Screening Women and/in Politics

Film Journal - special issue

Hélène Charlery and Anita Jorge

This special issue of Film Journal seeks papers on the representation of political women and women in institutional politics in audiovisual productions from and on the anglophone world, whether they be documentaries, fiction films (short, medium, feature-length, television or platform) films, series or mini-series.

Since the 1970s, women as political figures—political rights activists, office-holders or candidates at local or national levels—have been the focus of numerous documentary films—Angela Davis: Portrait of a Revolutionary, 1971, Some American Feminists, 1977, Carry Greenham Home, 1983, Chisholm ’72: Unbought & Unbossed, 2004,14 Women, 2007, Miss Representation, 2011, Knock Down the House, 2018, RBG, 2018, Not Done: Women Remaking America, 2020. Conversely, fiction films about women and/in institutional politics have only become widespread since the 2010s. How can this imbalance be explained? Why does it seem more convenient, commonplace or profitable to feature women in political activism or in office in documentaries than in fiction? Are there any formal reasons why documentaries have been chosen as the preferred form when addressing topics on women and/in politics? American documentary film theorist Bill Nichols (2001) distinguishes between fiction and documentary pointing out that the latter is grounded both in an authentic representation of the world’s social struggles and in history. Political commitment is therefore inherent to the conventions of the genre. Are documentaries better fit to address, cinematically, the political commitment of women and minorities in politics, more than commercial cinema would, and has done?

With the exception of royal figures in films about the British monarchy, which are not addressed in this issue, very few female political figures have been the subject of biopics, and only recently so—Filth: the Mary Whitehouse Story (BBC), 2008, The Iron Lady, 2011, The Lady, 2011, On the Basis of Sex, 2018, Shirley, 2024. This should come as no surprise given Dennis Bingham’s characterization of the genre as that of “THE GREAT (WHITE) MAN” (Bingham, 31). Are female politicians more likely to be represented in speculative genres, such as science-fiction and dystopian films (Project Moon Base, 1953, Mars Attacks!, 1996, For All Mankind, 2019, Y: The Last Man, 2021)? Are they used as tokens in progressive narratives to address the advancement of other identity groups, like President Claremont, the divorced mother of a gay son (Alex Claremont-Diaz played by Taylor Zakhar Perez) involved in a romantic relationship with the Prince of Wales, in Amazon’s Red, White & Royal Blue (2023)? In fictions, are they simply treated as a token minority that has serendipitously accessed political power, or are they placed at the center of narratives? For instance, the plot of Mrs. America (2020, FX) is based on Phyllis Schlafly being sidelined by Ronald Reagan’s Conservative government, when she was in fact instrumental in helping Conservative Republicans win the women’s votes in the 1980 election.

In recent years, prominent episodes of U.S. politics have given way to the representation of more female characters in politics (Confirmation, HBO, 2016) on networked, cable and streaming television (Iron Jawed Angels, 2004, HBO; Game Change, 2012, HBO; Scandal, 2012-2018, ABC; The Diplomat, 2023, Netflix; Zero Day, 2025, Netflix). How have traditional television and digital media built their brand differentiation and niche-audience strategies by producing and introducing into their catalogs narratives featuring women in central, decision-making, top-rank positions of political power? Does the fact that more examples of women in politics can be found on television and digital media than in feature films translate the economic and commercial constraints of film distribution and exhibition in movie theaters? Again, is this a purely commercial or industrial issue? Or do television and serial narrative modes provide more possibilities to discuss gender and politics across genres (Parks and Recreation, 2009-2015, NBC) or to complexify characterization in plot development?

 In “Fact or Fiction: the Reality of Gender and Race in Reaching the White House”, Lilly Goren writes that in Hollywood fiction, women only reach the White House fortuitously (like Mackenzie Allen in Commander in Chief, Selina Meyer in Veep, season 3, or Claire Underwood in House of Cards, season5), rather than through the regular electoral process (with the exception of President Allyson Taylor in 24, season 7). These presidents often end up resigning for different reasons (Leslie McCloud in Kisses for My President, 1964, Caroline Reynolds in Prison Break, 2005, Olivia Marsdin in Supergirl, 2015, Claire Haas in Quantico, 2015). When they do make it to the White House, they generally do so after several seasons, once the emotional engagement and bonding with the audience has been achieved (Mellie Grant, Scandal,season 6, Elizabeth McCord in Madam President).

Lastly, does fiction focus solely on women in the highest spheres of political power or does it also portray more anonymous, grassroots political figures, the way documentaries do? When fiction portrays real-life figures, is the priority given to likeable characters? Many fiction films are set during the Thatcher Years, but the first biopic on the Iron Lady, James Kent’s Margaret, only came out in 2009, for the BBC.

This special issue also looks at how these women are portrayed, whether they are presidents, local politicians or activists, fictional characters or real-life figures. Do representations focus on their ideas, ideals, careers, beyond their gender? What moments in their careers are portrayed in biopics? Are they depicted primarily as politicians, or as mothers, spouses, and daughters? Does representation reinforce gender-based stereotypes such as care and empathy, or on the contrary, ambition? Are women seen as tokens in resilience-based narratives? How have changing mentalities influenced representation? Are they presented as if they could “have it all”, managing to juggle domestic and political life? In other words, is the narrative influenced by feminist theories? What is the influence of the growing presence of women behind the camera, as directors, in writers’ rooms, or as executive producers,or of stakeholders increasingly influenced by feminist film theories, on the representation of women and/in politics on screen?

Proposals for articles may cover (but are not restricted to) the following topics:

-          film genres and the portrayal of female politicians/women in politics: does genre have an impact on the way these women are depicted?

-          the economic underpinnings of these representations for audiovisual industries (cinema and television)

-          the role of networks in the growing representation of women in politics

-          the representation of women in politics and (non-)conformity with gender stereotypes

-          the relative scarcity, even today, of these representations, despite changing practices and audiences, and greater freedom afforded by the ‘all at once’ release of series episodes

Please send your proposals for articles (500 words) along with a brief bibliographical note, by June 30, 2025 to Hélène Charlery (helene.charlery@univ-tlse2.fr) and Anita Jorge (anita.jorge@univ-tlse2.fr). Full papers to be submitted by September 30, 2025.

Selected Bibliography

Azmat Rasul and Arthur A. Raney. “Learning Politics through Entertainment: Exploring the Effects of Biographical Films on Political Learning and Attitude Toward Female Politicians.” Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media 65, no. 2 (2021): 248-269.

Bingham, Dennis. Whose Lives Are They Anyway. The Biopic as Contemporary Film Genre. New Brunswick, New Jersey and London: Rutgers University Press, 2010.

Haas, Elizabeth, Terry Christensen and Peter J. Haas. Projecting Politics: Political Messages in American Film. London and New York: Routledge, 2015, 2nd edition.

Horwitz, Linda and Holly Swyers. “Why Are All the Presidents Men? Televisual Presidents and Patriarchy” in Lilly Goren, ed. You’ve Come a Long Way, Baby: Women, Politics, and Popular Culture.Lexington: University of Kentucky, 2009: 115-135.

National Film Board of Canada. Beyond the Image: A Guide to Films about Women and Change, Montreal: National Film Board of Canada, 1984.

Schwind, Katie L. Politics, Feminism, and Popular Television: Madam Secretary as a Politician, Wife, and Mother. PhD thesis, June 2017.

Tung, Rosalie L. “Female Expatriates: The Model Global Manager?” Organizational Dynamics Vol. 33, no. 3 (2004): 243-253.

Vaughn, Justin S. and Lilly Goren, ed. Women and the White House: Gender, Popular Culture, and Presidential Politics. Lexington: The University of Kentucky Press, 2012.