Sexism is more than just a “hot topic” in gaming. It’s a pervasive issue that has been ever-present, flaring up again and again with incidents such as Aris Bakhtanians’ behavior and comments during a Cross Assault broadcast and the defamation of Anita Sarkeesian’s website in light of her own attempts to fund her Tropes vs. Women series (the first episode of which is up on her site, Feminist Frequency, and well worth a watch). Most telling, perhaps, was the #1ReasonWhy hashtag, which blew up on Twitter last year, and exposed some of the seemingly innocuous incidents and inculcated attitudes that make the gaming industry, and the gaming community, an uncomfortable place for women.
Now, Shannon Sun-Higginson is looking to shed further light on the subject with a new documentary, “GTFO.” She has collected extensive footage through interviews with those who play games, study them, write about them, and create them. She needs funding, though, for post-production, licensing rights for assets used, and expenses incurred by further filming. She’s asking a modest $20,000, of which her Kickstarter has already accrued almost half. As is pointed out in her trailer, social change was never accomplished by not discussing it, and Shannon seems well-poised to contribute to the discussion in a meaningful way.
Source: Kickstarter