Freja Film

Freja Film was a radical screening forum held at the "Stockholm Women's House (Kvinnohuset)" in Stockholm, Sweden, during the 1980s. The name Freja was chosen for the group paying homage to the Nordic goddess who was the leader of the Valkyrie. Kvinnohuset was an important meeting place for women during the 1980's and 1990's in Stockholm. The space on Snickarbacken 10 was shared by different women's organisations such as Freja Film , self defense groups, Kvinnobulletinen Lesbiska Feminister, and musicians in Spelhålen.
The original core group was composed of Moira Sullivan, Yvonne Eriksson, and Anna Kindgren. Guests to the women's house included filmmaker Barbara Hammer. Regular screenings of films made by women were held with discussions afterwards. The icon on the poster head for the monthly screenings was Dorothy Arzner, the only woman working in Hollywood as a director during the 1930s. Freja Film was modeled after the Amsterdam based feminist film and video distribution collective Cinemien. Freja Film imported films with permission of filmmakers for special screenings. Some of the films screened were Lizzie Borden's "Born in Flames" which won "prix du public" at Créteil International Women's Film Festival in 1983 and Marleen Gorris' A Question of Silence which won in 1982. Freja Film's activities and reports from women's film festivals were published in Kvinnobulletinen, an important journal for women in Sweden during the 1970's through 1990's. Among the editors was Ebba Witt-Brattström.
Freja Film was the contact organisation of women's film established during a special conference sponsored by UNESCO in 1981 held at the At the Amsterdam meeting all functioning women's festivals and women working in film such as Frances Reid, Barbara Hammer, Michelle Citron presented papers and strategized about reaching women in media around the globe. Also present was the newly started Créteil International Women's Film Festival(1979), the longest surviving women's film organization in Europe. Freja Film worked closely with Créteil International Women's Film Festival as the Nordic contact organisation.

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