Welcome to FBA
Speak Near: Video Essay. Artist Statement. Research Philosophy. Curatorial Rationale.
At Feminist Border Arts (FBA), we believe in the transformative power of stories. Now in its tenth year, this collaborative initiative by Drs. M. Catherine Jonet and L. Anh Williams connects the humanities and arts, digital and analog media-making, and curation, alongside public scholarship, community engagement, and public digital humanities-arts.
Through signature projects like the Feminist Border Arts Film Festival (FBAFF), Feminist Border Arts Zine Fest (FBAZF), SJZ: Social Justice Zine, and original works in graphic narrative, media, and filmmaking, we blend creative practices with critical theory through a research-creation methodology that transcends traditional academic boundaries and democratizes knowledge production through creative expression.
As a platform, FBA unites conceptual ideas, creative work, and research in the fields of women's, gender, queer, and feminist studies, creating a space where critical thinking and media-making intersect to explore and share new perspectives.
We have been featured in MLA Profession's "Public Humanities in Action" and are the first recipients of the Team Award in Exceptional Achievements in Scholarly and Creative Activities from the University Research Council at New Mexico State University-Las Cruces, through Research, Creativity, and Economic Development. Our work contributes to advancing the goal of achieving Carnegie R1 status and enriching NMSU’s Carnegie Community Engagement classification.
LET'S CONNECT THROUGH THE STORIES WE TELL: IN STORIES WE FIND OUR WAY
M. C. Jonet & L. Anh Williams
Founding Co-Directors
Researchers, Educators, and Creative Practitioners
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This website serves as the public-facing platform for projects that encapsulate FBA's interdisciplinary and transformative approaches to women's, gender, queer, feminist, and LGBTQ+ research, critical and creative praxis, and film and media making.
Key Projects
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FBA10: 2025 Film and Zine Fest
Crafting New Futures: Celebrate 10 Years of Feminist Border Arts
June 6-7, 2025 | University Art Museum, NMSU, Las Cruces, NM
We're hitting the 10-year mark, and you’re invited to be part of Feminist Border Arts 2025. This isn’t just another festival—it’s a place where film, media, and zines collide to challenge the status quo, spark conversations, and reimagine the future.
Join us at the University Art Museum for two days of screenings, zines, and special guest speakers who are pushing boundaries in art, storytelling, and social change. We're looking for bold, creative films and zines that break the mold—stuff that makes people stop, think, and view the world differently.
Key Dates:
- Event: June 6-7, 2025
- Location: NMSU University Art Museum, Las Cruces, NM
- Film Submission Deadline: March 7, 2025
- Zine Fest Application Deadline: March 14, 2025
Got a Film? Submit it.
We want films that go deep into the issues that matter—gender, LGBTQIA+, race, social justice—in ways we haven’t seen before. Documentary, animation, experimental, narrative—if it’s fresh, daring, and different, we want to see it.
Make Zines? Exhibit Them.
Whether you’ve been making zines for years or this is your first body of work, if you’re doing something creative, queer, feminist, transborder, political, and personal, we want you at the Feminist Border Arts Zine Fest. Half tables are just $25, and we’re looking for voices that need to be heard.
Who’s Coming? Meet Our Guests
Get ready to hear from some of the boldest voices in storytelling. These artists, filmmakers, and scholars are at the top of their game and bringing fresh perspectives:
- Nicole J. Georges: Acclaimed graphic novelist, zine legend, and Lambda Literary Award winner (Calling Dr. Laura, Fetch).
- Tony Candelaria: Animator and sculptor behind Pinocchio (2022) and Coraline; director and educator.
- Alejandra Jimena Medina Gomez: Feminist animator from Mexico, known for her surreal and queer sensibilities in film.
- Stef Choi: Zine maker and animation artist (Coraline, Guardians of the Galaxy), known for blending animation with ceramics.
- Dr. David Tenorio: Scholar focused on queer transnational communities and digital storytelling.
- Dr. Kylo-Patrick Hart & Dr. Alissa Burger: Editors of Queer Studies in Media and Popular Culture, advancing critical discourse around LGBTQIA+ media representation.
Want to know more?
For more details on submissions, guest speakers, and event information, visit the festival website and check out the Zine Fest page for updates on exhibitor applications and schedules.
Stay updated by following us on Instagram & Threads (@genxprof), Twitter/X (@gensxprof), and TikTok (@genxprof). You don’t want to miss news and media leading up to the event.
Latest: Remembering NMSU’s Emilia Rueda: The Emilia Archive – Say Her Name
September 19th, 2024 marks the two-year anniversary of the tragic loss of Emilia Rueda, an NMSU student whose life was taken due to intimate partner violence (IPV). In her memory, we are honored to announce the launch of The Emilia Archive. The archive preserves her digital storytelling piece, “Hand of Colonialism,” completed shortly before her death for her Intro to Women's, Gender, and Sexuality Studies course, and featured at the 2023 Feminist Border Arts Film Festival (FBAFF), alongside the illustrated zine Introduction.
Introduction, adapted by Dr. L. Anh Williams, Director of Gender & Sexuality Studies and Founding Co-Director of FBA, transforms Emilia’s video into an illustrated format. Originally created for print, the zine has been digitized as a downloadable PDF, offering readers a new way to engage with the work. Williams made the zine entirely pink, Emilia’s favorite color, in response to her family’s request that attendees wear pink to her funeral under the message “Wear Pink for Emilia.”
The Emilia Archive also includes media-making activities on digital storytelling, zine-making, adaptation techniques, and creating public media in response to grief. We are working with NMSU Library’s Archives and Special Collections, led by Dr. Erin Wahl, to preserve these materials as part of the developing Feminist Border Arts Zine Collection.
We appreciate your support in sharing this with colleagues, students, and the broader community. Please, today, think of Emilia and say her name.
Acknowledgments
The Emilia Archive is made possible through the support of the Rueda Family and New Mexico State University’s Feminist Border Arts (FBA), Gender & Sexuality Studies (G&SS), the Department of English, the University Art Museum, the College of Arts & Sciences, the College of Arts and Sciences Stan Fulton Endowed Chair, the Office for Equity, Inclusion, & Diversity, NMSU Global Campus, and Research, Creativity & Economic Development.
Latest: "Limbus" Accepted at More Fests and Another Award
FBA co-founder & #NMSU G&SS professor Dr. M. C. Jonet's "Limbus" has been officially selected for the 2025 edition of ICE Film Festival in Ohio. The piece has also been awarded by the festival in the vertical video category.
This piece previously won Best Vertical Video at the F3: Queen City Film Festival in Cincinnati, OH, in February 2024. It has also been an Official Selection at the Social World Film Festival in Vico Equense on the Sorrento Coast, Italy, from June 30 to July 7, 2024, and was featured at the Tijuana Vertical Film Festival (TJVEFF) in Tijuana, Baja California, Mexico, from August 28 to August 31, 2024.
Additionally, the piece is an officially selection at the 13th edition of MINA, the Mobile Innovation Network and Association, in Melbourne, Australia in November 2024.
Past Event: 2024 Feminist Border Arts Film Festival & Zine Fest
Celebrate International PRIDE Weekend with Independent Films, Zines, & Media in Las Cruces, NM, June 28 & 29 at the University Art Museum
Two days of films, zines, a workshop, and panels. Join us for the 9th annual Feminist Border Arts Film Festival and our inaugural Feminist Border Arts Zine Fest, international Pride weekend, June 28 and 29, 2024, at the University Art Museum, NMSU, Las Cruces, NM.
Day 1 - June 28 Fest Online Schedule
Immerse yourself in our 2024 Official Selections of women's, LGBTQ+, and transformative filmmaking from the Borderlands, the US, and around the globe. Many films are NM, US, and international premieres.
Day 2 - June 29 Fest Online Schedule
It's a zine revolution. Explore zines that defy authority, journeys that break boundaries, comics that will change your life, and tales that celebrate community, social change, and creative expression. Plus, we will be screening craft and community oriented films all day as well as feature speakers, panels, and a workshop for kids creators.
COME AS YOU ARE OR WANNA BE: Show off your best fashion – let your style shine. Strike a pose at our FBA Step and Repeat for epic photos that embody queer feminist Pride & Solidarity.
Enjoy light refreshments, including popcorn, throughout the festival. Each day will feature a 3 PM reception catered by Alma's Kitchen, offering a rainbow of mini-conchas for dessert.
Stay and slay for two days. Admission is free and open to the public. We look forward to celebrating with you!
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Click to Learn More About the 2024 Festival
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Read the 2024 FBA Festival Press Release
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Download the 2024 FBA Film & Zine Fest Program as a PDF
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Jonet and Williams KRWG Radio Interview with Scott Brocato
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Jonet and Williams on KTAL Radio with Cafe Con Leche
2024 Sponsors
Sponsored by NMSU Gender & Sexuality Studies, University Art Museum, College of Arts & Sciences, Office for Equity, Inclusion, & Diversity, NMSU Global Campus, Research, Creativity, and Strategic Initiatives, Department of English, and Doña Ana Community College
Latest: "Limbus" Accepted, FBA Part of SWPACA Summer Salon Conference
We are thrilled to announce that FBA co-founding director Dr. M. C. Jonet's short film "Limbus" has been accepted for screening at the Social World Film Festival, happening from July 2 to July 9, 2024, in Vico Equense on the Sorrento Coast, Italy. Celebrated previously at the F3: Queen City Film Festival in Cincinnati, OH, this vertical video artfully intertwines witchcraft motifs with vegetal rejuvenation. "Limbus" serves as a cyborg manifest-0, embarking viewers on a journey into vegetal witch glitch, manifesting a techno-eco gender affirmation that blurs the lines between the feminine, the organic, and the digital.
Before that, Jonet and Williams will be presenting at the SWPACA Summer Salon Conference to discuss the collaborative zine-making project involving local educators and 234 students in Las Cruces, NM in Spring 2024. Led by Dr. L. Anh Williams, the zines were presented at a panel during the 19th annual J. Paul Taylor Social Justice Symposium on April 10, 2024. This presentation explores methodologies and experiences, emphasizing creative expression, information activism, and community storytelling. It will also demonstrate the impact of participatory media in education and social justice advocacy, supported by digital resources at FBA Zine Activities.
Latest: FBAFF at SWPACA
This presentation explores Feminist Border Arts (FBA), an interdisciplinary humanities-arts collaborative initiative housed in the academic program for Gender and Sexuality Studies at New Mexico State University. Introducing FBA’s role at the intersection of film and media, academic research, and creative practice, we highlight a range of projects—from curated film festivals to digital and comics zines—before screening a 60 minute program of short films drawn from the Feminist Border Arts Film Festival 2023. Serving as a hub for inter- and multidisciplinary collaboration, FBA is committed to fostering social justice and transformative change, traversing borders that are both literal and conceptual.
Latest: FBA Zine Workshop for J. Paul Taylor Social Justice Symposium
We're proud to collaborate with local educators and students at the J. Paul Taylor Academy and the New America School on participatory zine projects for the upcoming 19th annual J. Paul Taylor Social Justice Symposium, hosted by NMSU Gender & Sexuality Studies.
We conducted workshops that dove headfirst into the art of zine-making and its powerful role in feminist and LGBTQ+ histories, creative expression, and community storytelling. These sessions, led by Williams in early 2024, focused on empowering participants through hands-on learning and the sharing of personal narratives. After the workshops, the educators and Williams developed plans for zine projects.
These efforts will be showcased at the symposium, with teachers and students discussing their work and methodologies. The symposium will be a day-long event highlighting the importance of inclusive leadership and the impact of collective voices in the fight for social justice.
Join us at the Corbett Center Student Union Auditorium, where admission is free, and the exchange of ideas is boundless. Your voice is our community's and university's strength.
Latest: Limbus: Vertical Video Screening and Award
Jonet's short form moving image media piece, "Limbus," was selected for screening at the F3: Queen City Film Festival, Film Curation, & Film Awards in Cincinnati, OH during February 2024. This vertical video is a glitch collage narrative playing with tropes of witchcreaft and vegetal recharge. The description of the short states: "Limbus" is a cyborg manifest-0, a journey into vegetal witch glitch, a concept that blends femme and organic elements with digital disruptions, embodying the paradoxes of modern living while envisioning a techno-eco gender affirmation.
The short was also selected as an award winner by the festival.
Latest: Invited Talks & Presentations
Join us at the Seminario Internacional 2023 de Procesos Creativos en Arte y Diseño at the Universidad Autónoma de Ciudad Juárez on Oct. 30th, 2023.
Dr. Williams and Dr. Jonet, G&SS faculty and FBA co-founders, have been invited to present:
L. A. Williams: "Borderless Screens: Feminist Border Arts in the Intersection of Media, Scholarship, and Creativity"
This presentation explores Feminist Border Arts (FBA), a collaborative initiative housed in the academic program for Gender and Sexuality Studies at New Mexico State University. The talk examines FBA's transformative role at the intersection of film & media, academic research, and creative practice. Highlighting a range of projects—from curated film festivals to innovative zines—the presentation reveals FBA as an ever-evolving platform. Serving as a hub for multidisciplinary collaboration, FBA is committed to fostering social justice and instigating transformative change, traversing borders that are both literal and conceptual.
M. C. Jonet: "The Art of Failure: Glitches and Creative Disruptions"
Drawing on the works and theories of Jack Halberstam, Ocean Vuong, José Esteban Muñoz, Agnès Varda, and Brian Eno, this presentation explores how glitches and "failures" can serve as revolutionary acts of defiance and expression. We will discuss how these disruptions challenge our understanding of aesthetic value, offering new pathways for examining our shifting social, political, and digital landscapes in the 21st century.
Latest: Digital Media Research & Creativity
Jonet's piece, "Queer Glitches, Failure Feminisms," will be showcased at the international /’fu:bar/ festival and exhibition in Zagreb, Croatia (Oct-Dec 2023), as well as the Les Femmes Underground International Film Festival in Los Angeles. This work blends vintage visuals and modern digital elements, creating an intricate landscape that explores identity, gender, sexuality, and creative expression. Watch for the ‘glitch’ moments—they serve as powerful symbols that challenge and remind us of the complexities shaping our lives in this digital age.
Latest: A Graphic Exploration of Food, Narrative, and Community
Premiering at Albuquerque Zine Fest 2023, Upcoming Featured Work at Feminist Border Arts 2024
Feminist Border Arts (FBA) is thrilled to announce Cooking With Friends, a group comics zine project incorporating audio versions of many of the stories. Cooking with Friends was organized, edited, and designed by Dr. L. Anh Williams, who collaborated with eight other artists, including Will Betke-Brunswick, animator Stef Choi, documentary filmmaker Alix Towler, and Gender & Sexuality Studies professor emeritus Dr. Jillian Sandell, each of whom contributed both a story and a recipe. This compelling work made its debut at the 2023 Albuquerque Zine Fest on October 7 at Explora: Science and Children's Museum.
"Cooking With Friends" does more than merely share stories and recipes; it stitches a rich tapestry of lived experiences, interrogating the complex intersections of food with gender, race, and community. As part of FBA 2024, this zine offers readers an engaging journey that straddles the political, the creative, and the personal.
Ready to dig into more intellectually nourishing fare? Make sure to join us at FBA24 to explore Cooking With Friends and a smorgasbord of other innovative, intersectional works.
GenXProf Social Media
Feminist Border Arts is a research-creation and curation initiative in D.I.Y. Media Studies and Methods by Jonet & Williams, located in G&SS. GenXProf social media (GensXProf on X - Twitter) supports FBA projects and G&SS.
Feminist Border Arts by M. Catherine Jonet and L. Anh Williams is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Feminist Border Arts LLC
