Short Documentary Film – “Hysterical Girl” – by Kate Novack

Few people know that the term “hysteria” comes from the Greek word for “uterus” (hystera), an organ that has historically been blamed for a variety of symptoms in women including anxiety, shortness of breath, fainting, insomnia, irritability, nervousness, and sexually forward behavior.

Now, an Emmy-nominated filmmaker has taken this origin story and turned it on its head!

By combining actual excerpts from Psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud‘s medical treatment notes with images of contemporary events, Kate Novack gives voice to the millions of women who have been misunderstood and mishandled in our male dominated culture.

This 13 minute film is shown courtesy of the New York Times which ran it as an online op ed.

Watch Now!

More about the writer-producer Kate Novack.