuff said. [Roll Eyes]

Posted by Paul Spinks (Member # 573) on August 08, 2006, 08:36 AM:

My partner is as enthusiastic about film collecting as I am. However whilst I enjoy old horror films, she loves classic British comedies and old Humphrey Bogart pictures. Now all I've got to do is get her to appreciate old Westerns and it would be a match made in heaven. But as John Wayne said in The Searchers,"That'll be the day!"

Posted by Mal Brake (Member # 14) on August 08, 2006, 08:42 AM:

John, Susie is always with you at the BFCC's,so how far does her interest and involvement go? [if you don't mind me asking]
Mal

Posted by John Clancy (Member # 49) on August 08, 2006, 09:51 AM:

She has her own collection of films Mal and knows how to use the GS1200, but not the HTI version as that would be asking for trouble. It's a rare occasion she puts a film on herself though.

It may sound sexist but I find women don't tend to go in for hobbies as much as us blokes. Like I said earlier in the hope it would stir a female member of this forum into action, they're more into watching garbage on the goggle box. But I doubt it will get a reaction this time either. Perhaps I'll try something even more antagonistic after we've had a few more replies!!!

Posted by Steve Klare (Member # 12) on August 08, 2006, 12:13 PM:

I wouldn't be concerned too much about the revelations coming out here. I'm sure that all over the Internet there are other discussion forums involving doilies and recipes (and feelings ) where megabytes are being devoted to how utterly useless men are.

I can see how from my wife's perspective this may be true! I'm 44 years old, haven't ever sent out a Christmas card, and might not at gun point! Whereas she keeps Hallmark in business all on her own. So help me, she MAILED a Birthday Card to our son and he ... ummm LIVES WITH US!!! (Besides, he's 4 and can't read it regardless!)

Women are very emotionally sensitive beings, whereas I like to stay in the emotional range that runs from "calm" to "drunk"! (inclusive) This is one of the reasons my wife has problem with technological entities. She has problems believing that a malfunction is nothing personal, and figuring it out is best approached with a cool head. This some times leads to her standing over me saying "Did you fix it yet?" every 30 seconds...which rarely helps!

[ August 08, 2006, 05:34 PM: Message edited by: Steve Klare ]

Posted by Dalida Jalink (Member # 664) on August 24, 2006, 02:58 PM:

Woman here *waves* [Big Grin]

I recognize some of what you are saying. I know a few people who collect 8mm and 16 mm and they are all men. So I can relate with that.

What I notice from personal experience is that men are more interested in the technical part of the projector and that I'm personally more interested in the films themselves.

I love 8 mm film and I need a projector to play it, while for example my husband can work on a projector for hours just for fun.

I like working on, cleaning and repairing a projector too, but for me the main purpose is to be able to watch a film.

I'm more into checking the film out, cleaning it, repairing it ect.

Posted by Steve Klare (Member # 12) on August 24, 2006, 03:14 PM:

Uh, Oh Guys!

Straighten up and tuck in your shirts!

Welcome, Dalida!

This comes at an interesting moment: My wife just became responsible for activities for the younger kids at our church. One of her first ideas was bringing in the gear and big screen and showing these little kids cartoons in a way they probably have no clue exists.

(Problem: My big screen hangs from two hooks in the ceiling and is technically not "portable"!)

We are batting ideas back and forth for the lineup of films by E-mail right now.

Posted by Douglas Meltzer (Member # 28) on August 24, 2006, 09:49 PM:

My wife doesn't understand the hobby at all. She sees the red, faded prints.....hears the noisy projector.....and she can't believe how much room it all takes up! It was great when Mike, Dean, Rik and Brian came over and just stared at the closet o' film. She said it must be a guy thing. "I don't get it.....all you have to do is put the DVD in the player and watch it. Why bother with all this other stuff?"

Doug

Posted by Dalida Jalink (Member # 664) on August 25, 2006, 05:24 AM:

quote:
Uh, Oh Guys!

Straighten up and tuck in your shirts!

Welcome, Dalida!

LOL

Thank you!!!

I think it's a great idea to actually show them a real film. I used to work at a cinema and we had these tours for kids and they always loved the projection room and were really impressed with that. It also remindes me of a 'incident' that happend recently. I was talking to a young kid I know about music and I told them I had that particulair music on LP and he was like 'what's a LP' and I had to explain to him the whole ting about there being music on two sides ect....you should have seen his face! [Eek!]

Doug what you describe sounds exactly like the reaction we got from a couple of friends of ours. They totally couldn't get it, even when they are film buffs.

Also I can't wait to tell it to my mother. While moving a few years back she actually threw away all our old 8mm home movies!!!! She transfered them first to VHS...but still. I'm still upset about it! I can't wait to see her reaction [Razz]

Posted by Mike Peckham (Member # 16) on August 29, 2006, 04:07 AM:

A while ago I posted a note about a regular, yearly film show I am in the habbit of doing for friends at their pre-Christmas open house/craft fayre. The film show is ostensibly to keep the children occupied whilst their parents are spending their money on craft items. One of the interesting observations was how the girls seemed to be more interested in the film on the screen and the little boys more interested in the projector. Here is a snatch from that posting;

quote:
The first year I took loads of short films, thinking that there would be a transient audience of children coming and going. As it happened, the kiddies were so taken by the whole thing that several parents went off into town leaving their children behind transfixed to the screen. I sent out an SOS to home and had a couple of feature films delivered to give the show some more continuity and help it to keep going through out the day.

Last year I was better prepared, I took more features than I did shorts. The children were better prepared too and [whilst I don't want to be sexist about this ] the girls all seemed to gravitate towards the front row, these seats were highly prized, and the boys more towards the back. Tellingly, several of the little chaps spent far more of their time looking back at the projector than they did the screen and two were determined to help me thread it up and rewind the films!

...an interesting development this year was that the Dads took an extra interest in the proceedings and whilst children were transfixed to the screen and partners were sorting through rough looking things made out of what looked like bits and pieces of nothing in particular, the Dads crowded round the GS 1200 and Oohhed and Ahhed over it and wanted to play almost as much as their little charges.

The show started at about 11.00 and ran through until 5.00. For most of that time I was standing next to the GS as it purred away filling the room with its own special magic whilst I received regular deliveries of tea and mince pies.

Mike

Posted by Michael Ramirez (Member # 529) on September 14, 2006, 09:56 PM:

Same thing here.... my girlfriend doesn't mind the hobby but just sees it as old movies and a noisy projector. [Smile]

Posted by Dan Lail (Member # 18) on September 15, 2006, 01:00 AM:

My wife loves watching films and cataloging them, but doesn't have any interest in running the machinery. Oh, she likes shopping for films too!! [Smile]

Can't complain about that. [Big Grin]

Posted by David Park (Member # 123) on September 15, 2006, 02:50 AM:

Something like 30 years or so ago I was being shown round the projection box at the ABC cinema, Leeds, UK. and one of the projectionists was a lady.

UBB.classic^TM 6.3.1.2