The 2012 Sundance Film Festival was over a couple of weeks ago but some of the films I just can’t stop thinking about. Looking back, the film from 2011 that is still having incredible impact on me and will for some time is “MissRepresentation.” Barely a day goes by that someone does not bring up this amazing documentary to me. If you have not yet seen it, be sure to check out their web-site for a screening near you. They also just launched a #DontBuyIt campaign on twitter. Click here to learn more. You heard it here first, doc groups are the new book groups. Start one today. For a good place to source some great films check out the list at Impactpartners.com.
The film from 2012 that will no doubt prove to be as memorable and impactful is ”The Invisible War.” I did a post on this film prior to it’s premiere, and I simply must revisit it now. This incredibly well done and amazing investigative documentary about rape in the U.S. military won the Audience Award, U.S. Documentary at the 2012 festival. The issue of rape in the military was mostly unknown to many people until “The Invisible War” brought the issue to the forefront. To learn more about “The Invisible War” and the issues surrounding rape in the military you can visit their website. Please sign up for their newsletter and TAKE ACTION by signing a petition to stop rape in the military.
Ask any driven young athlete what their dream is and most likely you’ll hear, “I want represent my country in the Olympics.” To be an Olympic competitor is one of the highest accomplishments an athlete can achieve. But what if you were banned from such competition? “Ready To Fly” is an extraordinary documentary about just such an athlete and more. Lindsay Van and the women on the US Ski Jumping team have dealt with gender inequality in their sport for the last 18 years and chose to do something about it.
After years of practicing and competing Lindsay became the first Women’s World Ski Jumping Champion at the age of 24 years old in 2009. Yet her victory was bittersweet. Even though by distance she out-jumped many of the world’s best men jumpers she was not able to compete at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. Though the Olympics were created to allow athletes to compete without the burden of politics, religion, or racism, the International Olympic Committee decided to forbid women from competing in ski jumping. It was the only Winter Olympic discipline that didn’t allow women. Why? It was argued that the sport did not have enough of a following and one guy was even quoted as saying that ski jumping is likely not good for women’s reproductive organs. Perhaps the best line in the film is Lindsay saying ” my future is in the hands of some old dude.” I would add an old, white, sexist,…
Sundance Film Festival has taken over Park City, Utah for the last week and what a week it has been. From movie premiers, screenings, dinners, and events I have come to the conclusion that Sundance is not for the faint-hearted. It has been whirlwind of both outstanding films and incredible people.
On opening night I found myself seated with Rory Kennedy the filmmaker of Ethel ( and Taylor Swift!!) a Sundance documentary around which there was huge buzz. This Emmy award winning documentary film maker, social activist and the youngest of 11 children in the Kennedy family, wrote and produced a deeply personal and moving tribute to her family and in particular her mother. As the Sundance Institute describes it, “it would have satisfied even the most voracious history buffs if Rory Kennedy, youngest child of Robert and Ethel Kennedy, had enlisted her mother’s perspective simply as a fresh angle on the Kennedy years. But Ethel is so much more. Intimate, humorous conversations and never-before-seen images from the family troves uncover an enthralling story of a vivacious, authentic heroine whose transformation—from rambunctious Republican firecracker to savvy Democratic campaigner to socially conscious single mother of 11—arcs definitively as her husband’s drama unfolds.” Ethel Kennedy was a woman way ahead of her time.
Rory Kennedy graduated from Brown University in 1991 with a B.A. in Women’s Studies. In 1998 she and fellow Brown graduate Liz Garbus Founded Moxie Firecracker Films which specializes in documentaries that highlight pressing social issues…
Ask any driven young athlete what their dream is and most likely you’ll hear, “I want represent my country in the Olympics.” To be an Olympic competitor is one of the highest accomplishments an athlete can achieve. But what if you were banned from such competition? “
Sundance Film Festival has taken over Park City, Utah for the last week and what a week it has been. From movie premiers, screenings, dinners, and events I have come to the conclusion that Sundance is not for the faint-hearted. It has been whirlwind of both outstanding films and incredible people.