Introduction: Unruly Filmmaker, Fellow Traveller

The introduction to this collection explores the dominant ideas that frame Campion’s work, using these as a starting point for arguing that any appraisal of her oeuvre will benefit from using feminism(s) as a lens through which to explore it. The introduction traces the development of her work, arguing that Campion’s ambivalence towards being positioned as a feminist filmmaker belies her continued focus on female subjects. This seeming paradox is explored within the context of a (post)#MeToo moment. In addition, her specific position as a New Zealand filmmaker will be considered in relation to Campion's changing relationship with feminism. Her recent television output has developed an intersectionality that is directly linked, the introduction argues, to the way in which #MeToo has forced a reappraisal of the assumed universality of feminism itself. The introduction concludes with an outline of each chapter within this framework. It highlights the links between the chapters and explores the feminist perspectives in which they are anchored. This approach offers the reader a narrative for both Campion’s work and the feminist landscape in which it has been produced.