by JENNIFER MERIN
September brings a big gust of PBS programming and community screenings that show how girls and women are confronting war, famine and abuse. A documentary about a dolphin who gives inspiration to amputees is also in the mix.
September, it seems, began in retrograde: not one of the films opening on Labor Day weekend was directed by a woman.
Meanwhile the holiday’s big femme-centric feature, the French thriller “Love Crime,”has an older and younger woman–formidably portrayed by Kristin Scott-Thomas and Ludivine Sagnier, respectively–pitted against each other in mortal competition. No siree, sisterhood was not this month’s starter.
However, September does see the launch of “Women and Girls Lead,” a multiyear, multiplatform, global femme-centric cinematic initiative intended to raise consciousness about issues and empower women to take action against gender bias and other social injustice. “Women and Girls Lead” is created by ITVS, the nonprofit that provides much of the content for PBS, and partnering organizations, including the Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media and the Girl Scouts.
The heart of the initiative will be the broadcast of 50 female-empowering documentary features on public television, with a rich variety of interactive online opportunities.
WEN for more