A Comedy in Six Unnatural Acts

The story

Jan Oxenberg’s charmingly raw, politically-charged and remarkably funny celebration of the American lesbian experience validates the nuanced voice of a community otherwise underrepresented in the Wild West of mid-’70s independent filmmaking. In an attempt to combat the pervasive misconception of the “humorless, angry feminist,” the vignettes in A Comedy in Six Unnatural Acts experiment with self-aware yet playful depictions of common stereotypes, such as the “Stompin’ Dyke” or the butch-femme couple. In the process, Oxenberg’s short film reclaims those insults and assumptions as newfound, loaded weapons—to deploy on her own terms, of course. (UCLA Film & Television Archive)

Cast & crew

Evan Paxton

Evan PaxtonCast

Sue Talbot

Sue TalbotCast

Jan OxenbergCast

Susan Gluck

Susan GluckCast

Jacci Weller

Jacci WellerCast

Joy Franklin

Joy FranklinCast

Cheryl Swannack

Cheryl SwannackCast

Ellen Broidy

Ellen BroidyCast

Alice Bloch

Alice BlochCast

Paul ReubensCast