 Disgruntled by their marginalisation and encouraged by the work of other
women filmmakers outside Wales, a group of women working at Chapter Arts Centre
in Cardiff formed their own group in November 1981 called the South Wales
Women's Film Group - the first women's film organisation in Wales. The Group
formed with the intention of sharing skills, supporting ideas and enabling women
to play a more active part in filmmaking.
Following the miner's strike in 1985 - when many women were given a taste of
political activity - Clare Richardson, Claire Pollak, Carol White, Michele Ryan,
Penny Stempel and Frances Bowyer, joined by Caroline Stone from Open Eye
Workshop in Liverpool, Eileen Smith from Chapter Video Workshop, and Pearl
Berry, a miner's wife, went on to form Red Flannel Films as a Channel Four
workshop in 1986.
They were granted a year's development funding, followed by a four-year
contract, which covered salaries and overheads. The group established community
activities, film clubs and training for women in video and computer skills. The
members worked with women in the Penrhys and Rhydfelin estate, documenting their
lives in an attempt to promote a more positive image than had previously been
displayed in the media. Their combined practice of working locally and producing
broadcast material was supported by South East Wales Arts and the Equal
Opportunities Commission.
Films such as Mam (1988) and Special Delivery (1991) uncovered the domestic
and public histories of Welsh women, investigating their roles and status in the
family, the labour market, reproduction, women's organisations and political
parties.
At the end of the Channel 4 contract, Clare Richardson, Carol White and
Caroline Stone moved the company to Cardiff and went on to produce four
documentaries for BBC Wales.
Emma Hedditch
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FILM & TV CREDITS
