Girl Rising (2013)

Girl Rising: Directed by Richard Robbins. With Amina, Azmera, Arindol Bagchi, Rekha Banerjee. This film follows 9 girls from Haiti, Nepal, Ethiopia, India, Egypt, Peru, Cambodia, Sierra Leone, and Afghanistan on their journey to education.

“I recently had the privilege of seeing Girl Rising, 10x10u0026#39;s gripping documentary about nine girls from around the world, and why educating them—and every girl—is vitally important to our future.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eEach of these amazing, resilient girls comes from one of nine countries: Afghanistan, Cambodia, Egypt, Ethiopia, Haiti, India, Nepal, Peru and Sierra Leone. They all have incredible stories to tell, each with unimaginable hardships, but also with hope.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eGirl Rising features a beautiful mix of live-action, animation and narration, of reenactments and reimaginings, as well as real-life footage. Itu0026#39;s stunningly made, with fabulous cinematography, impeccable writing, and a unique approach to each story—fitting for nine unique and utterly captivating girls.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eThe film is also fair. It gives the girls a voice, which sadly has a lot to say about abuse at the hands of men, and being subordinated by both men and women. But it makes an effort to show positive male figures, like protective brothers and nurturing fathers.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eInterestingly, the film is directed by Richard Robbins and its central narrator is Liam Neeson. To me, involving these men shows solidarity and an emphasis on healing the world together.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eBut thatu0026#39;s not to say the male voices overpower the female in Girl Rising. Women leave a lasting mark all over the film, from the producers to the writers to the rest of the narrators, who are all female and include the likes of Cate Blanchett, Anne Hathaway, Salma Hayek, Alicia Keyes and Meryl Streep.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eSee Girl Rising and I believe youu0026#39;ll be deeply moved. The girlsu0026#39; stories are sometimes painful, but always lead to powerful, triumphant endings. And between each one, youu0026#39;ll discover overwhelming facts about the benefits of educating girls—benefits for them, their countries and the entire world.u003cbr/u003eu003cbr/u003eIu0026#39;m not sure when/if the film will get a wider release, but for now, you can visit GirlRising.com to arrange a screening, get more information and, of course, donate to one of the most important causes.”