Through the interweaving of theoretical analysis and practical work — a short participatory animated documentary film entitled Materia — this master’s thesis explores the complexity of women’s bodily experiences.
The theoretical part consists of a critical examination of dualistic thinking and, from the perspective of feminist theory, analyses how hierarchical divisions have historically devalued the body and turned women’s corporeality into a projection field of social fears, desires, and control. It then turns to feminist theories that reformulate the understanding of the body, from passive matter into a living, constantly changing material-social process. In this context, the concepts of intersectionality and self-situatedness are used as key analytical starting points.
The practical part discusses the process of creating the short participatory documentary film Materia. The project is based on intimate audio testimonies of seven interlocutors who share their experiences of corporeality. The film language is shaped through the interweaving of sonically processed testimonies, soundscapes, video recordings of bodies in motion, and animated material recorded using the stop-motion filming technique. The film is based on a limited and socially situated sample of interlocutors and is shaped through a process of co-creation between voices, materials, movement, sound, animation, editing, and the author’s position.
By combining theory and artistic practice, the thesis does not offer unequivocal answers but opens up a space for thinking about corporeality as a plural and never fully graspable experience.
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