Sudbury Indie Cinema Co-op Celebrates Girl Power for International Women’s Day!
On March 8th, Sudbury Indie Cinema Co-op hosted their monthly WomenInFilmWednesday series, however March’s edition was a special one, as it happened to fall on International Women’s Day! Beth Mairs, director of Indie Cinema, gave us all the details about the event, the film screening, and why it is important to be a feminist in 2017.
International Women’s Day was March 8th, which also happened to be the same day as your WomeninFilmWednesday event! Can you tell us the details of what Indie Cinema had planned? What films were screened?
We screened THE WORLD BEFORE HER by Nisha Pahuja. This doc won Best Canadian Feature at Hot Docs and a number of other best film awards from around the world. It had only played once before in Sudbury and we were delighted to bring it back for an encore. In addition, we also screened some local shorts created as part of ArmHer, a community arts collaboration between Myths and Mirrors and local sex workers.
We understand that you have been celebrating northern Ontario’s feminists and change makers at the event for the past year. What was in store for this year’s celebration?
Yes, last year we invited the movers and shakers in the women’s community 20 years ago. What a hoot! This year, we asked, whom are the younger, more recent feminists making a difference in Sudbury. Wow- a great list emerged! In fact, one of Our Crater’s creators made the cut handily: Adriana Nicolucci! Maybe you’ve heard of her?
One of our co-founders – Adriana Nicolucci – was selected as one of our community’s feminist change-makers.
Real talk: what does it mean to you to be a feminist?
To me it means having a critical analysis of and resistance to the presence of sexism and misogyny in our daily lives as well as how it is institutionalized in various systems. But beyond understanding and challenging sexism, my feminism includes positive action to actively create the spaces for women to be celebrated, to restore, to challenge and expand. Having an understanding of female oppression can lead you into understanding the impact of other isms…. especially if you experience them personally. But having a gender analysis does not automatically enlighten you to all the injustices in the world, nor one’s own privilege. It’s one lens- we need many- and hopefully we start to integrate them into a more sophisticated understanding of power and hierarchy, as well as our place in it.
What inspired you to create the WomeninFilmWednesday series? Why is it important to celebrate women in the film industry and give them a voice?
We have heard again and again how in film, women directors are under-represented, under-funded, and under-screened. Yet still, there is fantastic work being produced by women directors. Part of the mandate of a not-for-profit independent cinema can be to bring under-represented voices to the big screen. Being proactive, WomenInFilmWednesdays does just that. I’m not sure if this series has more of a cult-following amongst audience members or women filmmakers- but I can tell you because of this series, Sudbury is ‘on the map’ amongst many of Canada’s top women in film.
Does Indie Cinema have any other big plans for 2017? What can we expect from the upcoming Women in Film Wednesday events this year?
Indie Cinema will run WomenInFilmWednesdays up to summertime- and quite frankly after so many heavy films- I am on the hunt for a quirky comedy or two. In June, we will be back with what is currently the only LGBTQ-themed film festival in Northern Ontario-Queer North. This summer we will run the Great Canadian Film Series- a biweekly evening event in a downtown park. In the fall, we are heading into the 5th year of a dedicated documentary festival. Its been called Best of Hot Docs-Sudbury- however, this will change in 2017 with a unique made-in-Sudbury feel and new name (yet to be finalized).
How can we keep following for more updates and events?
I’d be watching: SudburyIndieCinema.com or on Facebook page.
Adriana Nicolucci
Adriana Nicolucci is a Communications and Film Production graduate, fashion enthusiast, and patterned sock collector. She’s often spotted munching on the Eenie Meenie Grilled Zucchini Pizza at the Buddha. Danny Ocean is her spirit animal, except she’s planning a heist to steal your hearts (not a casino)
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