Director Rudy Valdez’s sister, Cindy, a married mother of three young girls, long ago left a drug-dealing ex. Despite this, she receives a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison under conspiracy charges related to his crimes. Over a period of ten years, Rudy’s camera captures the moments in his nieces’ lives that Cindy […]
This program presents two films appearing in our Short List: Shorts section recognizing some of the top documentary shorts films of the year. THE GIRL AND THE PICTURE DIR: Vanessa Roth 80 years ago, Xia Shuqin witnessed the murder of her family during the Nanjing Massacre. The Girl and the Picture uncovers how an American […]
In 1978, inspired by the popularity of NFL cheerleaders, Playboy organized a pictorial feature approved by team management happy for the media exposure. But when the resulting pictures set off a critical backlash, cheerleaders were fired, exposing society’s hypocrisy around female sexuality. Courtesy of A&E IndieFilms/Lifetime Films.
Maryam Henderson-Uloho spent thirteen years in prison in Louisiana, seven in solitary confinement. After her release she struggled to find housing or employment. She began selling secondhand goods out of a suitcase on a street corner in New Orleans. In just three years, she grew her business to a brick-and-mortar thrift store—one that also provides […]
NYC PREMIERE Marina has barely spoken to her sister, Tatiana, in 20 years, ever since Tatiana left Jerusalem to follow spiritual leader Gerondas to a monastery in Greece and became a nun. Wishing to understand her sister’s choice to surrender her freedom to a religious order, and compelled to reconnect, Marina seeks out Tatiana and […]
High school student and poet, Chasity Hunter, experienced intense flooding in her New Orleans neighborhood during both Hurricane Katrina and recent summer rainstorms. Inspired to find out how safe her city really is, she investigates her city’s infrastructure and questions water experts, finding her own voice along the way.
NYC PREMIERE This Changes Everything gathers a who’s who of female actors and directors for a powerful call to action on elevating women’s roles in film and television, both on and off screen. Meryl Streep, Sandra Oh, Jessica Chastain, Shonda Rhimes, Reese Witherspoon, Taraji P. Henson and executive producer Geena Davis are among the many […]
WORLD PREMIERE Filmmaker Maxine Trump turns the camera on herself and her close circle of family and friends as she confronts the idea of not having kids. While exploring the cultural pressures and harsh criticism child-free women regularly experience, as well as the personal impact this decision may have on her own relationship, Maxine meets […]
NYC PREMIERE War correspondent Marie Colvin repeatedly and selflessly put her life on the line to report the atrocities unfolding in conflict-ravaged Syria, specifically against its innocent civilians. This gritty adaptation of fellow correspondent Paul Conroy’s titular book puts the viewer under fire on the frontline alongside the intrepid journalists, using harrowing on-the-ground footage. A […]
WORLD PREMIERE This refreshing film offers a unique peek into the private lives of women who have survived unspeakable sorrow, yet blossom through the healing power of art. During a theater workshop in a Lebanese refugee camp, four Syrian women discover they have a lot in common with the ancient Greek heroine, Antigone, and experience […]