Abstract

Background: With the rapid development of the social economy, women’s status is gradually improving. Many feminist films are entering the film market. It has becomea new hot topic recently. The development of feminist film theory can be traced back to the 1960s. The scholars began to pay attention to the presentation of women in films and the ideology of gender narrative in films. At the same time, its development trend rapidly expanded globally with the rise of the first feminist movement. In this process, feminist ideas also began to influence the film industry, gradually making female characters and themes important film components. Purpose: Feminist film theory is an important genre of contemporary film theory, originating in the 1960s. It is a theoretical school that integrates various theories and methods, such as psychoanalysis, post-structuralism, and semiotics, for comprehensive research. This article explores how feminist films should avoid existing problems and continue to develop based on Freud's theory of sexual development trends in his " Three Essays on the Theory of Sexuality ". Methods: This article adopts methods such as literature review, comparative research, and case analysis to explore the future development trends of feminist films from multiple perspectives. Results: This article explored and analyzed the development process of feminism as portrayed in Freud's " Three Essays on the Theory of Sexuality " and Laura Mulvey's feminist film theory from multiple aspects and proposed its future development strategies. Conclusion: In recent years, feminist films have been continuously developed and show diversified themes and genres. However, feminist films, both domestically and internationally, have not yet formed a complete system and corresponding theories. For example, their in-depth exploration of the core theme and innovation in films’ content and themes needs development. Therefore, in response to such issues, the future development measures for feminist films are as follows: 1. Increase the proportion of female directors; 2. Increase the diversity of female characters; 3. Pay attention to women's issues and conduct in-depth exploration; 4. Enhance the innovation of its localized story; 5. Strengthen international cooperation; 6. Provide National policy support.