Happy International Women’s Day!
Continue the fight for women’s rights with these documentaries next week.
This Saturday is March 8th. We wish everyone a good day for the fight for women’s rights!
The fight is not over in one day. This is confirmed by the films from this year’s festival program.
Below is a list of strong, moving and, not least, important documentaries that address the fight for women’s rights, in different ways – at different times and in different places.
Welcome to the festival!
An Army of Women
Director: Julie Lunde Lillesæter
After “Amy”, Marina and Hanna’s rape cases are dropped by the police in Austin, Texas, the women try to put their lives back together. The three women join twelve others in a groundbreaking federal class action lawsuit. Their argument is that sexual assault is not prosecuted because it is a type of crime that mainly affects women. They are determined to hold police and prosecutors accountable, but face constant opposition from the system they are trying to change.
After the screening of “An Army of Women” on Wednesday, March 12, there will be a talk about how the film was made, the status of women in Austin and the United States, and the need for a consent law in Norway. There will be a Q&A with director Julie Lunde Lillesæter and cast member Hanna Senko after the screening on Sunday, March 16. In collaboration with the film’s production company, Differ Media. The talk will be held in Norwegian.
Vivas
Director: Angélica Cruz Aguilar
In today’s Mexico, no woman is safe. Femicidios is the term for the murdering of women, known as femicide, and it’s happening on a great scale in this country. Many of the murders remain unpenalised or ignored by authorities.
“Vivas” deals with the feminist wave of Latin America trying to bring focus and stop the femicides. The film tells the story of victims of horrendous murders, through the bereaved. The documentary shows the power behind the growing feminist movement: Women fighting for their right to exist, survive and continue living a life free of violence.
Devi
Director: Subina Shrestha
Nepal’s civil war ended in 2006, but not for Devi. Like many others, she was a victim of sexual violence during the war. Now she is fighting the country’s rulers’ attempts to erase this shameful part of the civil war’s history. Her hip-hop-loving daughter would rather she just be a mother.
“Devi” is a powerful documentary that won the “Edge of Impact” award at the 2024 Doc Edge festival in New Zealand.
The screening on Friday, March 14, will be followed by a panel discussion on justice, mental health, and rehabilitation for women who were victims of sexual violence during the civil war in Nepal. The talk will be held in Norwegian.
The Brink of Dreams
Director: Nada Riyadh, Ayman el Amir
In a remote village in Egypt, a group of teenage girls rebel against society’s strict norms through street theater performances. The girls, who dream of becoming actors, dancers, and singers, face life-changing choices, both individually and collectively, as we follow them into adulthood.
“The Brink of Dreams” won the “L’Oeil d’Or” award for best documentary at this year’s Cannes International Film Festival.
Housewife of the Year
Director: Ciaran Cassidy
You won’t believe it until you see it! An insight into the surreal television phenomenon that was supposed to choose Ireland’s best housewife.
“Housewife of the Year” is a film about a rather unique cultural phenomenon, namely the competition to become the housewife of the year, in Ireland. A few selected women were allowed to take part in the televised competition where the main prize was a modern gas stove.
How could we accept that things were the way they were? That is what some of the women in “Housewife of the Year” ask themselves, when they look back on their participation in the televised competition.
