Born in Flames
Science fiction pushes the boundaries, explores the improbable, and envisions the future of humanity. It also exposes us to extravagant visual effects and the inventive power of cinema, reflecting our deepest fantasies. In cinema, science fiction is immersive, creating worlds suddenly within our reach. This summer, over one hundred films from the history of cinema will allow us to witness this!
Please note that this 16mm print shows some signs of wear,
notably a reddish coloration in the last 20 minutes.
Winner of the Reader Jury of the Zitty Award, 1983 Berlin International Film Festival
Born in Flames is a political science fiction mockumentary in which three groups of women oppose a stagnant socialist government that has been in power for a decade.
Lizzie Borden
Lizzie Borden is an American feminist director, best known for her film Born in Flames. Originally named Linda Elizabeth Borden, she decided at the age of eleven to take the name of the infamous accused double murderer Lizzie Borden. Her films have been said to be united by an iconoclastic depiction of sex. They also investigate race, class, power, capitalism, and the power that money bestows — all from a feminist viewpoint. After an experimental documentary, Regrouping (1976), she explored the role media plays in culture with Born in Flames. Working with nonprofessional actors, Borden pieced together a disjunctive collage of women's individual and collective work, produced in a gritty, pseudo-documentary style. The film premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival in 1983 and won several awards. With her next film, Working Girls (1986), she depicted the lives of sex workers, inspired by some of the women who participated in the making of Born in Flames, and who coincidentally supported themselves through prostitution. The film stood out at the 1987 Sundance Film Festival, winning a Special Jury Recognition.
