Empowering documentaries about remarkable women
ISTANBUL
To celebrate International Women’s Day, Kundura Cinema’s March screening program offers eight must-see documentaries centering around inspirational women.
Documentaries include renowned titles which have previously been screened at major international film festivals such as the Berlin International Film Festival, BFI London Film Festival, Haifa International Film Festival and Locarno International Film Festival.
“Delphine et Carole, Insoumuses,” directed by Callisto McNulty focuses on the feminist movement in Europe during the 1970s. Produced in 2018, numerous issues on feminist agenda of the time, such as the legalization of abortion, free birth control opportunities and rights of sexual minorities meet with the audience from the viewpoint of Delphine Seyrig, actress and women’s right activist, and, Carole Roussopoulos, documentary filmmaker and video artist.
“Romantic Comedy,” produced in 2019 by Elizabeth Sankey, focuses on the past, present and future of the romantic comedy genre in cinema. In this documentary directed over various examples from past to present, the director opens up for discussion the concepts imposed by romantic comedy movies.
“Overseas,” by the director Sung-A Yoon, centers around the women preparing for working abroad in a training center for housework. Women practicing both as an employee and employer in their training learn the niceties of housework on one hand and understand how to cope with any potential psychological and physical harassment while experiencing homesickness.
The film, produced in 2018, questions the notion of “modern slavery” in our globalized world while highlighting those women’s determination, solidarity, and the stance they take against the challenges awaiting them in the future.
Director Gabriel Mascaro ’s 2012 documentary “Housemaids” focuses on the daily routines like cooking, cleaning, ironing and childcare of the real housemaids. The documentary also draws attention to their way of living with a foreign family. Throughout the movie, housemaids run around the house working and share their memories on their backgrounds, commenting about love and happiness.
“School of Seduction” by Alina Rudnitskaya follows three Russian women in their 30s, with utterly different backgrounds but the same mission: To extend their area of freedom within the society with a wealthy husband. It elaborates what it is like being a woman in Putin’s Russia.
The documentary “The Feminister” by director Viktor Nordenskiöld centers around Margot Wallström who was the foreign minister in Sweden between 2014 and 2019. Director reveals in his documentary the brave and effective actions of the minister on one hand, and points out the international political atmosphere and the women’s place within this atmosphere, on the other.
The documentary “Fiancées,” filmed by the Swiss director Julia Bünter in 2019, tells the story of three young Egyptian women who are about to get married; and portrays the modern society in Cairo that has become a huge metropolis with its population over 20 million. The movie tells the story of three young couples, planning to get married with a desire to set a free life independent from their families, stuck between the pursuit of freedom and traditions in Egypt, which has witnessed significant changes in the recent years politically, economically and socially.
Antonio Bigini and Mariann Lewinsky’s “Ella Maillart: Double Journey” addresses the colonialism, gender norms and international policies in the eyes of the remarkable traveler of 20th century, promising an unforgettable experience to the audience. Ella Maillart travels all alone in Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan, for almost a year and has a chance to observe closer the colonial system. She not only records via camera what she sees, but also tells the story on her letters and diaries.
Female Film Pioneers panel program
The March screening program not only brings together the best documentaries about women’s empowerment but also includes a panel to discuss “Female Film Pioneers,” running for two days, on March 7 and 8, at Kundura Cinema.
The event welcomes Aslı Davaz, Canan Balan and Elif Rongen Kaynakçı in the panel program. The two-day program will start with screenings followed by discussions about female directors, screenwriters and how they pursue their career in the film industry.
