A New Andrea Dworkin Documentary
At one point in award-winning filmmaker Roberta Pyzel’s 57-minute documentary, Dworkin, the late writer-activist Andrea Dworkin addresses the illusion of objectivity: “All writing has politics,” she says. “I want mine to be animated by the spirit of activism.”
And it was. Dworkin’s more than 12 books and countless talks touched on topics like patriarchy, sexual violence, male domination, female subservience, war, peace, sexuality, and feminism, with every word reminding us that a better, more socially just world is possible. While in her lifetime, she faced derision from both the right and left wing, her strong writing has made her an intriguing figure for a new generation to discover and learn from.
Pyzel’s film weaves Dworkin’s last on-camera interview with clips of her reading from her work and delivering a speech at a 1995 anti-violence rally. In addition, footage of a memorial held in her honor provides a glimpse into her enormous influence.
Pyzel spoke to Eleanor J. Bader about the film late this summer.
Eleanor J. Bader: You conducted three interviews with Andrea Dworkin shortly before she died. These turned out to be her final on-camera interviews. Was she a friend?
Roberta Pyzel: No, but I came of age in the 1960s and 70s so I was familiar with Andrea’s writing. I had great respect for her and found her work beautiful, intelligent, and filled with heart.
In 2003, I got my first professional video camera. I was eager to do interviews and wrote to Elaine Markson, Andrea’s longtime literary agent, and asked if she could arrange an interview with Andrea. Elaine conveyed my request and Andrea responded. In retrospect, it’s pretty amazing!
From the start, Andrea was warm and gracious. At the time, she was living in Brooklyn so we met for coffee and talked. She told me she was moving to Washington, DC, but said that once she got settled she’d contact me to arrange an interview. Not long afterward, we set up the first conversation. This was in 2004; she died the following April.
After she passed, her partner, John Stoltenberg, asked me to film a memorial in New York City.
EJB: All of this took place nearly 20 years ago but Dworkin was not released until 2024. What happened?
RP: When I first interviewed Andrea I’d been thinking about making a film about activism but after speaking with her I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do with the material. Then, as often happens, life overtook me and the tapes just sat.
Fast forward to last year. Andrea’s partner John contacted me and asked if someone else could use some of the footage and audio for a project they were working on. That request, on top of the horrible pushback against women’s rights — particularly the Dobbs decision and the draconian rules that punish people who have abortions — prompted me to digitize the interviews. Doing this, I was once again moved by Andrea’s eloquence and decided I had to make films about her.
Dworkin is based on the first interview we did. It took place in March 2004. I plan to make two more videos, featuring our second and third interviews, over the next year or so.
EJB: Which of Andrea’s ideas do you find most compelling?
RP: Andrea spoke passionately and eloquently about hierarchy and the suffering that results when some people are on top and dominate others. This structure applies to economic status, race, sexuality, and gender. Although Andrea’s work focused on gender, she reminds us that having a few women or people of color in leadership — even as President — does not change reality for the majority.
Andrea was demonized as nasty and rage-filled precisely because of this revolutionary challenge to the status quo. But as you can see in the film, this is the opposite of who she was. Yes, she stood up against male domination and wanted men to be feminist allies. She was unafraid to speak her truth and did not care if what she said made people uncomfortable. But if you listen to her speeches or read her words you will see that she was insightful, brilliant, and extremely kind. Her anger was an appropriate response to domination and suffering. Everyone should be angry about these things.
EJB: Andrea often spoke at events that denounced sexual violence against women and the pervasiveness of rape. That movement seems to have sputtered.
RP: As we moved out of the 1970s into the 1980s and 1990s, U.S. activism overall began to fade. There had been some progress — Roe v. Wade was law and shelters for “battered women” had opened throughout the country. No one anticipated that these gains could be reversed. The result was that many young activists began to focus on making a living, returning to school, and starting families. They did not foresee that a powerful backlash would develop or lead to the corporate-dominated consumerism that prevails today.
Right now it feels as if we are sitting on the edge of several huge potential disasters. People and the earth are being exploited. We need feminist thinking to promote cooperative social arrangements, where everyone is respected. This has to become our paradigm for survival.
We’re up against some scary stuff: Proud Boys, incels. Trumpism, and outright fascism. Andrea looked at social structures and saw how much hurt and pain they cause. Despite this, she believed change was possible.
EJB: What do you want people to take away from Dworkin?
RP: I hope the people who knew Andrea’s work will feel good about seeing her this intimately. In the film, she seems to talk directly to viewers. You can feel her energy.
I also hope that people who are unfamiliar with her will be intrigued and will read her books. Her thinking remains relevant. Actually, I think it will always be relevant.
Finally, I hope people will be excited by her example and will get out and organize.
For more information about screening Dworkin, go to https://www.jaxsplace.com/2024/06/26/box-3/