In a new partnership between New York Women in Film & Television (NYWIFT) and BAM (Brooklyn Academy of Music), we’re thrilled to present a collection of groundbreaking contemporary films that delve into science and technology in the modern world. These urgent documentaries and empowering fictions take us from the depths of outer space to the on-the-ground action of a Hasidic women-run ambulance corps and beyond.
Join us Tuesdays at 7 PM at BAM for six weeks of free STEM-focused screenings, followed by Q&A’s with the filmmakers.
Tuesday, February 6th at 7 PM: To the End
Filmed over four years of hope and crisis, To the End captures the emergence of a new generation of leaders and the movement behind the most sweeping climate change legislation in U.S. history. The award-winning team behind Knock Down the House follows four exceptional young women— Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, activist Varshini Prakash, climate policy writer Rhiana Gunn-Wright, and political strategist Alexandra Rojas— as they grapple with new challenges of leadership and power and work together to defend their generation’s right to a future. From street protests to the halls of Congress, these bold leaders fight to shift the narrative around climate, revealing the crisis as an opportunity to build a better society. Including up-to-the-minute footage that culminates in 2022’s landmark climate bill, To the End lifts the veil on the battle for the future of our world, and gives audiences a front seat view of history in the making.
Followed by a Q&A with filmmaker Rachel Lears and producer Sabrina Schmidt Gordon. Moderated by NYWIFT Board Member, Kim Jackson.
Tuesday, February 13th at 7 PM: Space: The Longest Goodbye
In the next decade, NASA will send astronauts to Mars for the first time. This groundbreaking documentary follows a psychologist tasked with protecting future crew members from the mental toll that the three year journey to Mars would take. A thrilling study of unparalleled isolation, director Ido Mizrahy reconciles the drive for technological progress with our desire to maintain deep, physical connections to our roots and each other.
Followed by a Q&A with director Ido Mizrahy, producer Valda Witt, and astronaut Cady Coleman. Moderated by NYWIFT CEO Cynthia Lopez.
Tuesday, February 20th at 7 PM: My Love Affair with Marriage
From Signe Baumane, director of Rocks in My Pockets, comes a new award-winning animated feature about a spirited young woman determined to find love in the bewildering world. My Love Affair With Marriage follows Zelma on her 23-year quest for perfect love and lasting marriage set against a backdrop of historic events in Eastern Europe. Told from a woman’s point of view, the film blends historical, biological, societal, and emotional arcs with a lively sense of humor and musical numbers. This animated film for adults tackles the issues of love, gender norms, domestic violence, fantasies and toxic relationships to propel a woman’s journey toward independence and liberation.
Followed by a Q&A with director Signe Baumane. Moderated by NYWIFT Board Member, Kuye Youngblood.
Tuesday, February 27th at 7 PM: Every Body
Every Body is a revelatory investigation of the lives of intersex people. The film tells the stories of three individuals who have moved from childhoods marked by shame, secrecy, and non-consensual surgeries to thriving adulthoods after each decided to set aside medical advice to keep their bodies a secret and instead came out as their authentic selves. Actor and screenwriter River Gallo (they/them), political consultant Alicia Roth Weigel (she/they), and Ph.D. student Sean Saifa Wall (he/him) are now leaders in a fast-growing global movement advocating for greater understanding of the intersex community and an end to unnecessary surgeries. Woven into the story is a stranger-than-fiction case of medical abuse, featuring exclusive footage from the NBC News archives, which helps explain the modern-day treatment of intersex people.
Followed by a Q&A with director Julie Cohen. Moderated by NYWIFT Board Member, Okema T. Moore.
Tuesday, March 5th at 7 PM: 93Queen
Set in the Hasidic enclave of Borough Park, Brooklyn, 93Queen follows a group of tenacious Hasidic women who are smashing the patriarchy in their community by creating the first all-female volunteer ambulance corps in New York City. With unprecedented — and insider — access, 93Queen offers up a unique portrayal of empowered women who are taking matters into their own hands to change their own community from within.
Followed by a Q&A with director Paula Eiselt. Moderated by NYWIFT President’s Circle Chair Jamie Zelermyer.
Tuesday, March 12th at 7 PM: Chilly & Milly and Over-Flow
A presentation of two short films: In Chilly & Milly, 11 years after filming a documentary about his family, director William D. Caballero returns home to revisit scenes from his documentary with his parents, Chilly and Milly. Chilly, William’s father, is a diabetic with kidney failure, whose illness detrimentally affects his and his family’s lives. Milly sees her sole purpose in life as to taking care of her loved ones. While watching the documentary, Chilly and Milly discuss their life together, and their successes and setbacks in life. When Chilly passes away during the pandemic, Milly comes to terms with her loss.
In Over-Flow: Initially, filmmaker Elizabeth Ramjit ventures to the Caribbean island of Trinidad to document its unregulated air pollution and marine contamination concerns, but she refocuses her subject on a recent flash flood in Trinidad and Tobago that continuously accumulates waste. A firsthand account from Ramjit, a first-generation American Trinidadian filmmaker, of the devastation from overbank floods and flash-floods in the twin-island Caribbean nation. Ramjit interviews activists on a quest for revival. These chronicled activists reassure viewers that by refraining from littering and enacting recycling, citizens will no longer be deemed as instigators of seemingly natural disasters or environmental anarchy.
Followed by a Q&A with filmmaker Elizabeth Ramjit. Moderated by NYWIFT Board Member Emelyn Stuart.
Thanks to our partners:
Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM)
National Science Foundation (NSF)
The Screening Series is supported by:
