A-WOW Film Festival | 11 to 11 | Dallas, Tx - April 25, 2015
We Want to be Seen, We Want to be Heard.
Wild (Drama/Biography, Dir. Jean-Marc Vallée)
Based on the memoir by Cheryl Strayed, Wild tracks the emotional journey of Cheryl, a 26-year-old heroin addict grieving the loss of her mother, as she hikes the Pacific Crest Trail alone from California’s Mojave Desert to the Bridge of the Gods in Oregon. Beautiful, poetic and deeply moving, Wild winds the road to Cheryl’s self-discovery with wit, grace and the will to confront one’s self, no matter how rough the emotional terrain may be.
Gulabb Gana (subtitles)
In the small town of Madhavpur, a young girl is hell bent on studying. A victim of domestic abuse of her step mother with her feeble father being unable to stand up for her at a young age Rajjo (Madhuri Dixit) takes up a zero tolerance stance against any atrocity committed against women.
Setting up her own gang of powerful and spirited women, The Gulaab Gang members are activists and vigilantes in Bundelkhand Uttar and Madhya Pradesh. They wear pink sarees and take up issues like domestic violence, the dowry system, rape, electricity matters, and education. Rajjo who is fondly called Didi lives in her own asharam. she teaches young girls their alphabet, and grown-up girls how to wield a lathi and works on social development issues in a wholesome manner and. However, her real combat begins when the manipulative local politician (Juhi Chawla) takes her on. Rajjo with her popularity too decides on giving her a great fight and hence begins a memorable election war of sorts!
Setting up her own gang of powerful and spirited women, The Gulaab Gang members are activists and vigilantes in Bundelkhand Uttar and Madhya Pradesh. They wear pink sarees and take up issues like domestic violence, the dowry system, rape, electricity matters, and education. Rajjo who is fondly called Didi lives in her own asharam. she teaches young girls their alphabet, and grown-up girls how to wield a lathi and works on social development issues in a wholesome manner and. However, her real combat begins when the manipulative local politician (Juhi Chawla) takes her on. Rajjo with her popularity too decides on giving her a great fight and hence begins a memorable election war of sorts!
Anita (Documentary, Dir. Freida Lee Mock)
Victims of sexual harassment and assault are often met with scorn and intense scrutiny, but few women have endured as much derision as Anita Hill. In 1991, Hill provided testimony against Clarence Thomas’ appointment to the Supreme Court, alleging that under his employment, he sexually harassed her. What resulted was a media firestorm complete with swirling winds of racism, sexism, power and politics. Academy Award-winning filmmaker Freida Lee Mock revisits the scandal, compiling archival footage with fresh commentary.
On July 1, 1991, President George H. W. Bush nominated Clarence Thomas for the Supreme Court of the United States to replace Thurgood Marshall, who had announced his retirement. Toward the end of the confirmation hearings, allegations by Anita Hill, a law professor who had previously worked under Thomas at the United States Department of Education and then at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), were leaked to the media from a confidential FBI report. On October 11, 1991, Hill was called to testify during the hearing.
On July 1, 1991, President George H. W. Bush nominated Clarence Thomas for the Supreme Court of the United States to replace Thurgood Marshall, who had announced his retirement. Toward the end of the confirmation hearings, allegations by Anita Hill, a law professor who had previously worked under Thomas at the United States Department of Education and then at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), were leaked to the media from a confidential FBI report. On October 11, 1991, Hill was called to testify during the hearing.
Difret (Drama, Dir. Zeresenay Berhane Mehari)
After 14-year-old Hirut is abducted and raped by a man who intends to marry her by force, she steals her would-be husband’s rifle and kills him in fear for her life. Facing execution for her crime, Meaza Ashenafi, a lawyer and advocate for women’s rights in Ethiopia, volunteers to represent Hirut, but risks her own legal-aid practice in the process. Based on true events, Difret serves as a reminder of the hard-won battles for equal rights of women and girls globally.
Mary Kom
Mangte Chungneijang Mary Kom (born 1 March 1983), also known as MC Mary Kom, or simply Mary Kom is an Indian boxer. She is a five-time World Amateur Boxing champion, and the only woman boxer to have won a medal in each one of the six world championships. Nicknamed "Magnificent Mary", she is the only Indian woman boxer to have qualified for the 2012 Summer Olympics, competing in the flyweight (51 kg) category and winning the bronze medal. She has also been ranked as No. 4 AIBA World Women's Ranking Flyweight category. She became the first Indian woman boxer to get a Gold Medal in the Asian Games in 2014 in Incheon, South Korea.