My piece ‘Killing the Demure’ intervenes in filmic language, particularly in terms of editing and the way in which one can isolate images, reconfigure them and reposition them to create new meanings and narratives. My piece operates within and intervenes in the histories of female representation within film and the history of cinematography in general, utilising footage from both Martin Scorsese’s ‘Goodfellas’ (1990) and Disney’s ‘Bambi’ (1943), comparing both the female character of Karen Hill within ‘Goodfellas’ and the female rabbit within ‘Bambi’. Rooted in the context of the 1940s, I decided to primarily focus on the scenes of the female rabbit character which emphasise a sort of sexualisation and humanisation. The rabbit is used alongside and against a climactic scene between Karen and Henry Hill within ‘Goodfellas’. Within the mafia film, I decided to look at the character of Karen, as she reflects the stereotypical representation of females within period mafia films, particularly their plight and subjugation, while simultaneously being at the forefront of the narrative.

Hence, the piece brings two female characters in their most powerful state in which they succeed their male counterparts, the female rabbit through her sexuality and Karen through her use of violence, however when placed alongside each other they create a new narrative in which the demure is pinned against the antagonist (Karen). This absurd relationship between child friendly cartoons, sexual relations and violence is further emphasised through the isolation of these images from their filmic contexts and their pairing together. Thus, my piece seeks to intervene in and question what images are exposed to audiences and how in dissecting these one can reveal new tropes, stereotypes and modes of representation. The work also integrates the notion of cinema and cinematic experiences, looking at the ways in which audiences receive films on the big screen and distorting this by looking at three individual clips running simultaneously and interacting with one another. The clips are also projected onto multiple surfaces and through different technology thus alluding to postmodernism in terms of the way individuals now receive cinema off of multiple modes of technology.