Learning to listen: histories of women’s soundwork in the British film industry

Whilst women’s contribution to early cinema (as directors, writers, exhibitors etc) is widely-acknowledged, much less is known of their historical labour in the decades following the introduction of sound, and almost nothing of their work as sound technicians. The employment of women in the jobs created by the new technology of sound remains unstudied. This essay investigates women’s soundwork in the British film industry in the years between 1939 and 1989. It uses archival materials and oral history testimony to draw a micro-history of women’s soundwork in film processing laboratories, the feature film industry and non-fiction shorts. It argues that, whilst women were routinely excluded from prestigious roles such as Sound Engineer and Recordist in the features sector, they flourished in the niche areas of factual programming and Foley sound. Including case studies of the fifty-year careers of Sound Recordist Christine Collins and Foley Artist Beryl Mortimer this paper examines the gendering of women’s participation in film sound and their economic and creative contribution as sound professionals to the British film industry. It also suggests ways in which a study of women’s soundwork might offer new ways of thinking about film history.