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Article Evaluation
The Wikipedia article on Meshes of the Afternoon is reasonably comprehensive. It includes a plot summary and basic narrative structure, background of the film, production information, and provides the analyses and discussions of film critics. It also includes a section entitled 'Influence' that discusses Deren's unique cinematic elements and their influence on other filmmakers and films. This article, however, is lacking information from Maya Deren, herself, in discussing her intentions for making this film. There is only one small paragraph which discuses Deren's perspective, which mentions her then-husband as well:"The film was the product of Deren's and Hammid's desire to create an avant garde personal film that dealt with devastating psychological problems, like the French surrealist films of the 1920s such as Salvador Dalí and Luis Buñuel's Un Chien Andalou (1929) and L'Age d'Or (1930)."With the exception of the mention of the critics' analytical discussions, the article does not assert any specific claims or hold any specific positions regarding the film's content. Its plot summary is basic and speaks to what happens on screen. I would suggest that there be a section added, in which in addition to discussing the analyses of critics, there be mention of Deren's subjective opinion on the film and how it relates, in a greater scope, to the content in her other films. There is little mention or reference to her other works, and surprisingly, the article does not include the word 'feminist' or explanation of her role on capturing the female subjectivity in film. In the scholarly piece we read for our class discussion, "Maya Deren and an American Avant-garde Cinema," Rabinovitz includes a quote from Deren herself where she discusses her ideas for the film and how she was able to cinematically express them. Rabinovitz offers a detailed discussion of Deren's influence on feminist cinema, in analyzing her cinematic representation of the female experience. Therefore, this article is lacking Deren's own input and discussion, only including the analyses of male critics, Joseph Hoberman, Lewis Jacobs, and Joseph Brinton.

The article's citations are working and support the content included in the article. Most of the information provided are from reliable sources, either from archives, such as JSTOR, film guides, bbc.com, etc. Other sources are from personal blogs and less reputable websites. Most of the facts included in the article are referenced, however, some are not. The external links that are posted on the page are linked to the film's IMDB, Rotten Tomatoes, and All Movie pages.

The last revision to the page was on February 12, 2018, and revisions occur relatively frequently. The Talk page consists of one user asking other Wikipedia users to review his or her changes, asking to verify one specific link.

Research Proposal
I plan to research and contribute to Leni Riefenstahl’s article the influence of the aesthetics of fascism on her filmography. I would like to look at the evolution of her work and see how the socio-political climate influenced it. I will use resources that analyze and refer to Riefenstahl’s earlier works, her works commissioned by Hitler, and post-Hitler and fascism films, and photography books, etc. I will use the following resources to aid me in my search:

Fehervary, Helen, Claudia Lenssen, and Judith Mayne. "From Hitler to Hepburn: A Discussion of Women's Film Production and Reception." New German Critique, no. 24/25 (1981): 172-85. doi:10.2307/488048.

Gardner, Robert. "Can The Will Triumph?" Film Comment 3, no. 1 (1965): 28-31. http://www.jstor.org/stable/43753296.

Hinton, David B. The Films of Leni Riefenstahl. London: Scarecrow Press, 2000.

Riefenstahl, Leni. The Sieve of Time: the Memoirs of Leni Riefenstahl. London: Quartet Books, 1999.

Rentschler, Eric. "Fatal Attractions: Leni Riefenstahl's "The Blue Light"." October 48 (1989): 47-68. doi:10.2307/778948.

Draft
Riefenstahl’s lead section begins with a summary of her professions, and then proceeds to give a brief background of her early life in Germany. It, then, discusses her decision to become an actress, which leads into her directing career. The summary of her life as a director is strictly condensed to Triumph of the Will and Olympia. The lead section merely references her first film, and does discuss or reference the other films that she directed. The nature of her relationship with Hitler is mentioned in the lead section; however, there is no mention of her directing style. The lead section ends with the cause and the date of her death, and her burial site.

I think that Riefenstahl’s Lead Section on Wikipedia is much more comprehensive than those of other female directors and women. However, I would that the early reference to Hitler shows that viewers are more interested in and intrigued by her relationship with Hitler than by her films. The question that I will explore is whether or not she should be appreciated for her art. I will edit the lead section to touch on the topics that I am looking to expand on—specifically about the content, form, and style of her other films and how they compare or differ from her films that were commissioned as means of nationalist propaganda.

The section headed ‘Directing Career,’ begins with her propaganda films. The content discusses the beginnings of Riefenstahl’s professional relationship with Hitler, beginning from her admiration of his public speaking talents. The section then mentions the opportunities that Hitler offered to her, and speaks of their friendly relationship. Regardless of the truth of her relationship with Hitler, this section negatively associates Riefenstahl with the atrocities committed by Hitler, rather than separating her filmmaking skills in Triumph of the Will from her relationship with him. However, her style and skills are mentioned in the discussion of Olympia. I will add a similar discussion of her style in Triumph of the Will.

There is no mention of her film Wild Water, made in between Triumph of the Will and Olympia, in 1937. I will add a section that analyzes this film to a greater extent, especially looking at her form and cinematography in relation to Triumph of the Will and Olympia.

Throughout her Wikipedia page are brief mentions of her 1954 film Tiefland (Lowlands), which she postponed working and producing for her propaganda films. I will add a section that compares and contrasts the style, tone, and underlying meaning of Tiefland compared to her propaganda films and her earliest film The Blue Light and to her unreleased 1965 film Alone Among the Nuba, and her 2002 film Impressions under Water. I will also add a section that discusses the evolution of her style as Hitler and fascism evolved.

Cayla Bamberger
Hi Sophie! Your draft seems like it's off to a great start.

Everything that you have included seems very relevant to your topic. I see no distractions throughout your work.

You do a great job at remaining neutral in your writing, even about a topic that brushes with a subject as heavy as Nazism and Hitler. I would just be careful, as you continue to write, that when you discuss "whether or not she should be appreciated for her art," you balance both sides of the argument and speak in factual terms—as I have no doubt that you'll be able to do! I especially commend you on recognizing that a "section negatively associates Riefenstahl with the atrocities committed by Hitler, rather than separating her filmmaking skills." This seems very important in representing all viewpoints!

Your sources look very solid and all your information appears to be up to date.

Response to Cayla Bamberger
Thank you, Cayla. I am trying to remain neutral, which is extremely difficult regarding the nature of my topic. I think that observing Riefenstahl's work through an objective, artistic lens will help me understand her work, not solely as it was perceived, but as it evolved with the changing socio-political climate. How her style evolved throughout her films will likely help me better understand how she was influenced by the times as a person and as an artist.

Depiction of Gender Roles in Riefenstahl's Films
In Triumph of the Will and Olympia, Riefenstahl enforces gender performative behavior through her stylization of the body, which creates an illusion of self. R.W. Connell asserts that the Nazis "virtually equated [gender] with the exercise of power in its most naked forms" (42). Their reversion to historical concepts of masculinity and femininity marked a change from the progressive politics of the Weimar Republic. Connell writes, "fascism [being] a naked reassertion of male supremacy in societies that had been moving towards equality for women... To accomplish this, fascism promoted new images of hegemonic masculinity, glorifying irrationality, and the unrestrained violence of the frontline soldier" (193). In her directorial debut Das Blaue Licht, Riefenstahl’s depiction of gender reflects the liberal social ideals. Her protagonist Junta refuses to conform to traditional gender roles, who dresses modestly and more masculine. Junta rejects the town’s patriarchal structure; she dresses and acts differently from the other villagers, who comply with traditional societal gender roles.

In Triumph of the Will, Tom Saunders argues Hitler serves as the object of the camera's gaze. Saunders writes, "Without denying that “rampant masculinity” (the “sexiness” of Hitler and the SS) serves as the object of the gaze, I would suggest that desire is also directed toward the feminine. This occurs not in the familiar sequences of adoring women greeting Hitler’s arrival and cavalcade through Nuremberg. In these Hitler clearly remains the focus of attraction, as more generally in the visual treatment of his mass following. Rather, it is encoded in representation of flags and banners, which were shot in such a way as to make them visually desirable as well as potent political symbols" ("Filming the Nazi Flag: Leni Riefenstahl and the Cinema of National Arousal," 25). The flag serves as a symbol of masculinity, equated with national pride and dominance, that channels men's sexual and masculine energy. Riefenstahl's cinematic framing of the flags encapsulated its iconography. Saunders continues, "The effect is a significant double transformation: the images mechanize human beings and breathe life into flags. Even when the carriers are not mostly submerged under the sea of colored cloth, and when facial features are visible in profile, they attain neither character nor distinctiveness. The men remain ants in a vast enterprise. By contrast and paradoxically, the flags, whether a few or hundreds peopling the frame, assume distinct identities" (29).

Riefenstahl presents gender as a binary in Olympia. She highlights the masculinity of the male athletes, filming them in slow motion. She captures the female athletes in real-time or fast motion, through often obstructed lenses (filmed through the crowd or a cropped image). The difference in the men and women’s portrayals in Olympia reflects the Nazi’s emphasis on male dominance. During Riefenstahl’s footage of the women’s high jump, she intercuts images of cheering male spectators. Her interplay of footage suggests the greater Nazi ideology of traditional gender behavior. The film’s sequence emphasizes the idea that the female athletes are performing solely for the pleasure of the male audience. Additionally, the male events are featured more prominently in Olympia than the female events. Riefenstahl’s depiction of gender as binary in Olympia is promotive of Nazi ideology.

Riefenstahl’s overwhelming sense of the power of masculinity in German society is transmitted through the figure of men’s hands. Their hands possess their power and their physicality, which Riefenstahl glorifies in Tiefland. The female protagonist in Tiefland, Martha, is filmed in claustrophobic, dark environments, while the male characters are well-lit and framed against mountains. The difference in their wardrobes, Martha in black and the men in bright colors, suggests her submission to the patriarchal structure in society. Similar to Junta, Martha loses her sense of independence and willingly submits herself to the male-centric authority. Riefenstahl’s deflated sense of self is reflected in Martha, distinct from the independent and strong character she portrayed in Das Blaue Licht.

Transformation of the Individual in Riefenstahl's Films
Riefenstahl emphasizes the power of the individual through Junta’s resistance to the oppressive system and choice to live outside of the constraints of the village. However, Junta is praised as a martyr for her sacrifice for the village, rather than for her individuality. Critic Martina Theile claims that Junta is presented as a figure for the male gaze. Das Blaue Licht appealed to Hitler and Goebbels for its portrayal of self-sacrifice.

The aesthetics of Triumph of the Will promote national unity, rather than the power of the individual. The liberal ideologies in Das Blaue Licht are missing from Triumph of the Will and Olympia. Riefenstahl’s films center on militarism and the power and proficiency of the new German order. The framing of the importance of the individual in Das Blaue Licht transforms into the emphasis on the uniformity and anonymity of the subjugated masses in Triumph of the Will. Riefenstahl’s shots transform the individual into parts of a machine. In Triumph of the Will and Olympia, Riefenstahl’s composition of the shots of individuals and the use of zoom function as political messages.

Unlike her propagandic earlier films, Riefenstahl’s final film Tiefland is subversive of societal influence. While Das Blaue Licht, Triumph of the Will, and Olympia, reflect the socio-political climate Riefenstahl worked under, Tiefland is apolitical.

Music in Riefenstahl's Films
Riefenstahl distorts the diegetic sound in Triumph of the Will. Her distortion of sound suggests she was influenced by German art cinema. Influenced by Classical Hollywood cinema's style, German art film employed music to enhance the narrative, establish a sense of grandeur, and to heighten the emotions in a scene. In Triumph of the Will, Riefenstahl used traditional folk music to accompany and intensify her shots. Ben Morgan comments on Riefenstahl's distortion of sound, “In Triumph of the Will, the material world leaves no aural impression beyond the music. Where the film does combine diegetic noise with the music, the effects used are human (laughter or cheering) and offer a rhythmic extension to the music rather than a contrast to it. By replacing diegetic sound, Riefenstahl’s film employs music to combine the documentary with the fantastic,” ("Music in Nazi Film: How Different is Triumph of the Will?" The music substitutes for the live sound of the event and functions to convey the meaning of her shots. The accompanied music conveys the meaning behind the images, of national pride.

Editing and Cinematic Style
In Triumph of the Will, Riefenstahl pays little attention to temporal and spatial continuity. Her edits lacks a relationship from one shot to the next. Rather, her she establishes continuity through rhythm, visual and thematic connections to that construct a sense of grandeur.