London Feminist Film Festival

The London Feminist Film Festival celebrates feminist films past and present, from women directors around the world. The third LFFF will be held from 20 to 23 August, with screenings at the Rio Cinema, Dalston and the Tricycle Theatre, Kilburn.

THURSDAY 20 AUGUST 6.30 pm

The Lady of Percussion & Through the Lens of Hip Hop: UK Women + performance by rapper Pariz-1 + panel discussion with directors of ‘Through the Lens’, Pariz-1 and DJ Chardine Taylor-Stone. Chaired by Jessica Horn

The Lady of Percussion (La Dama de la Percusión). Cuban short film about Deborah, a percussionist from Old Havana, Cuba who has had to fight to be part of the world of the batá drum, an instrument traditionally only played by men.

Through the Lens of Hip Hop: UK Women.
Through the Lens of Hip Hop: UK Women is a documentary on women from the UK hip hop community. It touches on issues of feminism, identity, race, hip-hop education, women in the music industry and more. Presented in insightful personal narratives/reflections through intergenerational interviews, this film explores the much obscured but very present feminist hip-hop sensibility in the UK.

FRIDAY 21 AUGUST 6.30 pm

She’s Beautiful When She’s Angry + panel discussion with Lynne Segal and Clarissa Jacob, chaired by Sophie Mayer

UK PREMIERE

Combining dramatizations, performance and archival imagery, SHE’S BEAUTIFUL WHEN SHE’S ANGRY resurrects the buried history of the outrageous, often brilliant women who from 1966 to 1971 who fought for their own equality, founded the modern women’s movement and created a worldwide revolution. The film takes us from the founding of NOW, with ladies in hats and gloves, to the emergence of more radical factions of women’s liberation; from intellectuals like Kate Millett to the street theatrics of W.I.T.C.H. (Women’s International Conspiracy from Hell!). The film does not try to romanticise the early movement, but dramatizes it in its exhilarating, quarrelsome, sometimes heart-wrenching glory, not shying away from the controversies over race, sexual preference and leadership that arose. Thrilling, scandalous and often hilarious, it certainly captures the spirit of the time.
Winner Best Documentary, Fairhope Film Festival; Audience Award Best Documentary, Independent Film Festival Boston; Audience Award Best Documentary, Mardi Gras Film Festival.
Screened in collaboration with CLUB DES FEMMES.

SATURDAY 22 AUGUST 1.30 pm

RAPE CRISIS FUNDRAISER: It Happened Here + panel discussion with Susuana Amoah and others tbc. Chaired by Marianna Tortell

EUROPEAN PREMIERE

Filmed in the US but with huge relevance for the UK, It Happened Here is a documentary about the alarming pervasiveness of sexual assault on US university campuses; the impact on the student, their family and institution; and the burgeoning movement of student survivors coming forth and taking action against their universities on campus and in federal court.
Through the personal portraits of five students at three universities, testimonials from university administrators, educators, mental health experts and legal scholars, It Happened Here breaks the silence surrounding campus sexual violence and asks why is this happening? What are universities doing about it? What is ‘rape culture’ and what can we do to prevent campus assault?
Profits from this screening go to Rape Crisis England and Wales.

SATURDAY 21 AUGUST 4.00 pm

FEMINIST SHORTS SESSION + panel discussion with filmmakers of the films screened

Invisible Skin
Short film exploring the body as boundary and as self. Three women from three generations speak about their experiences of their bodies throughout their lives.

Running Commentary
Drama capturing the everyday sexism that women and girls experience. A woman becomes the focus of men’s gaze and commentary whilst out jogging.

A Bird in a Cage
Through a combination of interviews, archive footage and traditional cut-out animation, the remarkable life of Welsh suffragette Margaret Mackworth is uncovered.

There and Back
The story of one woman’s experience of sexual assault, how she dealt with the trauma and the support that existed to help her along the way.

The Girl and the Gondola
Drama. Following in your father’s footsteps can be tough, especially when you’re a girl. 10 year old Carla dreams of becoming a gondolier like her father, but 900 years of Venetian tradition and the disapproval of her parents stand in her way.

Kids on Gender
A child-led investigation of gender performance. A group of children reveal their ideas of what gender is, what they think about it and whether they believe in it. The film shows the kids struggling with stereotypical gender roles and questioning their rigidity.

SUNDAY 23 AUGUST 1.30 pm

I Was Five When I Became A Woman & But They Can’t Break Stones + panel discussion with director Elena Dirstaru and Sarita Panday

I was Five When I Became a Woman (پنج سالم بود که زن شدم).
An emotional tapestry that invites you to briefly share the life-long torment of genital mutilation still forced upon many young girls around the world.

But They Can’t Break Stones

WORLD PREMIERE

Nepal’s civil war ended nearly 10 years ago and its effects are still very visible, especially in terms of women’s rights. But They Can’t Break Stones shows the effect the war has had on women, and how women’s lives are shaped by political instability and by cultural norms that place them in domestic roles. We meet Radha Paudel, an activist working to educate women about their rights, and see her fighting chaupadi – an illegal tradition which considers women impure when menstruating and can mean they are banished to a tiny shed when on their periods. We also see women who are working for their independence, training to be mountain guides at an all-female training centre in Pokhara. A fascinating insight into women’s rights in Nepal.

SUNDAY 23 AUGUST 4.00 pm

FEMINIST CLASSIC: The Company of Strangers + panel discussion

Award-winning Canadian film with an all-female cast of non-professional actors by Academy Award winner Cynthia Scott. Seven elderly women and one young woman on a day trip are stranded in the Canadian countryside when their bus breaks down. With humour and spirit, the women get to know each other and work together in order to survive. Each of the actors tells stories from her own life, blending documentary and fiction, and much of the dialogue is improvised. The women are from varied walks of life, and include a Mohawk elder, a nun and a noted feminist writer.