Kathleen Collins Prettyman
![photos2007bimage3[1].jpg](http://blog.lib.umn.edu/raim0007/gwss3307_fall2007/photos2007bimage3%5B1%5D.jpg)
Kathleen (Conwell) Collins Prettyman was born 3/18/42 in Jersey City, New Jersey. She died 9/18/88 from cancer. She attended Skidmore College and did graduate work in Paris. Her accomplishments, among many, the first black American woman to make and release a feature film along with first prize at the Sinking Creek Film Festival for one of her first films. She also participated in play writes. She made films more for her race then her gender and is quoted saying,
To separate oneself from the black man is to allow America the final triumph of division.
Her works include many:
The Cruz Brothers and Mrs. Malloy (1980) screenplay
Losing Ground (1982) screenplay
In the Midnight Hour (1981) stage play
The Brothers (1982) stage play
Conversations with Julie (1988) screenplay
Waiting for Jane (1988) stage play
Lollie: A Suburban Tale (1988) novel
The work I wish to focus on was the one announced in the "Sisters in Cinema" website. Losing Ground is a comedy about a black American female philosophy professor and her incapable husband. He treats her terrible and restricts her and she fantasizes for something more; the word ecstasy is key, she ends up seeking out and experiencing it. This shocks her husband. It is a film about the character finding herself in a comical back drop and her ability to shake off her rigid barriers.
Although I have never seen the movie it was rated six of ten stars at the internet movie database online. The concept amuses me and I think that it could be an interesting piece. The most interesting part would be the ability to see Kathleen express her fierce opinions of life through her art.
The first site I looked at was the "Sisters in Cinema" site from there I clicked on the movie and was brought to the site mentioned above. The most useful site that I used that gave me a well rounded feel for her and her work was done by searching through Google. The site is http://www.answers.com/topic/kathleen-collins .
Her movies were shown in film festivals where they won awards. Her plays were also awarded and played at a noticeable level. Although I've heard of none of these films before now I am sure that Losing Ground is available for purchase.
There was no difficulty in finding information about Kathleen Collins. She was admired and praised for her work and the ability to search her name without inconclusive results proves that.