Be Natural: The Untold Story of Alice Guy Blache
How often have women been erased from history? Considering, as many feminists have pointed out, that it is literally HIStory, I would say for at least the last 6000 years. When did we decide socially that men were the dominant gender in society? It's not only based in religion. In this brilliant blog on The Creation of Patriarchy, by Renee Gurlich, she researched that:
"(Around 4000BC) In Mesopotamia, patriarchy become embedded with the transition from subsistence living to agriculture, the formation of cities and the rise of militarism; and this seems to be a pattern."
Yes, this seems to be a pattern in all societies as humanity moved from hunter/gathering, and the gendered roles of civilization became codified into the fabric of what women and men were supposed to be. Gender is a social construction, and unfortunately, for the amazing Alice Guy Blache, the late 1800's France adhered to these gendered principles.
Alice Guy Blache producing in the late 1890's
That's why Born Natural: The Untold Story of Alice Guy Blache is so incredible. I've been studying film for 30 years and I'd never even heard her name. I'd learned of Leon Gaumont, the French inventor whose Film Company is the oldest functioning in the world, but I'd never heard of his secretary, Alice.
Leon Gaumont and one of his still camera inventions
That is the historical significance of Born Natural, we learn of the true female inventor of cinema and based on the notion of patriarchy discussed above, she is remarkable! She is the first human to tell a story with moving pictures and it's time to replace the irreverent notion that men and only men began this industry. For it is the unscrupulous ideology of maleness that determined moving pictures were only a 'fad' in the late 19th century that allowed Guy Blache to become the first to make what we consider a movie today. Before her, moving pictures only captured the natural movements that people were organically making. There wasn't a narrative directed into these moving pictures. Alice was the first to tell a story with this medium and she became the premier teacher of how to do so. For me, that deems her a modern Socrates. She could have kept the knowledge to herself. Instead, she spread her tutelage throughout this burgeoning industry.
Instead of thanking Alice Guy Blache for what she gave them, the men she taught took credit for nearly every film she produced. Yes, patriarchy can be a real bitch! So today, I am very thankful for the astounding work of Pamela B. Green. Thank you for introducing me to Alice Guy Blache. And today, I'm tormented by the fact that I can't thank Alice. As a women in her 50's who feels that I had to push a little harder through my life to equal my male counterparts, I am enthralled, enraptured, mesmerized and honored to learn of the great Alice Guy Blache. I also know the patriarchy of her time was a bit more prolific than mine, which makes her story even more momentous. Thank you Pamela B. Green, for giving me the opportunity to express my gratitude in this letter. Without you, I would have never known. It is my hope that the angel Alice, in some sort of way, may now know that her life's work has contributed to the confident optimism of so many of us today. Please, Lord, let her know!
Pamela B. Green - Auteur of Be Natural: The Untold Story of Alice Guy Blache
Dear Ms. Alice,
It is with great joy that I wish to thank you personally for the amazing contributions you made to the advent of cinema. Though the ideas, techniques, and tools you established, may have eventually come to light, it is my belief that the world of cinema would have been vastly different without your touch. Women are great communicators and organizers. On a scientific level it has been proven so (just in case a man wishes to argue this point). Your ability to master every aspect of this craft and then teach it to hundreds, if not thousands of others, makes you one of my all-time favorite humans. As a feminist, the fact that you are a woman is merely icing on the cake. But it is the grace with which you told your story, the absence of any visceral anger, that I most admire. How did you keep it together when all the men you taught took credit for what you did? Worse, they almost resentfully critiqued that with which you actually were accredited? Yes, Ms. Alice, I've learned from you one of the greatest lessons of my life, and I wish desperately that I could have shared it with you in person. Nobody can ever take away what you have truly accomplished. When you are certain of your own truth, it simply isn't anyone else's to have. Bless you and please know, there isn't a film class that I will ever teach, that will not know your name, what you've bestowed upon the film industry, as well as your amazing grace.
With all the gratitude in my heart,
A really big fan ~ Guin
I give Be Natural: The Untold Story of Alice Guy Blache 5 out of 5 hearts
One for each score that she was forgotten. It's heartbreaking that it took 100 years to get to review this story. It is enlightening and I feel nothing short of exuberance, that alas we get to do so!
💙💙💙💙💙
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