Barbara Forever Documentary Wins Teddy Award at Berlin Film Festival

The film explores the work of pioneering lesbian filmmaker Barbara Hammer.

Published on Feb. 22, 2026

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The documentary "Barbara Forever," directed by Brydie O'Connor, won the Teddy Award for Best Documentary/Essay Film at the Berlin Film Festival. The film traces the evolution of Hammer, a visionary filmmaker who made experimental films celebrating lesbian love and the female body. O'Connor began researching Hammer's work almost a decade ago and collaborated with Hammer's widow, Florrie Burke, to bring the project to life. The film highlights Hammer's desire to live forever through her art and the challenges she faced in getting her work seen and embraced by both the lesbian and experimental film communities.

Why it matters

Barbara Hammer was a pioneering lesbian filmmaker whose experimental work broke taboos and celebrated queer identity at a time when LGBTQ+ representation was severely lacking. This documentary helps preserve her legacy and inspires other queer artists to continue making personal, political, and historically significant work.

The details

The documentary "Barbara Forever" explores the life and career of Barbara Hammer, a lesbian filmmaker known for her experimental films that celebrated lesbian love and the female body. Director Brydie O'Connor began researching Hammer's work almost a decade ago and later collaborated with Hammer's widow, Florrie Burke, to bring the project to life. The film traces Hammer's creative explosion after coming out at age 30, her efforts to get her films seen and embraced, and the ultimate recognition of her work at prestigious institutions like the Whitney Biennial and the Museum of Modern Art.

  • Barbara Hammer was born in Los Angeles in 1939.
  • Hammer came out as a lesbian at age 30.
  • Hammer's work was featured at the Whitney Biennial in 1985, 1989, and 1993.
  • In 2010, the Museum of Modern Art in New York devoted a month-long exhibition to Hammer's work.
  • In 2017, two years before Hammer's death at age 79, the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library at Yale University acquired her archives.

The players

Barbara Hammer

A pioneering lesbian filmmaker known for her experimental films that celebrated lesbian love and the female body.

Brydie O'Connor

The director of the documentary "Barbara Forever" who began researching Hammer's work almost a decade ago.

Florrie Burke

Hammer's widow, who collaborated with O'Connor on the documentary project.

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What they’re saying

“I really wanted Barbara to be able to tell her own story. She talked about everything. She recorded everything. So that was really the genesis, the core idea of Barbara Forever... that Barbara was the expert on her own life and career.”

— Brydie O'Connor, Director (Deadline)

“Barbara constantly felt the tension between being a lesbian filmmaker and making lesbian work and also making avant-garde work. She really didn't feel like she fit neatly into either lane or into either community — artistic community or queer community.”

— Brydie O'Connor, Director (Deadline)

What’s next

The documentary "Barbara Forever" will next screen at the True/False Film Fest in Columbia, Missouri in March.

The takeaway

This documentary preserves the legacy of a pioneering queer artist whose personal, experimental work challenged societal norms and paved the way for greater LGBTQ+ representation in film. It serves as an inspiration for other queer creatives to continue making bold, unapologetic art that reflects their lived experiences.