Five Fabulous Female Filmmakers – Experimental Film and Artistic Practice in Conversation with Gunvor Nelson, Lisa Marr, Terra Long, Caroline Monnet, and Olga Spiegel.

In 2018, Maria Magnusson met Gunvor Nelson on several occasions in her home and studio in Kristinehamn. They had much to talk about, and these meetings resulted in a longer conversation about processes and thoughts on art and experimental film. At that time, Maria came up with the idea of inviting internationally active female filmmakers/artists working in this tradition, asking them—through dialogue—to share their thoughts on the subject.

The people she has chosen represent different generations and share a love for the analog film format and experimental film. They are artists who have inspired Maria in various ways and whom she has also met and collaborated with. In 2013, Maria participated in the Independent Imaging Retreat, also known as Film Farm, in Mount Forest, Canada, founded by Philip Hoffman and Marian McMahon. It was there she fell in love with analog experimental film processes and first met Lisa Marr, Terra Long, and Caroline Monnet. In 2023, Kai Ephron was artist-in-residence at Konstepidemin, working on the film project The Wheelbarrow. He introduced Maria to his mother, Olga Spiegel.

Artist and experimental filmmaker Gunvor Nelson is one of the most influential female filmmakers of the “New American Cinema.” She moved to the U.S. as early as the 1950s and taught film at the legendary San Francisco Art Institute until 1992, before returning to Sweden where she now lives. Lisa Marr is a musician, songwriter, filmmaker, photographer, and educator from Vernon, British Columbia, Canada, and a member of the EPFC Collective in Los Angeles and EPFC North in Vancouver. Terra Long is a Canadian filmmaker and member of the Independent Imaging Retreat (The Film Farm) and the F4A Collective. Caroline Monnet is an Anishinaabe French Canadian visual artist and filmmaker. Olga Spiegel is a psychedelic painter and filmmaker. She trained in Europe before establishing her career in New York and was an original member of Women Artist Filmmakers (WAF, 1974–1981, N.Y.).