The Watermelon Woman

Cheryl is a young Black lesbian who aspires to make movies and works in a video store. Researching the representation of Black lesbians in film history, she stumbles upon a bit player in the southern melodrama “Plantation Memories” identified in the opening credits as “The Watermelon Woman”. With interviews and snippets of found footage, Cheryl figures out who she really was: Fae Richards, a singer popular on the Philadelphia club circuit, who had a relationship with the film’s white director, although the latter’s sister denies it. Cheryl hopes for answers from Fae’s long-term lover who, however, is well advanced in years …
Director Cheryl Dunye sensuously weaves together elements of queer media studies with her heroine’s crush on a white academic. At the same time, her mockumentary delivers a profound example of bringing your own story into a film, with a fictional narrative about an “erased” minority. Meanwhile, her interviews, including with feminist icon Camille Paglia at the (fictional) Center for Lesbian Information and Technology, or CLIT, most definitely simulate serious-mindedness. The Watermelon Woman won the Teddy award for best narrative feature at the 1996 Berlinale.