Su Friedrich, a pioneer in American avant-garde cinema, writes, directs, and edits all her films. These are often a mix of the personal and political, ranging from home movies to video interviews and more classic narratives.  

In the black-and-white Damned If You Don’t, Friedrich presents an intimate study of sexual expression and repression. As two women’s lives draw closer together, a voice-over brings excerpts from the diary of a 16th-century nun and her memories of her sneaky lesbian romance at a Catholic school. The nun’s tentative unwrapping of intricate clothing is both foreplay and a liberating metaphor. The film is as hypnotic as a dream.