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happening this month
Through Women’s
Eyes International Film
Festival March 9-13
Spotlighting fresh voices and perspectives
in films from around the world
The Through
Women’s
Eyes International
Film Festival
will host the first
in-person North American
screening of the
documentary Shirin
Ebadi: Until We are
Free, featuring Nobel
Peace Prize winner
Shirin Ebadi, at its
opening celebration at
Ringling College of Art
and Design. Following
the screening, festival
organizers will present a program on the
current state of the uprisings and struggle
for human rights in Iran.
Now in its 24th year, the Through Women’s
Eyes International Film Festival will
spotlight fresh voices and perspectives in
films from around the world March 9-13.
The Sarasota-based festival will feature
virtual screenings and an in-person awards
event with established and emerging filmmakers.
Organizers will host the opening red
carpet celebration and film premiere on Friday,
March 10, at Ringling College of Art and
Design in the Larry R. Thompson Academic
Center, Morganroth Auditorium.
“We are delighted that the Through Women’s
Eyes International Film Festival will return
this year with both in-person and virtual
events that allow a global audience to access
these phenomenal films from anywhere,”
said Scott Osborne, festival chair. “We offer
a carefully curated selection of films unlike
what viewers see anywhere else.”
This year’s selections include 7 features,
21 shorts, and 10 Emerging Filmmaker
films. They represent China, Ireland, Russia,
Ukraine, England, Canada, Germany, South
Africa, Belgium, the Philippines, UAE, and
the USA. After receiving over 325 submissions
from 43 countries, the selection committee
chose 38 films that reflect a diverse
array of experiences by and about global
women and the LGBTQ+ community. Many
of the independent filmmakers are expected
to attend the festival and meet with audiences
to share what inspires them and how they
created their films.
The festival will once again celebrate
excellence with an awards ceremony, this
year on Saturday, March 11 from 1-4
p.m. at Fogartyville Community Media and
Arts Center in Sarasota. Awards include
Best Feature, Best Narrative Short, and
Best Documentary Short; local secondary
students from the New Gate Montessori IB
Global Program also participate in judging
and presenting an Impact Award.
Tickets and event passes are now available
at the film festival website.
Select films highlight the quality and
diversity of stories and perspectives.
■ Shirin Ebadi: Until We
are Free Iranian-born Shirin
Ebadi, the first Muslim woman
to ever win the Nobel Peace
Prize (2003,) has been fighting
for justice all her life. This gripping
story shows how fragile
democracy and human rights can
be, and it is a tale of one woman’s
struggle to restore the rights
that women - and men - are losing.
In-person viewing followed
by audience discussion.
■ The Bond is sixteen short
minutes which pack a phenomenal
emotional punch.
What happens when a woman
gives birth while incarcerated? This true
life tale is inspired by the birth experience
of director Jahmil Eady, an associate
producer on documentary projects
for the Oprah Winfrey Network.
■ Take the Ice follows behind the scenes
with the founder and commissioner of the
first professional women’s hockey league
and the athletes competing to win its inaugural
championship. As the commissioner
struggles to keep the league afloat, the
players must come together in the wake of
an on-ice accident that leaves a teammate
paralyzed. “Take the Ice” is a moving look at
elite athletes making strides for recognition
and equality within their sport, and in the
process, making history.
■ Klondike offers us a vision of war
in Ukraine, but through a woman’s
eyes. We meet a family living on the border
of Ukraine and Russia during the start of the
war in the Donbas and discover that pregnant
Irka refuses to leave her house even
as the village is captured by armed forces.
They soon find themselves at the center of
an international air crash catastrophe and a
family divided in its loyalties.
■ Intentionally Erased, directed by victim’s
rights advocate and domestic violence
survivor Kimya Motley, explores what
happens when Black men and Black trans
women talk about manhood, acceptance,
violence, the South and so much more.
■ Searchlight, Two Kinds of Water, and Salt
Lines: A Water Triptych is a series of three
short films about the lives of people who live
and work around water. With photography
from Senegal, Scotland, and Maine, filmmaker
Dan McDougall sheds light on work of
lobstermen and women, search and rescue
teams, how women and men navigate a life
on the sea, and the pull of the ocean that is
passed down from generation to generation.
Through Women’s Eyes is a 501c3 advocacy
organization dedicated to women’s
rights and gender equality. Learn more
at throughwomenseyes.org. Net festival
proceeds support women’s rights and gender
equality programs.
F I L M
March 9
through
March 13,
2023
38 films from 13 countries
Independent films by and about women
Virtual on-demand screenings
In-person opening celebration and
awards event
Single tickets $18
Five-film pass $75
All-festival pass $299
Through
Women’s
Eyes
advancing
gender
equality
F E S T I V A L
International
Film Festival
twe2023.eventive.org
Join our opening night celebration
and film screening!
Shirin Ebadi: Until We Are Free
Human Rights: A Nobel Laureate’s Story
Friday, March 10th, 5 - 9 PM
Ringling College of Art and Design
“An engaging and accomplished work...we’re left in awe
of a woman who has, quite literally, risked everything
she has including her life in the name of justice.”
The Independent Film Critic
Meet and greet filmmakers at
our awards ceremony!
Time to Choose: Four Short Films
with filmmaker conversations & awards ceremony
Saturday, March 11th, 1 - 4 PM
Fogartyville Community Media and Arts Center
twe2023.eventive.org
Through Women’s Eyes is an all-volunteer, 501c3 non-profit
organization dedicated to gender equality and women’s rights.
throughwomenseyes.org
All net proceeds from the festival support gender equality organizations.
24 th
YEAR
20
23
MARCH 2023 WEST COAST WOMAN 25