On October 24, 1975, ninety percent of women in Iceland walked off the job and out of their homes––refusing to work, cook, or take care of the children–– bringing the country to a standstill. On the 50th anniversary of the Icelandic women’s strike, we are hosting a screening of The Day Iceland Stood Still (2024), a new documentary by filmmakers Pamela Hogan and Hrafnhildur Gunnarsdóttir. A post-film discussion will follow the screening with visiting scholars from the University of Iceland who will reflect on the history of the strike and its legacy 50 years later. Filmmakers Pamela Hogan and Hrabba Gunnarsdóttir will join Biz Nijdam in a pre-recorded conversation about the creative use of animations to fill archival gaps and capture historical memory, parts of which will be screened after the film.
Discussants
Panel moderated by Brynjarr Þór (Perry) Mendoza, Postdoctoral Fellow in the UBC Centre for Climate Justice.
- Ólöf Garðarsdóttir, Professor of Social History, Dean of the School of Humanities, University of Iceland
- Birna Bjarnadóttir, Research Specialist, Faculty of Languages and Cultures, University of Iceland, and former Chair of Icelandic (2003 —2015), University of Manitoba
- Sofiya Zahova, Director of the Vigdís International Centre for Multilingualism and Intercultural Understanding School of Humanities, University of Iceland
This event is part of the UBC Pop Culture Cluster’s Pop Film Series and is made possible through the support of UBC Arts Multilingual Week, Comics Studies Cluster, Film Society, Centre for European Studies, Pop Culture Cluster, Public Humanities Hub, Nordic Studies, the Social Justice Institute, and the Icelandic Canadian Club of BC.
